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The Miami Dolphins opened their mandatory three-day minicamp Tuesday, and as expected, Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey and Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith didn’t attend. Defensive tackle Zach Sieler, who missed the voluntary organized team activities, was in attendance.
Here are some of the highlights from Tuesday’s practice:
— Coach Mike McDaniel seemed a bit irritable during his pre-practice media session. He used a couple of profanities and clearly wasn’t in his usual wise-cracking mood.
— Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa looked good in the first round of 7-on-7 drills, hitting wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine on an 8-yard touchdown pass against cornerback Kendall Sheffield and another to tight end Julian Hill against safety Iffy Melifonwu. Tagovailoa has appeared confident and in control during the OTAs and minicamp despite not having No. 1 wide receiver Tyreek Hill. It’s been a good offseason for Tagovailoa so far.
— Backup quarterback Zach Wilson threw an 8-yard back shoulder touchdown pass to running back De’Von Achane back against linebacker Willie Gay Jr. Wilson is showing good awareness in the offense and his passes, for the most part, have been accurate and delivered on time. Wilson appears to be the solid No. 2 choice at quarterback, ahead of rookie draftee Quinn Ewers.
— Gay came back to bat down a Wilson pass as Wilson tried to escape pressure. The inside linebackers, one of the deepest positions on the team, continue to impress during the offseason. Tyrel Dodson also had a pass break up on Tuesday.
— Sieler didn’t participate in 11-on-11 drills but he did some individual drills. Sieler, last year’s team MVP, appeared active and engaged the entire practice.
— Ewers had a pick-six but it wasn’t his fault. Wide receiver AJ Henning had a pass glance off his hands and safety Elijah Campbell caught it for an INT return of maybe 60 yards.
— Overall the Dolphins’ top three quarterbacks — Tagovailoa, Wilson, and Ewers — have been solid in the offseason.
— Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle had a nice reception from Tagovailoa on an underneath route for maybe 20 yards. Waddle, as expected, has been torching the cornerbacks throughout the offseason.
— Edge rusher Jaelan Philips, who is recovering from a season-ending knee injury, did individual drills Tuesday. Phillips was limited in 11-on-11 drills in OTAs. But he’s looked explosive in drills and hasn’t limped at all.
— Hill, wearing gloves on his hands, caught passes from an assistant coach in the middle of the field during offensive drills. Hill, who had offseason wrist surgery, is expected to be healthy at some point in training camp. Hill was earing a brace or wrap on his surgically-repaired right wrist.
— Rookie defensive tackle Kenneth Grant has moved around on the line. He played rookie guard Jonah Savaiinaea to a standoff on a touchdown pass from Tagovailoa to Westbrook-Ikhine in a red-zone play. Overall, Grant has appeared agile and active.
— Savaiinaea continues to move well. Players aren’t in pads (they’re in helmets, shorts and T-shirts) so we don’t know about his physicality but his agility is top notch. Savaiinaea shows good feet. He displayed those feet on the first play of 11-on-11, which is what he’s displayed throughout OTAs.
— Veteran guard James Daniels, the biggest free agent signing of the offseason, participated in some individual drills in practice. Daniels is recovering from an Achilles injury that limited him to four games last season. He didn’t participate in the OTAs that the media was allowed to watch. Daniels worked on the side with a trainer for the last 30 minutes or so of practice.
— Daniels was the only player wearing a guardian cap, the padded device that fits over a helmet. By the way, Daniels (6-4, 327) and Savaiinaea (6-5, 336), who are big, still appear small, for some reason, when standing next to right tackle Austin Jackson (6-5, 315) and left tackle Patrick Paul (6-7, 332).
— Tight end Tanner Conner wore the orange jersey as the player of the day from the previous practice.
— Wide receiver Tahj Washington, one of last year’s seventh-round picks, wore the red jersey Tuesday just as he did in OTAs. Washington’s injury hasn’t been disclosed.
— Edge rusher Quinton Bell had a nice stop for no gain by beating guard Kion Smith. Bell was mostly a special teams player last season but has a chance to earn a roster spot. Edge rushers had a so-so day.
— Edge rusher Grayson Murphy, who had 3.0 sacks in the last OTA session, had a sack on Tagovailoa in 11-on-11 as he went unblocked in an apparent blown assignment. Murphy, undrafted out of UCLA in 2024, is beginning to emerge.
— Cornerback Ethan Bonner had PBU on a Wilson pass to wide receiver Tahj Washington in a 7-on-7. Bonner, who has flashed in the offseason but has lacked consistency, probably should have had an interception because the pass hit him in the chest.
— Cornerbacks aside from Kader Kohou have been struggling during the offseason against a relatively non-descript group of wide receivers aside from Waddle. Storm Duck and Kendall Sheffield have had their moments but neither, at this point, appears ready to be a fulltime starter.
— Cornerback Isaiah Johnson had a nice interception against Henning on a pass from Wilson. It was one of the few good plays by a cornerback in the offseason, Johnson (6-3, 205) used his size very well to position himself for the interception.
— Offensive lineman Liam Eichenberg had a pancake block on rookie defensive tackle Jordan Phillips during 11-on-11s. Eichenberg has been the top backup offensive lineman the entire offseason.
www.sun-sentinel.com
Here are some of the highlights from Tuesday’s practice:
— Coach Mike McDaniel seemed a bit irritable during his pre-practice media session. He used a couple of profanities and clearly wasn’t in his usual wise-cracking mood.
— Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa looked good in the first round of 7-on-7 drills, hitting wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine on an 8-yard touchdown pass against cornerback Kendall Sheffield and another to tight end Julian Hill against safety Iffy Melifonwu. Tagovailoa has appeared confident and in control during the OTAs and minicamp despite not having No. 1 wide receiver Tyreek Hill. It’s been a good offseason for Tagovailoa so far.
— Backup quarterback Zach Wilson threw an 8-yard back shoulder touchdown pass to running back De’Von Achane back against linebacker Willie Gay Jr. Wilson is showing good awareness in the offense and his passes, for the most part, have been accurate and delivered on time. Wilson appears to be the solid No. 2 choice at quarterback, ahead of rookie draftee Quinn Ewers.
— Gay came back to bat down a Wilson pass as Wilson tried to escape pressure. The inside linebackers, one of the deepest positions on the team, continue to impress during the offseason. Tyrel Dodson also had a pass break up on Tuesday.
— Sieler didn’t participate in 11-on-11 drills but he did some individual drills. Sieler, last year’s team MVP, appeared active and engaged the entire practice.
— Ewers had a pick-six but it wasn’t his fault. Wide receiver AJ Henning had a pass glance off his hands and safety Elijah Campbell caught it for an INT return of maybe 60 yards.
— Overall the Dolphins’ top three quarterbacks — Tagovailoa, Wilson, and Ewers — have been solid in the offseason.
— Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle had a nice reception from Tagovailoa on an underneath route for maybe 20 yards. Waddle, as expected, has been torching the cornerbacks throughout the offseason.
— Edge rusher Jaelan Philips, who is recovering from a season-ending knee injury, did individual drills Tuesday. Phillips was limited in 11-on-11 drills in OTAs. But he’s looked explosive in drills and hasn’t limped at all.
— Hill, wearing gloves on his hands, caught passes from an assistant coach in the middle of the field during offensive drills. Hill, who had offseason wrist surgery, is expected to be healthy at some point in training camp. Hill was earing a brace or wrap on his surgically-repaired right wrist.
— Rookie defensive tackle Kenneth Grant has moved around on the line. He played rookie guard Jonah Savaiinaea to a standoff on a touchdown pass from Tagovailoa to Westbrook-Ikhine in a red-zone play. Overall, Grant has appeared agile and active.
— Savaiinaea continues to move well. Players aren’t in pads (they’re in helmets, shorts and T-shirts) so we don’t know about his physicality but his agility is top notch. Savaiinaea shows good feet. He displayed those feet on the first play of 11-on-11, which is what he’s displayed throughout OTAs.
— Veteran guard James Daniels, the biggest free agent signing of the offseason, participated in some individual drills in practice. Daniels is recovering from an Achilles injury that limited him to four games last season. He didn’t participate in the OTAs that the media was allowed to watch. Daniels worked on the side with a trainer for the last 30 minutes or so of practice.
— Daniels was the only player wearing a guardian cap, the padded device that fits over a helmet. By the way, Daniels (6-4, 327) and Savaiinaea (6-5, 336), who are big, still appear small, for some reason, when standing next to right tackle Austin Jackson (6-5, 315) and left tackle Patrick Paul (6-7, 332).
— Tight end Tanner Conner wore the orange jersey as the player of the day from the previous practice.
— Wide receiver Tahj Washington, one of last year’s seventh-round picks, wore the red jersey Tuesday just as he did in OTAs. Washington’s injury hasn’t been disclosed.
— Edge rusher Quinton Bell had a nice stop for no gain by beating guard Kion Smith. Bell was mostly a special teams player last season but has a chance to earn a roster spot. Edge rushers had a so-so day.
— Edge rusher Grayson Murphy, who had 3.0 sacks in the last OTA session, had a sack on Tagovailoa in 11-on-11 as he went unblocked in an apparent blown assignment. Murphy, undrafted out of UCLA in 2024, is beginning to emerge.
— Cornerback Ethan Bonner had PBU on a Wilson pass to wide receiver Tahj Washington in a 7-on-7. Bonner, who has flashed in the offseason but has lacked consistency, probably should have had an interception because the pass hit him in the chest.
— Cornerbacks aside from Kader Kohou have been struggling during the offseason against a relatively non-descript group of wide receivers aside from Waddle. Storm Duck and Kendall Sheffield have had their moments but neither, at this point, appears ready to be a fulltime starter.
— Cornerback Isaiah Johnson had a nice interception against Henning on a pass from Wilson. It was one of the few good plays by a cornerback in the offseason, Johnson (6-3, 205) used his size very well to position himself for the interception.
— Offensive lineman Liam Eichenberg had a pancake block on rookie defensive tackle Jordan Phillips during 11-on-11s. Eichenberg has been the top backup offensive lineman the entire offseason.
Dolphins minicamp, Day 1: Tua stars again, McDaniel is a bit testy
Coach McDaniel seemed a bit irritable during his pre-practice media session. He used a couple of profanities and clearly wasn’t in his usual wise-cracking mood. Here are some of the highlight…
www.sun-sentinel.com
