The Top Dolphins Stories of the Week (May 25-31)

As the NFL continued its virtual offseason, the biggest story of the week for the Dolphins and around the league had nothing to do with football

The Dolphins continued their virtual offseason this past week, though nothing that happened with any football team seemed to matter when compared to what was going on throughout the country.

That said, the biggest development involving the Dolphins over the past seven days indeed was related to the civil unrest around the nation.

1. Flores steps forward

Head Coach Brian Flores earned major kudos for his powerful statement in the aftermath of the killing of African-American George Floyd in Minneapolis on Memorial Day when a white police officer kneeled on the back of his neck for almost nine minutes.

Flores, one of four African-American head coaches in the NFL along with Pittsburgh's Mike Tomlin and the Chargers' Anthony Lynn, said it was time for those who spoke out against Colin Kaepernick's kneeling in 2017 to do the same in the aftermath of three African-American deaths at the hands of white police officers.

Flores' statement had been retweeted 9,800 times as of Sunday night at 8:30 p.m. along with 36,000 likes. 

2. League matters

The NFL tabled a proposal this week that would have allowed teams a different way to keep the ball after scoring, by converting a fourth-and-15 from their 25 instead of trying an onside kick.

The rule, which could have come into play almost a dozen times in Dolphins games over the past three seasons, had been proposed by the Philadelphia Eagles.

One bylaw that was adopted was the addition of a third player for each team to bring back from injured reserve each season.

3. Tua a clear-cut Week 1 starter?

The debate over the precise timetable for when rookie first-round pick Tua Tagovailoa takes over as the Dolphins' starting quarterback continues, and there was an interesting take this week.

It came from longtime NFL writer Mike Freeman, who said after speaking to coaches around the league that it was a "foregone conclusion" that Tua would be the starter for the Week 1 game at New England on Sept. 13.

The view from here remains the same: Tua should start if he's the better quarterback, but there's no reason to rush him because the idea is that he'll be the starter for a long time once he gets into the lineup.

4. Ross' confident words

Dolphins owner Stephen Ross appeared on CNBC early in the week and made a bold proclamation that generated headlines.

'I think definitely there will be a football season this year," Ross said. 

Ross added that there remained some uncertainty as to whether there would be fans in the stadium, saying that it remained the plan at the moment.

5. Parker plays catch

A group of NFL players have been getting together at a park in Fort Lauderdale to get some work and pass and catch, and Dolphins wide receiver DeVante Parker has been among that group.

Instagram videos showed Parker catching passes from Washington Redskins quarterback Dwayne Haskins.

Parker, of course, will be looking for a repeat of his breakout 2019 performance when he led all AFC wide receivers in receiving yards and touchdown catches.