*** DOLPHINS TRAINING CAMP ***
Aug 07, 1999
: -- Day 11 - Aug 6th --
TODAY'S REPORT:
The Dolphins had two practices against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
yesterday and while the practices weren't games, the Dolphins had enough
big plays to give us fans a sense that the offense will be much
improved this year.
The biggest play of the day was provided by Dan Marino and Tony
Martin. Martin got free deep behind Bucs CB Donnie Abraham and Marino
hit him in stride for a big play. In fact, Martin got deep several
times behind the Bucs secondary, prompting Bucs coach Tony Dungy to
comment that Martin looked like he was in mid-season form.
If Martin was the only guy who had gotten open deep, that would
have been enough. But Nate Jacquet had a couple of nice catches,
getting open deep and also catching a touchdown and even Derrick Steagal
got into the act, catching a touchdown. The Dolphins receivers had two
very good practices.
And Cecil Collins had one of his best days in practice yet,
making several nice runs, causing Bucs defenders to miss and - most
important - making Jimmy Johnson smile.
JJ Johnson continued to have good practices, but was
overshadowed by attention to other players.
On defense, Patrick Surtain had an interception in the morning
practice, but suffered a mild hip-pointer in the afternoon and sat out
most of afternoon practice. It's not serious, however, and he may play
in the scrimmage on Saturday.
One of the most exciting plays of the day occurred when Lamar
Thomas made a tough catch, had his helmet ripped off by the defender,
but continued running with the football despite the hit. As the Bucs
congratulated their defender for the hit, the Dolphins gave Thomas
congratulations for holding on to the pass.
As for Yatil Green - he spent the day working out in the pool,
working out the soreness in his knee. He will not play in the
scrimmage on Saturday, but plans to return to practice on Monday.
It looks like Zach Thomas and Karim Abdul-Jabbar will also miss
the scrimmage on Saturday; Zach is still recovering from a mild
concussion and Karim has a sore knee. JJ said that Karim could play,
but he wants to let him rest his knee - and wants to give the rookies
more chances to line up against opposing teams.
OUTSTANDING PLAYS:
The biggest play on everyone's list was Tony Martin's big catch
over the Bucs starting cornerback. Martin is with the Dolphins to
catch big passes on deep routes and he did just that during the
practices.
Unfortunately, on the downside, John Avery was practicing punt
returns and ran right into the Bucs coverage, losing several yards.
JJ'S COMMENTS:
JJ provided unsolicited compliments to Craig Erickson, John
Bock, Cecil Collins and Lamar Thomas. He went on to say that he'd
allow Collins and JJ Johnson about equal chances to run the ball in the
scrimmage on Saturday.
JJ also said that the deep passing game is looking very good
right now with Yatil Green, Tony Martin and Nate Jacquet.
ROSTER MOVES:
The Dolphins released DT Cedric White and signed LB Jimmy
Clements.
FUTURE EVENTS:
The Dolphins will scrimmage against the Buccaneers on Saturday
at 1:30 PM in the Orange Bowl. The scrimmage is supposed to be carried
live on SportsChannel Florida, which is available on DirecTV channel
634. According to SportsChannel Florida, the scrimmage will be
broadcast nationwide.
It looks like Karim Abdul-Jabbar, Zach Thomas and Yatil Green
will all miss the scrimmage with minor injuries. If this was a regular
season game, all three could probably play, but JJ doesn't want to risk
any of them at this point.
INJURY REPORT:
Patrick Surtain suffered a minor hip-pointer in the morning and
sat out the afternoon practice. Also, WR Larry Shannon had some heat
related dizziness and had to leave the afternoon practice early.
LB Zach Thomas (concussion), WR Yatil Green (sore right knee)
and DT Walter Scott (right knee sprain) missed practice and are listed
as day-to-day. TE Troy Drayton (severe right quadriceps contusion), RB
Juan Johnson (bruised back), FB Roosevelt Potts (right calf strain) and
DT Antoine Simpson (bruised back) did not practice and are listed as
day-to-day. LB Sammie Burroughs (back) and LB O.J. Brigance (back)
remain on the club’s Active/Physically Unable to Perform List. LB
Anthony Harris (groin) is expected to be out 10-12 weeks as he recovers
from surgery performed on August 3.
EYEWITNESS REPORTS:
Sorry, but we still don't have any reports. You fans need to
get out to practice and watch the team.
My Comments:
The play of Tony Martin is a good sign. So far, he's doing
just what he was brought in to do and that's as much as you can ask.
Now, if he can just stay out of jail...
The best surprise of the practice, however, was the play of Nate
Jacquet. We've known that he has speed, but he needed to mature and
learn to use his brain as well as his legs. He appears to be doing
that.
Right now, it looks as if the wide receivers that are going to
make the team are McDuffie, Tony Martin, Yatil Green, Oronde Gadsden,
Lamar Thomas and either Nate Jacquet or Willie Green. And with Jacquet
playing on special teams, he would have the edge over Willie Green. Of
course, one injury changes that whole picture, but that appears to be
the best group right now.
Of that group, Martin, Jacquet and Green are deep threats and
Thomas, Gadsden and McDuffie are good all-around receivers. It would
be hard to remember a more talented group of receivers on the roster as
a whole unit.
And speaking of Yatil Green, while it would be nice to see him
on the field against another team, it's better to let him rest and not
potentially ruin whatever chances he has by forcing him to work on his
sore knee.
During the scrimmage today, watch out for Cecil Collins and JJ
Johnson. The one who has the best day will be the one who will move to
the front of the running back list and will have a leg up (if you'll
pardon the pun) on the competition at running back. Since both players
will probably get time with the first team offense, both should have
chances to shine.
Related Info:
[Return to Training Camp]
Curt Fennell,
curt@phins.com, DOLFAN in New Rochelle (almost)
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