Dolphins Camp 2022 Day 6: Practice Observations
The Miami Dolphins had a low more subdued practice Monday when media members were the only non-team employees at the Baptist Health Training Complex.
Rookies Skylar Thompson and Braylon Sanders got things off on a funny note when they started duplicating the pumping-up efforts of Tyreek Hill and Blaise Andries for the crowd at the practice Saturday.
Thompson and Sanders both jogged toward the (mostly) empty stands and swung their hands in the air, with Sanders and Thompson capping the whole thing by doing the Griddy dance.
And then it was time for practice.
So let's dive into the practice report:
ATTENDANCE REPORT
The two injured players were out again — defensive lineman Adam Butler and guard/center Michael Deiter — along with fullback John Lovett.
Running back Raheem Mostert and fullback Alec Ingold both were wearing no-contact red jerseys. Tackle Terron Armstead was back after getting a "load management" day off Saturday but was not spotted in team drills.
Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was limited because of an undisclosed injury and did not take part in team drills.
PRACTICE TOP PERFORMERS
— Cornerback Trill Williams continued his strong work in camp with a one-handed interception against Tua Tagovailoa in the corner of the end zone in a goal-to-go period.
-- Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle had two nice receptions down the field in a five-play sequence, the first from Thompson and the second from Tua.
— Myles Gaskin showed a nice burst on a running play and also easily beat rookie Channing Tindall in a one-on-one passing drill from just outside the 10-yard line, though it needs to be pointed out that this drill heavily favors the offensive player who has half the width of the field to beat a defender in coverage one-on-one.
QB WATCH
Because it’s training camp, we need to talk about the quarterback performances every practice.
— It was going to be tough to top or even match what happened in practice Saturday for Tua, though the second half of practice was much better than the first. By our unofficial count, Tua completed 9 of 14 passes with the one interception by Williams, and there were a couple of touchdowns in goal-line situations, including throws to Preston Williams and Sony Michel. There also was a 40-yard touchdown pass to Erik Ezukanma, but that one comes with a heavy asterisk because it came on a broken play where Tua held the ball for a very long time before the rookie got behind the defense. That was one of many examples of pressure getting to Tua and forcing him to scramble or him not finding an open receiver before the pressure got to him.
— Thompson was 5-for-9 in team periods, according to our stats, with his best pass the 20-yard hook-up with Waddle on a deep in. Thompson also had a couple of touchdown passes in red-zone situations, including one to Trent Sherfield after he rolled out to his right and threw to his left in the middle of the field. Like Tua, Thompson had his share of plays where he just can't find an open receiver.
OTHER PRACTICE OBSERVATIONS
-- Since it's become an issue worth tracking, there again were a couple of high shotgun snaps by Connor Williams, though it was a better outing in that department than Saturday.
-- Linebacker Calvin Munson blew up a running play when he got into the backfield to meet rookie running back Za'Quandre White.
-- Safety Brandon Jones, whose coverage skills have come into question (backed by bad metrics), had a nice pass breakup against tight end Durham Smythe in the 1-on-1 red-zone passing drill.
-- Linebacker Duke Riley had a nice pass breakup in the back of the end zone after it appeared tight end Hunter Long was ready to catch a touchdown pass.
-- Tua's best throw of the day came when he hit Mostert deep down the seam.
