Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Here’s who’s sticking around from the practice squad.
With the Miami Dolphins 2023 officially coming to a close on Saturday, the restrictions that force teams to keep their active rosters at 53 players are lifted, allowing teams to sign up to 90 players.
Once a team is eliminated from the playoffs, they can sign a number of players to reserve/futures contracts which adds them to the active roster through the spring and summer.
On Monday, the Dolphins signed these eight players from their practice squad to such deals:
This is his final elevation.
On Saturday, the Miami Dolphins had the opportunity to elevate up to two players from the practice squad to the active roster for their Week 13 battle with the Washington Commanders.
Miami opted to use just one, as they’ve elevated tight end Tanner Conner for the third time this season. If the Dolphins want him to appear in another game for them in 2023, they’ll have to sign him to the active roster.
In Conner’s previous two appearances this year (against the Carolina Panthers and Philadelphia Eagles), he played just 11 offensive snaps and 23 on special teams.
Miami gets some RB depth back.
The Miami Dolphins had an open roster spot heading into their Week 7 matchup Philadelphia Eagles and some decisions to make in regards to elevations.
On Saturday the team announced two transactions – the activation of running back Jeff Wilson Jr. from injured reserve and the elevation of tight end Tanner Conner from the practice squad.
Wilson had suffered rib and finger injuries in training camp resulting in his placement on injured reserve. He’ll now join Raheem Mostert and Salvon Ahmed as the backs on the 53-man roster.
He’s the second player to return from injured reserve for the Dolphins this season. Only eight can do so in a single year.
This is Conner’s second elevation in as many weeks. He didn’t make a huge impact against the Carolina Panthers in Week 6, but that could change against the Eagles. He only has one remaining elevation after this game.
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Miami brings back one from injury and one from the practice squad.
The Miami Dolphins are set to take on the Carolina Panthers on Sunday afternoon at Hard Rock Stadium in a game that could see Mike McDaniel’s team improve to 5-1 to start the 2023 campaign.
Ahead of the game, Miami made two roster moves, activating offensive lineman Robert Jones from injured reserve and elevating tight end Tanner Conner from the practice squad.
Jones suffered an MCL sprain during Miami’s preseason battle with the Houston Texans. With left tackle Terron Armstead on injured reserve and center Connor Williams already out, the Dolphins needed the depth on the line.
Conner, in his second professional season failed to make the active roster this year after doing so as a rookie. However, he failed to record a single reception.
The Dolphins haven’t got much out of their tight ends beyond Durham Smythe so far in 2023, so Conner could provide some help.
Players are only allowed to be elevated three times from the practice squad to the active roster, so Conner can be elevated twice more throughout the season.
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Miami would greatly benefit from a breakout season from the second-year TE.
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Over the last few months, the Miami Dolphins have essentially overturned their entire tight end room.
Miami allowed Mike Gesicki, the team’s top tight end in recent years, to hit free agency and sign with the New England Patriots. They traded 2021 third-round pick Hunter Long to the Los Angeles Rams as part of the package to acquire cornerback Jalen Ramsey. Special teams contributor Cethan Carter was cut before the league year officially opened and has remained unsigned. And, Adam Shaheen, who missed all of 2022 after a knee issue popped up during a physical, also remains an unsigned free agent.
Only two tight ends remain from last season – Durham Smythe and Tanner Conner. The former is expected to be the team’s starter while the latter will be battling through training camp with Eric Saubert, Tyler Kroft, Elijah Higgins and Julian Hill for opportunities in the regular season.
Conner was an undrafted free agent in 2022 after a collegiate career at Idaho State where he played wide receiver. Like Higgins, this year’s sixth-round selection, he made the transition to tight end at the pro level.
Unfortunately for the former Bengal, he failed to catch a pass in his rookie season. However, in preparing for his second year, Conner told the media at last week’s minicamp that he’s put on roughly 10 pounds of muscle that can be useful for the position.
“Last year was a very stressful year, and I wasn’t eating as well as I should have,” Conner said (transcribed by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel). “So this year, this offseason, I made it a goal to be more routine with my eating. I got in the weight room. I did my whole offseason here with (head strength and conditioning coach Dave Puloka) and the guys.”
It’s not just about the physical stuff, though. Conner also is starting to pick up the intricate aspects of the NFL and Mike McDaniel’s playbook that make adjusting to the league extremely challenging, especially while changing positions.
