*** DOLPHINS TRAINING CAMP ***
Jul 12, 1997: -- Day 3 - July 11th --
TODAY'S REPORT:
The Dolphins' veterans participated in the 1997 training camp
for the first time yesterday and there were a few surprises for
everyone on the first full day of practice.
First and perhaps most important, Dan Marino showed up at camp
this year more fit and in better shape that he's every been. Dan
spent a lot of time in the off-season working out with the team and
managed to shave 3 1/2 percent of his body fat off. If you've never
tried to do that, you might want to attempt it to get an appreciation
for how much work he's done.
Dolphins' strength and conditioning coach John Gamble
estimates that Dan is 30% more fit now than he was at the end of last
season. They've been working on his right ankle to strengthen it and
on his arm and shoulder to maintain that lightning-quick release.
His favorite target last year, OJ McDuffie, said that Dan is
in the best shape that he's ever seen.
As far as training camp goes, the Dolphins worked out twice
yesterday and, as usual, there were a number of great plays,
not-so-great plays and individual performances to take note of.
First of all, oft-maligned veteran Charles Jordan made the
catch of the day with a "stumbling, juggling, over-the-shoulder" catch
of a Dan Marino pass. Jordan had another great set of mini-camps this
year, but must stay healthy and motivated in order to keep his roster
spot.
Rookie CB Hudhaifa Ismaeli put a major hit on new TE Walter
Reeves near the sideline yesterday. In fact, Ismaeli hit Reeves so
hard that he knocked himself out of the practice and was taken to the
locker room with tightness in his chest. He's expected to be back
today, however.
The Herald is also reporting that RB Jerris McPhail was
"breaking tackles all over the field" yesterday. The current rumor is
that the coaches are looking to see if he can be an "every-down" back
- which would seem to indicate that Karim Adbul-Jabbar's job may not
be as safe as we thought.
On the down side, Yatil Green did return to practice
yesterday, but he also returned to dropping passes - this time from
Dan Marino.
The first full day of practice with the veterans also gave
observers a glimpse of what JJ may be thinking about for a lineup this
fall. Again, the Herald reports that Everett McIver has lined up as
the starting right guard in front of last year's starter Chris Gray,
who has dropped to the second team.
However, rumors about someone taking Keith Sims' spot appear
to be premature as Sims started at left guard. Also on offense, the
starting wide receivers were OJ McDuffie and Fred Barnett, with
Charles Jordan being the "starting" third wide receiver in 3 WR sets.
On defense, the starting linebackers were the same as last
seasons - Hollier, Zach and Harris. The second team linebackers
consisted of John Fiala, Larry Izzo in the middle and OJ Brigance.
In the defensive backfield, it looks like TBuck and Calvin
Jackson are the starting cornerbacks, with Corey Harris and Shawn
Wooden as the safeties. The second string backfield is George Teague
and Sean Hill at safety, and Clayton Holmes and Jerry Wilson at
cornerback. Rookie Sam Madison and Tim Jacobs were the third string
corners.
The Dolphins also moved Hudhaifa Ismaeli to safety on Friday
morning from his previous spot at cornerback. Last season, the
Dolphins moved Shawn Wooden from corner to safety and now he's
starting.
And last, but not least, JJ said that he's paying special
attention to the competition at wide receiver, running back and
linebacker.
TODAY'S EVENTS:
The Dolphins will practice twice again today, at 0900 to 1045
and 1615 to 1800 hours (that's 9-10:45 AM and 4:15-6:00 PM for those
of you in the US who have never had the joy and privilege of serving
your country by sleeping in a cold foxhole filled with dirty
water...;-)
Tomorrow, the Dolphins will have their first team scrimmage at
1300 hours (1:00 PM). If you want to see some hitting, go out to the
training camp and watch.
TRANSACTIONS:
The Dolphins cut free agent rookie linebacker Vince Bruno
yesterday, but re-signed punter Rob Deignan. The also signed safety
Charles Anthony, who spent part of last season on the Tampa Bay
practice squad and played in the CFL in 1995, where he was named to
their all-star team after playing for Baltimore - that's the CFL's
Baltimore, not the NFL's Baltimore.
