*** DOLPHINS TRAINING CAMP ***
Aug 12, 1999
: -- Day 16 - Aug 11th --
TODAY'S REPORT:
The Dolphins had two practices on Wednesday, with LB Zach
Thomas, TE Troy Drayton and WR Yatil Green returning to practice after
sitting out for 6 days. Zach was held out of heavy contact drills in
the morning session, but worked fully in the afternoon. Most the work
on Wednesday was done in anticipation of the upcoming pre-season game
against the Saints on Friday night.
The player of the day was Larry Shannon, who continues to
perform much better in practice following his terrible performance in
the scrimmage against the Bucs. Apparently Shannon apologized to both
receivers coach Robert Ford and offensive coordinator Kippy Brown after
the scrimmage, saying that he would perform much better. So far, he's
kept his word, causing JJ to comment that Shannon has performed much
better the last two days.
Other players that had good days on Wednesday included Robert
Baker, who continues to impress JJ with his ability and daily
improvement; Shawn Wooden, who broke up a pass to tight end Ricky
Brady and Terrell Buckley, who picked off a Damon Huard pass. In fact,
if you read the accounts of the practice, nearly every starting
defensive back on the roster had at least one pick.
Bad days were had by QB Dan Gonzalez, FB Kantroy Barber and
John Avery.
OUTSTANDING PLAYS:
The highlight of the practice was when Chandler Thomas (the son
of Lamar Thomas, who is 2 and a half years old) made a dazzling run to
the 20 yard line with a football, dodging Dolphins media assistant Seth
Levit.
JJ'S COMMENTS:
JJ praised Larry Shannon for his performance since Monday,
saying that he has suddenly become the player the Dolphins saw on
highlight films from college. JJ also said that Robert Baker has
improved more from the first day of camp than any other player on the
team.
In response to questions, JJ said that Craig Erickson is
looking much better than last year and so is Derrick Rodgers. He said
that Rodgers is having "a great camp".
When asked about the Friday night game against the Saints, JJ
said that the only thing he's doing is trying to get a work ethic and
that he wants the team to eliminate mistakes and that they will be
"somewhat vanilla" against New Orleans. He further said that they will
continue to evaluate individual players.
ROSTER MOVES:
None announced.
FUTURE EVENTS:
The Dolphins will have a light practice on Thursday morning
before taking on the Saints on Friday night at 7:30 in Joe Robbie
Stadium. Right now, it's not clear whether or not Yatil Green, Troy
Drayton and Zach Thomas will play against the Saints. JJ has said that
that decision will be made at game time, but all three players are now
back at practice.
The game will be televised in the local Miami area on tape
delay by WFOR TV (Channel 4) and WTVX (Palm Beach - Channel 34) at
9:30 PM. It will be broadcast on radio WAXY (AM 790) at 7:30 PM.
WQAM is also supposed to broadcast the first half of the game and they
can be heard over the internet with RealAudio.
SportsChannel Florida (DirecTV channel 634) will be broadcasting
the game on a tape delay basis on Saturday afternoon at 4:30 PM. From
my recent conversations with the NFL, SportsChannel Florida and
DirecTV, it looks like this rebroadcast will be blacked out for those
who live outside of Florida.
If you have a full sized satellite dish, I am told that it may
be availble on the ku-band. However, I don't have a satellite or a
channel.
INJURY REPORT:
DE Trace Armstrong (twisted ankle) and WR Nate Jacquet (ankle
sprain) both missed Wednesday's practice, but Armstrong is expected to
return on Thursday. FB Stanley Pritchett (heat exhaustion) left the
morning session early due to heat exhaustion, but returned for the
afternoon practice. FB Roosevelt Potts (right calf strain) and DT
Walter Scott (right knee sprain) missed practice and are listed as
day-to-day. RB J.J. Johnson (strained left hamstring) is expected to be
out for approximately one week to 10 days from the date of the injury
(August 7). LB Sammie Burroughs (back) and LB O.J. Brigance (back)
remain on the clubĘs 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 - None today.
My Comments:
The redemption of Larry Shannon certainly is stunning and I
hope he continues it. Of course, his performance in practice is
meaningless if he can't do it in a pre-season game, but I'm sure he'll
get his chance on Friday night.
I also hope to see a lot more of Robert Baker on Friday. I was
impressed with what little I saw of him during the scrimmage and I'd
like to see him get more of a chance.
Of course, we'll see plenty of Cecil Collins on Friday night
with JJ Johnson out and this will be another test of how well he can
play. I don't expect Zach to play, but I would be surprised if Yatil
Green doesn't get at least some playing time.
Remember that the purpose of the game against the Saints is to
eliminate mistakes and get a good look at the players who are lower on
the roster. JJ has some tough decisions to make about who to keep on
the roster and he'll want to see as much of the rookies and free agents
as he can.
While it's always more satisfying if the team wins, that is
not the ultimate goal for this first pre-season game. The real goal
is to work on team performance, eliminate mistakes and to evaluate the
younger and borderline players for the coming season.
Related Info:
[Return to Training Camp]
Curt Fennell,
curt@phins.com, DOLFAN in New Rochelle (almost)
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