Dolphins Training Camp – Page 10

6 takeaways from first day of Dolphins’ training camp

From the orange jersey recipient to highlights.

On Wednesday, the Miami Dolphins took the field for their first practice session in the first training camp of the Mike McDaniel era in South Florida at Baptist Health Training Complex across from Hard Rock Stadium.

The head coach took questions before practice began, and some players were made available for the same thing after they were done working out, as they provided us with some information and entertainment.

As the Dolphins reported to training camp, here’s what we learned on the day that they hit the practice field.

Mike McDaniel’s message for Tua Tagovailoa at Dolphins’ training camp

They seem to have a solid working relationship.

Heading into 2022, there’s one storyline that every member of the Miami Dolphins fanbase, media and staff will be following this season, and that’s the performance of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

The narrative that this season will decide the former Crimson Tide signal-caller’s career is a tired one, but it’s still one that holds true. If Tagovailoa can’t perform up to expectations with a new offensive-minded head coach, an improved offensive line and more weapons, it’s unlikely that he’ll have an opportunity to start for Miami in 2023.

So, with the first training camp under new head coach Mike McDaniel beginning, what is the coach telling and asking of his quarterback?

“It’s deliberate intent on each play,” McDaniel said. “A quarterback’s job is exhausting, in terms of, you’ve gotta know a lot of things. He recognized that in OTAs and put in more time this offseason than I think he has with football in that regard.

“What I really want to see from him is Tua is super hard on himself, which is a good thing. But anything in excess isn’t the best thing, either. He holds himself [to] a high standard. I don’t want that to impede when things don’t go the way he wants. I don’t want that to impede the next play… He has such a natural football presence on the football field. Who cares if there’s one [mistake]. Again, like every quarterback, it’s not if but when. Those short-term memories that’s what I think you can really work on in training camp right now and moving forward as the leader of our team.”

There’s a lot of pressure on Tagovailoa’s shoulders this year, and that’s no secret. McDaniel has been supportive of the Dolphins quarterback as the franchise guy this offseason, so he will have his head coach as a resource to rely on this year, something that might not have been as accessible in the past.

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Mike McDaniel shares his vision for first Dolphins training camp

What does training camp look like for him?

The Miami Dolphins are about to hit the next phase of a new era, as they step on the field Wednesday for their first training camp session under new head coach Mike McDaniel.

McDaniel has been around for a while, working his way up the NFL ladder since his days as an intern with the Denver Broncos back in 2005, but this is his first chance to run a training camp the way he sees fit.

Speaking to the media before practice, McDaniel laid out how exactly he’d like a camp to go for his team.

“I think it’s something that there’s a common denominator with teams that I’ve been on that have been very successful,” McDaniel said. “It’s not that things don’t get hard. It’s not that there’s not adversity. It’s not that everything goes well. It’s a diligent approach to each and every day, and teammates recognizing invariably – Day 1 juiced, Day 2 juiced.

“What organically evolves within the team is that peer, I don’t want to say pressure, but more like accountability where there is gonna be some guys that don’t have the juice next Tuesday. The vision that I have for the Dolphins and the team that we’re building through the summer and into the preseason is that teammates take responsibility for the energy and when somebody’s down, the standard and demand to bring them up is very present. It’s a long process, but the good teams embrace that, and it’s pretty masochistic, but it’s fun. It’s what we do, and it wouldn’t be worth as much as it is if it wasn’t very difficult.”

This is an excellent goal from the coach. The team and the players set the standard for each other each day as they enter the building. If they can hold that intensity and competition level, Miami could be a formidable team under McDaniel’s leadership.

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LOOK: Dolphins arrive at team facility for training camp

Some appeared more outwardly excited than others.

The Miami Dolphins have arrived at Baptist Health Training Complex across from Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens to begin their first training camp sessions under Mike McDaniel.

For some, this is just another day during their time with the Dolphins and something they’ve done times before. For others, this is the first day at a new school with a new teacher leading the group.

Whichever side they fall on, it’s an exciting moment, as the start of another NFL season rings near. Soon there will be fans in the seats, cheering on the aqua and orange as they do each year.

In the meantime, here are some pictures from Dolphins veterans arriving back at the facility on Tuesday.

2022 Dolphins’ complete training camp schedule: Everything you need to know

Some dates, times and locations for fans.