INJURY REPORTS:
There were a couple of dings and dents on Friday, as the
rookies met the veterans in pads for the first time. The worst
appears to be FB Stanley Pritchett, who sprained his knee and will be
evaluated Saturday.
Also, Hudhaifa Ismaeli was taken off the field after his hit
on TE Walter Reeves with tightness in his chest, but he is expected
to return today.
In the "I don't want to talk about it..." department, DT Tim
Bowens apparently was kicked in the groin during morning practice and
missed the afternoon practice. He's expected back today, however.
Yatil Green returned to practice after suffering a minor
sprain to his ankle on Thursday, but Irving spikes continues to sit
out as his knee recovers from surgery. Spikes is expected to be back
in 2 weeks.
OJ McDuffie is practicing with the first team following his
hernia surgery and he reports that he is at about 90% of his normal
capability.
EYEWITNESS REPORTS:
Today's eyewitness report is brought to you from Frank
McElderry, who attended the afternoon practice on Friday. Thanks,
Frank, for your observations:
Just got back from afternoon practice. here are my thoughts...
1st - Yatil Green didn't twist any ankles. That was about the best
thing he did. He dropped as many as he caught and was overthrown alot
by both Marino and Erickson. The timing is just not there yet.
2nd - Charles Jordan looked great. He caught everything thrown his
way. He looked good last year, so there is cause for caution with
Jordan.
3rd - James Dye also looked very good. He got open a lot and caught
everything his way. He looks like an exciting player.
4th - Karim Abdul-Jabbar looked very good. He broke through holes
with great quickness and put moves on people that left them grabbing
for air.
5th - Derrick Rodgers looked good also. He made some nice tackles
and made some good hits on anyone who came into his area. This guy
looks like the real deal.
6th - Troy Drayton looks like a monster out there. This guy caught
everything he could get his hands on and broke tackles repeatedly.
Expect big things from Drayton.
7th - Zach Thomas was hitting anybody he could. He had to hold back
a couple of times. I guess he realizes he doesn't want to hurt his
own teammates.
8th - I was disappointed with Jason Taylor. This guy did provide a
good pass rush, but he jumped off-sides at least three times that I
saw. His eagerness is great, but he's got to be patient more. You
saw him hitting himself on the helmet, so he knows what he has to do.
If you have comments for Frank, forward them through me.
My Comments:
There were two pieces of slightly disturbing news today.
First of all, Stanley Pritchett sprained his knee. This is probably
not a problem, but it always makes me nervous when a starter like
Pritchett has an injury.
Still, if he's going to injure himself this season, now is the
time to do it.
The other piece of news that is a little annoying is the word
on Yatil Green. Having said that, it really isn't anything to get
excited about - I think that being annoyed is about right. He just
needs to concentrate more and get over his "new-guy" jitters.
In the meantime, let's hope that the press and the fans cut
him some slack. Nothing would be worse for Green than to have
everyone expecting too much from him right off the bat.
Moving right along, the next piece of news that I have a
comment on is the current "starting" lineup.
My comment to you is - ignore it. At this time last year,
Irving Spikes was the starting running back, Jack Del Rio and Chris
Singleton were starting at linebacker and Louis Oliver was a starting
safety. Only one of these guys is even on the team today.
Well, perhaps you shouldn't totally ignore it. I don't think
that there will be as many changes this year as there were last year,
but I would be astonished if the starting lineup didn't change between
now and August 31st. I would be particularly surprised if Everett
McIver was still starting at right guard when the season opens.
I have a suggestion today on some other reading. Check out
the articles in today's Herald on Marino and on the hitting in camp.
Zach Thomas has some great things to say about hitting.
And last, but certainly not least, I can't help but be excited
about the news on Dan Marino. Dolphins players and fans should be
reassured by the word on his conditioning.
Nothing is better for the Dolphins - or worse for the rest of
the league - than a healthy, motivated Dan Marino.
Related Info:
[Return to Training Camp]
Curt Fennell,
curt@phins.com, DOLFAN in New England
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