Dolphins Notebook: New Tackle, Van Ginkel's New Role, New Tua, And More
The 2021 NFL draft is now almost three weeks old and the offseason program is in full swing, but the Miami Dolphins aren't done trying to improve their roster.
For the second time this week, the Dolphins added a young player, this time offensive tackle Timon Parris.
The 6-foot-6, 315-pound Parris appeared in four games for Washington in the 2018 and 2019 season before bouncing around last year.
After being waived by Washington in the cuts to 53, Parris was claimed off waivers by Atlanta and then spent time on the Cleveland and Washington practice squads but didn't appear in any regular season games.
The addition of Parris is about kicking the tires on a young tackle to see if there might be something there because it's not like the Dolphins are lacking in numbers at that position.
The Dolphins roster shows five players listed as tackles — Adam Pankey, Austin Jackson, Jonathan Hubbard, Larnel Coleman — with Robert Hunt and Jesse Davis listed as guards/tackles and D.J. Fluker listed simply as an offensive lineman.
All told, the Dolphins are 15 offensive linemen on their roster.
JACKSON'S OFFSEASON
Speaking of Jackson, he was one of two Dolphins players who addressed the media Thursday along with linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel and he talked about how he prepared for the season.
Jackson indicated a couple of specific things he worked on, in addition to the obvious conditioning work.
"Just working out and making sure my technique is consistent," he said. "It’s hard to pick one thing to work on because you’re pretty much working on everything. But I can say that knee bend and getting lower is something I’ve been working on – my flexibility. Strength and conditioning, torque power, turn power and all of that stuff, that’s something we as offensive linemen work on every day.”
Jackson said he has noticed improvement in those areas.
“Yeah, most definitely," he said. "Most definitely. Especially being able to have a year under my belt. I know what to expect, how it’s going to look in person. You can take that knowledge and put it into your training, which helps a lot.”
VAN GINKEL'S NEW ROLE
For Van Ginkel, a portion of his Zoom media session wasn't about football but rather about the upcoming birth of he and his wife Samantha's first child, who is due in July.
"I’m super stoked," AVG said. "It’s just under two months away, so the time’s kind of pressing and I’m super excited for him to finally arrive.”
Van Ginkel said he's already thought what it might look like juggling his roles as father and football player during training camp.
"It’s going to be tough trying to be a father and then a husband and then just trying to raise a kid," he said. "It’s going to be tough, but I’m going to do everything I can to be ready for training camp, so when I go home I can just relax and let all the stresses free."
DIFFERENT TUA
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa easily is the most scrutinized on the player roster, and his social media video workouts sure appear to show him bulkier than he was last year.
Jackson added another new element when he was asked about Tua on Thursday.
Asked whether Tua seemed different to him this year, Jackson said: “He’s got a beard. (laughter) Yeah, he’s got a beard and has a little more bass in his voice.”
As for the biceps, Jackson didn't really offer much, though he did have some complimentary things to add.
"I haven’t looked at his biceps," Jackson said. "But, yeah, he’s doing good. I see him a lot. He’s been working hard, every single day just like all of us. That’s my guy. He’s a great kid. He’s looking good too, and he’s working hard.”
HOCKEY TALK
In case you missed it, head coach Brian Flores was front and center at Game 2 of the Florida Panthers-Tampa Bay Lightning Stanley Cup series at BB&T Center on Tuesday.
He kicked things off by delivering the pregame pump-up video shown on the giant scoreboard.
During a timeout in the second period, Flores again was shown on the giant scoreboard and he enthusiastically waved a towel to get the crowd pumped up. Not long after, the Panthers scored, though they ended up losing 3-1.
In another hockey note, the brother of Dolphins GM Chris Grier, Mike Grier, landed a prominent role this week when he was hired by the New York Rangers as Hockey Operations Advisor.
Mike Grier had a 14-year career as a forward for the Edmonton Oilers, Washington Capitals, Buffalo Sabres and San Jose Sharks.