The Miami Dolphins are set to open up their first training camp of the Mike McDaniel era in Miami Gardens. Dolphins rookies have already been in the building for a week, and the veterans are making their return on Tuesday.

The players will hit the practice field starting Wednesday, but practice won’t open to the public until the weekend. They will then continue practicing throughout the month, with a few more days available to be viewed, including joint practices with both the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium and the Philadelphia Eagles on Miami’s practice fields.

Here’s the complete training camp schedule with everything you need to know for each day.

Dolphins report to facility in Miami Gardens on Tuesday

It’s really the first sign of the new year.

There’s nothing quite like the first day of school when graduating to an institute of higher learning. The Miami Dolphins will welcome their 2022 rookie class on Tuesday, as the youngsters report to camp. Ironically, these rookies, on their first day of class, will report to a freshman professor.

Ivy-league educated and west-coast football groomed first-year NFL head coach Mike McDaniel will get his first class of pupils to orientate into professional football life. All at the same time, he’s getting assimilated to his new role and a new opportunity to create something great in South Florida.

The 2022 Dolphins rookie class includes a franchise-low of just four selected players and just over a dozen undrafted free agents that will make the first week of camp competitive.

Remember, Miami traded their top two 2022 picks to the Kansas City Chiefs to acquire wide receiver Tyreek Hill, so the 2022 Dolphins class was smaller. Third-round linebacker Channing Tindall, fourth-round wide receiver Erik Ezukanma and a pair of sevenths in linebacker Cameron Goode and quarterback Skylar Thompson round out the names Miami called in May’s Draft.

Throw in the undrafted free agents, and you truly have the beginning of training camp battles, especially at running back, wide receiver, and most importantly, offensive line.

While not a first-round pick, it’s arguable that Tindall has that type of talent. Miami made him their first pick of 2022, but the potential for first-round impact is there. He has electric speed in the middle of the second tier of the defense and will complement Jerome Baker and Elandon Roberts in a group looking for a young heavy-hitter.

Flipping to offense, Miami will be looking to build their running back room, and McDaniel will undoubtedly have tough choices to make. The Dolphins have returning runners Myles Gaskin, Salvon Ahmed and 2021 rookie Gerrid Doaks. However, signing three free agents this offseason in Raheem Mostert, Chase Edmonds and Sony Michel, and inking an undrafted in ZaQuandre White, may indicate the writing is on the wall for Gaskin and Ahmed.

White has a full week to be the apple of his new coach’s eye, as McDaniel specializes in the running scheme. If White impresses early, and when things pick up next week when veterans report, Gaskin and/or Ahmed could be on the chopping block. Gaskin, a seventh-round pick in 2019, holds some trade value if Miami would attempt that route.

Sticking with the skill positions, Ezukanma is a wide receiver from Texas Tech and will get an opportunity to learn from a former NFL pass catcher, who was both a Red Raider and Dolphin.

Current Miami wide receiver coach, Wes Welker and Ezukanma have that commonality, and that can only help in the rookie’s efforts to battle his way not only onto the roster but into the snap count consideration.

In four years at Texas Tech, Ezukanma caught 138 passes for 2,165 yards and 15 touchdowns. He joins a loaded room of talent with Hill, 2021 rookie record holder in receptions, Jaylen Waddle, and newly signed free agent Cedrick Wilson Jr.

In the mix for the main spots on the 53-man roster, should Miami keep six or seven active weekly, this leaves the imminent competition with Ezukanma and veterans Lynn Bowden Jr., Preston Williams, Trent Sherfield, River Cracraft, Cody Core and CFL standout DeVonte Dedmon. The Dolphins also signed undrafted free agent receiver Braylon Sanders from Mississippi who could be a potential practice squad player.

Perhaps the make-or-break determiner of success this season for Miami is the offensive line. Heading into camp, the good news is that the Dolphins add elite left tackle Terron Armstead, formerly of the New Orleans Saints. They also added guard (at the time of signing) Connor Williams from the Dallas Cowboys who’s rumored to have the lead on the starting center spot based on early reports from OTAs last month.

