The Miami Dolphins will take the practice field this morning without veteran quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and safety Kavon Frazier, head coach Brian Flores announced to kick off his morning press availability. Both players are being excused because of ‘personal reasons’ — and Flores was not willing to shed any more light on their individual situations than that. For Miami, the absence of Fitzpatrick is especially notable due to the team’s ongoing battle for the starting quarterback gig.
Fitzpatrick has been the favorite to secure the starting job thanks to his prior experiences and exposures to offensive coordinator Chan Gailey’s offense, but with Fitzpatrick away from the practice field the Dolphins will get a much better look at their two young signal callers, Tua Tagovailoa and Josh Rosen.
Fitzpatrick’s absence is indefinite and although it isn’t likely to uproot the established pecking order of Miami’s quarterback room, having more reps given to both young players could spur on a divide between Rosen and Tagovailoa one way or another. Rosen has been able to generate some buzz with his performance through the first three days of padded practices after being an afterthought all summer.
But as a former top-10 overall selection, Rosen has been able to remind everyone that he, too, is plenty talented — but his mental polish is looking better this year versus last season. He, along with Tagovailoa, will get the chance to shine as the only two arms on the field this morning for Miami.