“Coming into it this year, way more comfortable,” Conner said. “I feel like the game has slowed down for me, at least from a knowledge standpoint. It’s been a big learning curve for me and last year was really rough, but it’s good to see the first-year labor finally start to see improvement this year.”
Luckily for Conner, the role that he’s best suited for appears to be a wide-open competition. He’ll work with but also against Higgins to be the “pass-catching tight end,” potentially playing a role similar to what Gesicki did in 2022.
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The undrafted rookie could see the field more in 2023.
After the 2022 NFL draft concluded, the Miami Dolphins signed a number of first-year players that went unselected throughout the process, including Idaho State playmaker Tanner Conner.
Conner, in 47 collegiate games, recorded 137 receptions for 2,383 yards ad 15 touchdowns, including 42 receptions for 735 yards and four scores in his final season.
Making the jump to the NFL was going to be a tough ask for essentially a player who’d essentially played as a big receiver and was being moved to tight end in a system that rewards those who can block.
“The biggest thing for me will be [increasing] the knowledge of playing tight end,” Conner told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. “I came in as a receiver so I have great confidence in the route tree and running routes, stuff like that. Blocking I’ve come a long way; still have a long way to go. It’s a whole new world in the trenches that I was not used to” as a wideout.
With his skill set, he’s shown he has some positive traits to work with at the NFL level, and they’re more in line with what pending free agent Mike Gesicki did for Miami.
“I feel I do a good job running routes,” he said. “I run good routes. I’ve made a couple good plays.”
The tight end didn’t bring in a single reception in his 13 games played in 2022, but he was surprisingly impressive in training camp and the preseason to earn a spot on the 53-man roster.
Heading into 2023, Conner’s honest about his position, and he sees that there could be more in store for him in the future.
“I’m in a niche spot,” he said. “I’m a little bit small to be a true tight end. I’m a little big to be a receiver. What they see in me is a different breed, where I’m 230 pounds but I can still move decently fast and run good routes.
“I think they have a special plan for me the next couple years where they can use me differently than other guys in the past, and as a blocker as well.”
Tight ends coach Jon Embree, who’s worked with some of the league’s best tight ends, has some interesting options at his disposal heading into this offseason. Conner joins Durham Smythe, Hunter Long and Cethan Carter on the depth chart, who all bring something different to the table.
Conner believes that Embree will put him in the best position to reach his potential.
“Embo wants to keep me as his project and his player,” he said. “If they want to experiment with that, I would be open to it. I have a big wheelhouse I can choose from. But Embo likes to coach me and I like Embo as my coach as well.
“They have a niche spot for me and they are going use my abilities to my advantage and not put me in places where I can’t succeed.”
If the Dolphins have found an NFL player in Conner, that’s just another in a list of hits in the undrafted player pool for general manager Chris Grier. With Gesicki likely heading out the door, an ascension from Conner into a contributor would definitely ease that departure.
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Not the best year from the room.
The Miami Dolphins have completed their 2022 campaign after losing to the Buffalo Bills in the wild-card round.
While head coach Mike McDaniel, general manager Chris Grier and company are looking forward to the 2023 season, this is a great time for us to reflect on the season hat was for the aqua and orange.
We’ll be going through different positions and reviewing how they played in 2022. After starting with the quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers, we’ll take a look at the guys lining up next to the tackles and in the slot. These are our grades for the Dolphins’ tight ends.
Three are rookies, and one is a veteran.
When rookies are drafted or signed to their organization, they typically have limited numbers that they can choose from due to their being many players on the roster already.
Miami Dolphins rookie linebacker Channing Tindall, who was the team’s first draft pick in 2022, got No. 51 when he arrived in South Florida after wearing No. 41 during his collegiate career at Georgia. No. 41 was being worn by linebacker Darius Hodge, but Hodge was recently released during the roster cutdowns.
With that, Tindall shared on his Instagram story that he’s going back to his collegiate number for the season.
Erik Ezukanma, another Dolphins rookie, is also changing his number. While he wore No. 84 and No. 13 at Texas Tech and had been wearing No. 87 in Miami, he’ll be wearing No. 18 going forward. That number was previously held by Preston Williams.
Undrafted rookie tight end Tanner Conner, who had been wearing No. 48 in the preseason, is switching back to his collegiate number – No. 80, which was held by tight end Adam Shaheen. Shaheen is on season-ending injured reserve after knee surgery.
One player that’s changing their number that isn’t a rookie is running back Myles Gaskin. Gaskin had worn No. 37 during his time in Miami, but he’s moving on from that and is switching to No. 3. Lynn Bowden Jr. had worn No. 3 this offseason, and Will Fuller donned it last season.
