*** DOLPHINS TRAINING CAMP ***
Jul 19, 1997: -- Day 8 - July 17th --
TODAY'S REPORT:
The Dolphins suffered a huge setback in their plans to develop a
deep threat out of rookie Yatil Green when Green tore the anterior
cruciate ligament in his right knee Thursday.
Initially, the injury was just thought to be a sprain, but an
MRI conducted on Friday determined that Green had not only torn the
anterior cruciate ligament in his knee, but had also damaged the
cartilage in his knee and tore the quadriceps muscle.
Green is scheduled to be operated on by team doctor John Uribe
on Saturday. He will then most likely spend the rest of the season in
rehabilitation.
The Dolphins haven't placed him on injured reserve yet and
probably won't do so until they have to, when they make the final roster
cuts. There is a slight chance that they'll leave Green on the roster,
like they left Fred Barnett on the roster for the 1996 season, but that
will be determined later when they've had some time to evaluate his
progress from the surgery.
On Thursday, however, it wasn't all bad news. Some players
continued to make standout plays. Rookie WR Brian Manning, for example, made
a lunging catch of a deep bomb, despite close coverage by rookie
cornerback Melvin Cunningham.
Also, guards Chris Gray and Everette McIver continue their
close competition for the starting right guard position. Offensive
line coach Larry Beightol had good things to say about both of them and
it appears that the competition will come down to performances during
the pre-season games.
The hit of the day on Thursday was a full speed collision
between Bernie Parmalee and Zach Thomas as Parmalee came trough a hole
in the offensive line.
Dan Marino was given the day off Thursday afternoon.
INJURY REPORTS:
TE Troy Drayton (ankle), RB Brandon Bennett (hamstring) and WR
Lawrence Dawsey (hamstring) all returned to practice Thursday after
sitting out several days.
WR Yatil Green and WR Kirby Dar Dar are probably out for the
season with torn ACLs in their knees.
EYEWITNESS REPORTS:
There are two brief reports today, the first from Chris
Mellito:
Curt, I was at todays practice and a few players shined.
1)Marino is better then ever with that quick release
2)Parmalee is much improved, a lot faster
3)Nedney was kicking to the heavens with his mammoth kick-offs
4)Drayton is faster, bigger and stronger then ever.
The second report is from Kirk Slack
I've been to 2 training camp sessions. Yatil dropped 4 passes in the
session and 5 in the 2nd. He can run a hell of a pattern, but just
can't tuck it away. Dan looks very mobile this year. I noticed he was
only wearing one knee brace, left leg. I've always noticed two in
previous seasons. Zack seems alot quicker, he really has to restrain
himself in his hits. TE Ed Perry caught at least 10 passes in middle
drills on Monday pm. He really embarassed the LB's, and made some
remarkable catches of poorly thrown balls. Hope he makes the team. I
hope to go to a few more sessions before camp ends. If you'd like I'll
try to send a concise, insightful report on the festiviities.
My Comments:
While the loss of Yatil Green could have far-reaching
consequences for the team this year, I don't think that it's the
disaster that some will proclaim.
First of all, I don't think that Yatil was going to start this
year. Oh, he may have contributed to the team as a 3rd or 4th wide
receiver, but we don't know how well he would have played or whether he
have made a big impact.
Also, it would have taken the rookie a while to get into sync
with Dan Marino in game situations. Even experienced veterans have
trouble getting used to Marino's passes and Green would have had to go
through that adjustment period.
No, I don't think that Green will be missed that much - this
year. I'm afraid that the real consequence of his injury won't be felt
until next season. Even if we assume that his injury heals completely,
he will still have to start over again like a rookie.
Also, the nay-sayers will say that this "proves" that the
Dolphin shouldn't have taken Green in the first round. After all, we
all know he was injury-prone, right?
Well, the only thing I have to say to that is .... Baloney.
This injury to Yatil had nothing to do with the nagging
injuries that dogged him in college. This is a whole lot more serious
than a sprained ankle or a pulled hamstring and unless you believe that
some people are "jinxed", there is nothing in Green's history to
predict that this would happen.
No one is talking about Larry Izzo or Kirby Dar Dar as
injury-prone, so why talk about Green that way?
Of course, only time will tell whether or not this will become
a pattern for Green, but let's not read more into this than is there,
shall we?
Related Info:
[Return to Training Camp]
Curt Fennell,
curt@phins.com, DOLFAN in New England
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