*** DOLPHINS TRAINING CAMP ***
Sep 02, 1999: -- Day 37 - Sep 1st --
TODAY'S REPORT:
The Dolphins flew to Green Bay yesterday and had a short
walkthrough before their game with the Packers tonight. The only news
of interest from yesterday's activities is that Derrick Rodgers missed
the team's plane for unknown reasons and may not play tonight.
Rodgers will be fined for missing the plane.
The game tonight is really about two things. Keeping the
first string players healthy is the most important goal for the game,
followed by giving the borderline players a last chance to impress the
coaches before Sunday's roster cuts to 53 players.
Players who must impress coaches tonight if they are to stay
on the roster include Craig Erickson, Bernie Parmalee, Kantroy Barber,
Larry Shannon, Nate Jacquet, Thomas Rayam, Grey Reugamer, Jimmy
Clements, OJ Brigance, Ray Hill, Greg Jeffries and Reyna Stewart. All
of these players have had some good plays and some bad plays this
summer and all could be cut on Sunday.
Right now the roster contains 71 names (if you include
Richmond Webb). Webb, however, doesn't count against the number of
players the team can have, so the Dolphins must cut 17 by Sunday
afternoon at 4:00 PM.
The plan is for the Dan Marino to play only one or perhaps two
series in this game and for him and the rest of the first string
players to sit out the rest of the game. Green Bay will also use a
similar strategy and, as a result, it's unlikely that the game will be
particularly interesting.
DE Dimitrius Underwood has made the trip to Green Bay with the
team, but there is no word on whether or not he will play tonight. OG
Kevin Donnalley, RB John Avery and FB Rob Konrad will all start on the
offense tonight as injuries and rotations are moving other players out
of the starting lineup.
FUTURE EVENTS:
The team will take Friday off and come back to work on
Saturday afternoon. Sometime between the end of the game on Thursday
night and 4 PM on Sunday afternoon, JJ will have to make decisions
about who to cut to get to the 53 man roster. Some of the players
cut will be asked back to the practice squad, but players can't be
signed to the practice squad until Monday night.
INJURY REPORT:
It's not clear at this time exactly who will play and who
won't, but the following players will definitely not take the field
against the Packers: RB Cecil Collins (right ankle sprain), RB Karim
Abdul-Jabbar (right knee), RB JJ Johnson (hamstring), WR OJ McDuffie
(sprained left thumb), DT Walter Scott (knee), WR Lamar Thomas
(shoulder), LB Robert Jones (left ankle), and FB Stanley Pritchett
(left knee).
Other players who will probably not see action (or will only
see very limited action) include CB Terrell Buckley (right foot) and
WR Oronde Gadsden (back).
Players who are hurting but who need to play to make an
impression the coaches are WR Nate Jacquet (toe sprain) and S Brian
Walker (left knee sprain).
My Comments:
The game tonight is really hardly worth the effort for either
team as a whole. However, it is a very important game for guys like
Larry Shannon and Ray Hill, who are on the edge of a career in the
NFL.
One game that is meaningless to the team has enormous meaning
to a few players. I'm sure that Green Bay is in the same situation.
So I would expect a lot of flying around by the rookies and
not much by the veterans. It should be a pretty wild game - or a
pretty dull one, depending on which way it goes. If the new kids
make some plays, it could be wild. On the other hand, if they make
mistakes, it will be pretty dull.
I won't be watching the game tonight, but I'll be listening
over the Internet. The game should be available via RealAudio from
WQAM, but if it's not, remember to go to the
NFL Broadcast page and you can find the game there.
As far as what I hope the Dolphins will accomplish tonight, I
have just one wish - that the team stays healthy. I don't care if
they win or lose and I don't care how many touchdowns they score. I
just want everyone to come back to Miami in one piece.
The pre-season is almost over. The only thing left to do
after tonight is for the team to make it's final cuts and start
preparing for Denver. That should be enough to keep JJ and company
busy until opening night.
Related Info:
[Return to Training Camp]
Curt Fennell,
curt@phins.com, DOLFAN in New Rochelle (almost)
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