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The only new face is UDFA Tanner Conner.
The Miami Dolphins are preparing for the start of Mike McDaniel’s first training camp as a head coach in the next few weeks. Once the team returns to Miami Gardens, they will begin competing against each other in practice and a couple of other teams (Philadelphia and Tampa Bay) in joint practice sessions.
For now, it’s time to assess the roster and see where the team stands at each and every position.
After looking at quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers earlier this week, we’ll discuss the tight end group that hasn’t had many changes to it from the end of last season.
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Check out Draft Wire’s exclusive interview with Idaho State wide receiver prospect Tanner Conner
If you want a size-speed combination at wide receiver, you’d be hard pressed to find someone who fits the bill in the 2022 NFL draft quite like Idaho State’s Tanner Conner.
A 6-foot-3, 226-pound weapon with a 4.37 40-yard dash, a 39.5-inch vertical jump and an accomplished collegiate track background, Conner’s level of explosiveness stands out on screen when you watch his tape. He solidified himself as a dangerous deep threat at the FCS level during his time at Idaho State, and he looks to carry that level of play in the NFL.
Draft Wire had the chance to speak exclusively with Conner about being a two-sport athlete in college, his time at the Shrine Bowl, a possible transition to tight end, and more.
TC: It was an ambitious decision to be a dual-sport athlete at the collegiate level, but I’m grateful that I did it. It was a lot of hard work, and there’s a lot of time management involved, especially between the two different coaching staffs, but it ended up working out really well. In the fall, you do football, at Idaho State, we’ve never really ended up making the playoffs, so we were done by Thanksgiving. And then, after Thanksgiving week, that’d be my week off to start indoor track training. From there, I do indoor track through February, then outdoor track starts in March and goes through June, and during that time, I split time with spring football, as well. After track is over, you got the summer, and then you start football workouts again, so I don’t really have an offseason. Track and football both kept me in shape for each other’s sport, so it always worked out pretty well for me.
TC: Absolutely. I had to [have a good work ethic], especially during the springtime. I had to coordinate my weeks in advance just to know what I was going to do, which practice I was gonna do on which day, whether I’m doubling up on practices one day, or do every other day alternating, but the time has been both track football, and then obviously, school. It’s gonna help me a lot at the next level. You got to worry about school or another sport, so it’s a good training ground for me.
TC: Yeah, I mean, that was a great opportunity for me. Cameron Foster, my agent, did a fantastic job of giving me the opportunity to go there. Initially, I was going to do Idaho State, but University of Washington didn’t have any receivers coming out, and I lived within the general vicinity. They were able to let me in, and I was able to hook up with Patrick O’Brien beforehand and get some chemistry with him. Then, just going into the pro day, [I] just wanted to do the best I could, show out in front of some really good draft picks, because University of Washington has some good DBs coming out this year. Just being able to show out metrically wise with those guys, that was huge, because now scouts here, see me compared to some bigger-school guys. The exposure was great for me. I’m super grateful for the opportunity.
TC: I’ve only talked to a few teams, but a few teams are pretty dead set on me playing tight end, which I’m totally fine with; it’s just something I have to learn. When I had to do the drills at the end, that was a learning experience. For me, it was something new I’ve never done before, but I understand the basics of tight end and blocking schemes and stuff like that, so for me, the transition would be almost a good thing. I would be learning from the beginning with really good coaching; I wouldn’t be learning any bad habits or improper technique, beginning learning tight end blocking schemes. That would be great, because I would start with really good coaching and then be able to take off from there without creating bad habits, so it could be a blessing in disguise for me. with my skill set, my metrics, I’m kind of an anomaly. There’s really no real true comparisons with me in the NFL right now, and so, with my see my size and my speed, I can be used as a mismatch nightmare in the NFL against linebackers, so I’m totally cool with that. I know some teams looking at both, maybe like a flex receiver where I can play power slot, but some things will be full-time tight end.
TC: Yeah, absolutely. I think some teams…I was talking to some coaches, and they always told me that we’re never gonna make you do something that we know you can’t do. You’re not gonna have to block 280-pound defensive ends by yourself, you’ll be double teaming [them], or if we want you to block some by yourself, it will be a linebacker. Now, if you run routes, they’re not going to put me [in an uncomfortable position]. They’re going to use my skill set, my ability, for a benefit for the offense. So that’s really enticing for a lot of teams, and I’m excited for it.