The new Dolphins join a youthful line that includes 2020 first-round pick Austin Jackson and his fellow draft classmates Robert Hunt and Solomon Kindley. 2019 third-round pick Michael Deiter and 2021 second-round pick Liam Eichenberg are also heavily in the competition. 2021 undrafted free agent Robert Jones could be fighting for swing guard reps, and two UDFAs will start their train camps this week in Blaise Andries from Minnesota and Kellen Diesch from Arizona State.

There seem to be more questions than answers heading into camp regarding the construction of the offensive line both of which five and where each will play. The only name you can lock in with iron-clad ink is Armstead at left tackle. Pencil in Hunt at right guard, and then there will be battles all over the line with guys like Jackson and Eichenberg with the leads at the moment.

The depth of the line will be important, and thanks to the position flexibility of guys like Deiter and Jones, Andries and Diesch could compete for the practice squad. The wild card in this was Williams playing center, as he spent his first four NFL seasons in Dallas as a left guard.

Questions will soon be answered, as the Dolphins’ 2022 training camp officially opens in South Florida.

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Why the Dolphins RB room will be the group to watch this summer

With a bunch of veterans and a UDFA, there will be competition.

Now that we’re in the month of July, the smell of football is in the air and hitting like aromas from a July 4 barbeque. While there are still a few weeks until the Miami Dolphins open up Mike McDaniel’s first NFL training camp as a head coach, there’s a solid chance several players are not in vacation mode at the moment.

With an influx of talent in all areas and phases of football, a number of Dolphins could be in jeopardy of losing their role. Not only that, but some rooms also seem over-occupied at the moment, and cuts or trades could very well happen as Miami prepares to trim their roster through the summer and preseason.

When looking at the offseason acquisitions in South Florida, a certain room added three veterans through free agency, as well as an undrafted rookie. They joined a trio of contracted Dolphins in Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed as well as practice squad seventh-round 2021 draft pick Gerrid Doaks.

Ironically, the two Washington Huskie friends in Gaskin and Ahmed could be the ones with their work cut out for them. The emergence of rookie UDFA ZaQuandre White impressing in camp could make one or both expendable. Gaskin was a seventh-round pick in 2019, and Ahmed was an UDFA originally signed by San Francisco, but he ended up in Miami in 2020.

Gaskin could hold trade value if Miami is to go that route, and that wouldn’t be surprising at all based on general manager Chris Grier’s track record. If there’s a draft pick to potentially recoup, Gaskin would be the asset to send, leaving a three-way battle with Ahmed, Doaks and White to earn that fourth running back role.

Gaskin can be a very solid pass-catching back and has proved that so far in his career. Gaskin caught 49 passes for Miami last season for 234 yards and four receiving touchdowns. 2021 did see his lowest career output in both yards per carry (3.5) and yards per reception (4.8). Inversely, last season Gaskin averaged 4.1 yards per carry on the ground and 9.5 yards per catch.

Ahmed showed flashes in limited action in 2020 and 2021 but regressed in his production. As a rookie, he rushed for 319 yards on 75 carries, good for a respectable 4.3 yards per attempt. He found the endzone three times and added 11 receptions in just six appearances.

In two occasions in 2020, Ahmed recorded 20+ carries. He gained 85 yards and 122 yards in those games, scoring in each contest. The Dolphins beat the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 10 and New England Patriots in Week 15 with the help of Ahmed.

2021 was a different story, as Ahmed never went over eight carries. His yards per carry was 2.8, and he only rushed 54 times while seeing offensive action in 11 games.

This doesn’t bode spectacularly well for Ahmed or Gaskin, as the Miami rushing attack in 2022 could be brand-new, with potentially four or five backs yet to record an official rush for the Dolphins. Raheem Mostert was a Dolphin in 2015, but in his one game, he didn’t record a touch.

The Dolphins could run with Mostert, who had sparks of spectacular play while a 49er with McDaniel, as well as Chase Edmonds and Sony Michel as their three-headed committee. Mostert has electric speed and could be the game-breaker Miami sorely needs, while Edmonds could be the most relied upon back in both the rushing and receiving components. Look for Michel to be the short-yardage and goal-line back.

It will be interesting to see the battle between Doaks and White, as there’s no certainty there. Both could either make the team or practice squad. The running back room is certainly one to focus on this summer in training camp. McDaniel, who specializes in the running scheme, just may be the perfect evaluator.

Rookies report to training camp July 19, and fans will be able to watch practice live for a number of sessions.

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