TC: Yeah, it was all a little daunting at first, because as a smaller-school guy, you come in, you see all the bigger school helmets, and you see all these big names that are gonna go play at the next level and be drafted really high. For me the first few days, I just figured out that, once I realized that I could play with everybody else there, I gained a lot of confidence, especially in the 1-on-1 periods and the team periods. I just felt like, at the end of the day, the sticker on the helmet didn’t matter anymore, in that I knew that I could play with any of those guys. That was a huge confidence booster for me. I learned a lot from my coaches, learning a true NFL offensive scheme, and then how NFL teams operate practice-wise, so it was a great experience for me. I learned a lot, and I think it was a good primer for the next level.
TC: It was interesting for me, because I grew up a Seahawks fan, and so I love watching Doug Baldwin as a kid. I think he was one of the most technically sound receivers in the league. He’s really underrated. His releases and route running is something that would have been big time if he were still playing today. But I get to college [at] 180 pounds also that put on 50 pounds, and so now I have to start looking at bigger receivers who move a little bit differently. Guys I used to watch quite a bit were DK Metcalf, Julio Jones, AJ Brown and Chase Claypool; bigger receivers who use their physicality in the frame to box people out and to use different types of speed to get up on corners, eat up cushion. I’ve been sticking to watching the bigger receivers, but you’re probably gonna start watching some more tight end film now. It’s still good to watch the bigger receivers, because there’s honestly a gray line now between a big receiver and a smaller tight end. They kind of do the same thing nowadays, so I tried to watch guys I know I can relate to and I know my skill set more matches towards the NFL.
TC: Yeah, I don’t think I’m gonna have a true position. I think that I’ll be someone they use in a variety of ways, like you mentioned. I think I’ll be big on special teams, as well. Obviously, I think that’ll be my in to the NFL. But they’ll be able to just use me in a lot of different ways. I won’t be like a true X or a true tight end; I’ll be kind of a flex just because of my body type, my metrics. I’m in between every single category, so I think I’ll be used a lot of ways.
TC: Yeah, one of the biggest question marks for me from scouts is that I didn’t have much special teams experience in college because my coaches didn’t want me getting hurt as the No. 1 offensive guy. What I ended up doing is practicing on every single special teams [unit]. I was a backup on all four teams, and so I practice punt every single day, I’d be on punt return, on kickoff, the kickoff return stuff. I wanted to learn how to do it, as well. I enjoyed doing special teams in a competition for myself. I finally got the opportunity at the Shrine Bowl to actually do some special teams work, and so I was on the punt team, the kickoff team, I was playing kickoff return, so I had a lot of fun doing that. It was really easy for me because I had practiced it my entire college career, and so it just translated instantly to the field or through drills and stuff. I excelled in a lot of those drills, I showed out, because with me, I’m big enough to block at the end on punts, I’m also fast enough to run on the field and cover it, so I think that’s where I’m going to really shine in the NFL is that I’ll be able to do a lot of different things on different special teams while being able to develop as an offensive player.
TC: Me and my entire family, we’re all sport oriented, so as we got more and more in sports, we try and detach by finding different hobbies. What I love to do in my free time is I play video games with my friends and my brothers, and so that’s usually how I detach from football. Other than that, I’m actually a big anime fan. I know a lot of athletes, lots of other players will watch anime, so I’ll dig into that, as well.
TC: Some easier short ones that you can watch like “Jujutsu Kaisen,” and then “Demon Slayer” I would recommend; that’s my favorite. If you want something that’s going to take you forever to watch, “Naruto” is the GOAT of all anime, so there’s a lot, but “Demon Slayer” is [my] all-time favorite right now. I love that series. It’s really good.
TC: You’re getting a guy who’s very willing to help the team in any way they can, whether that’s being the guy that’s needed to play on offense, or close to being a role player. I have the unique willingness to just be able to be on a team and help them to be better. I grew up with a lot of obstacles, and I was never really a true star of anywhere I was. I was always trying to work and grind to get to where I had to be, and so I’m just happy to have the opportunity to play in the NFL. Any GM is gonna get a guy who’s willing to do whatever the coaches need me to do. I’m going to be extremely level-headed on and off the field. I’m not going to be too high on big plays, I’m not going to dwell on bad plays. [I’m] somebody who’s going to be really mature in the locker room and mature on the field and understand relationships between coaches and players and just [be] super willing to make the team better, so I think I’ll be an easygoing guy and real comfortable guy.
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