I don't really know how to do a correct write up and it wasn't like I was taking notes during the entire practice or at all, I was just there enjoying myself (not like that dj).. but here are the things I noticed. Also remember this was just the first day and it's not like they were in full pads. Take what some of the beat writers tweet out with a grain of salt, it's not always the complete picture.
Top performers: Michael Preston #19, Bobby McCain #28 (Omar was actually right about that)
Preston caught a couple passes deep, one of which was a full extension dive and it was beautiful! Jamar Taylor almost came up with the interception as they went to the ground and flipped over each other but the refs said he was down by contact. He also had a couple nice catches across the middle. I didn't know who he was at first, but he just kept making catches. We might have some competition at the bottom of the WR list (Matthews/Hazel).
McCain (the rookie) seemed to constantly be around the ball. He looked really smooth and fluid in his back pedal in individual drills (DBs and Safeties were right in front of me). He had one interception during the 11 on 11's, but dropped a couple more. After one of the drops Grimes ran over from the sideline and patted him on the head and talked to him.
The good, the bad, and the ugly:
DEVANTE PARKER #11! He was there (no boot), and although he wasn't participating in practice.. he was jogging around, saw him catching passes inbetween the two fields, and talked to Tannehill and the other WRs during the day. I'm am 100% confident he will be ready to go week 1, I think they are just taking it slow to be on the cautious side and because we have WR depth.. but he looked perfectly fine to me. Might challenge Delmas for smiling the most.
Branden Albert #71, he had a noticeable limp unless that is really just how he walks but I doubt it. He looked okay, just not 100% so don't panic it's early and he's coming back from a serious injury. I watched him walk into the bubble before practice begun not too bad just slow, but then he came out and went straight into the building there I'm guessing for rehab walking very slow and with more of a limp then when he went in.
Tommy Streeter #6, he had an okay day with some decent catches but at one point during the 11 on 11's, he smoked Will Davis and was WIDE open deep and dropped the perfect pass from Matt Moore. It was probably the deepest thrown ball of the day, I mean a bomb and on the money in stride.. butterfingers.
Player who really impressed me: BRENT GRIMES #21
I like Grimes, don't get me wrong, he's just never been one of my top favorite players.. it's nothing to do with skill, it's just personalities and personal preference but that changed today. Just everything he did today.. how he played, how he acted, how he treated the coaches and other teammates. First thing I saw was during DB drills. They back pedal, turn, and catch a ball. Grimes back pedals in drills full speed, he doesn't half *** it.. so he had my attention. Then he dropped the ball once, instantly went to the ground to do pushups. Didn't half *** those like some of the others either. Later during 11 on 11's it was all two hand touch but the offensive guy with the ball continues to run through a couple of them down the field 10-20 yards or so, numerous times even when he was on the other side of the field Brent full sprinted after whoever to catch and tag him. Didn't we see someone do that in a regular season game before?? Oh yeah, it was Brent Grimes. He's all effort and full speed all the time. Fielding punts, catches it and full sprints 30 yards. James and even Landry weren't doing that. He talked up Bobby McCain after a missed interception and other young guys throughout the morning. I just came away very impressed for an athlete of his caliber to work that hard and still was having fun, jumping around, cutting up with guys, mentoring, and even ran some scout RB with jukes and spin moves.
Quick thoughts by position:
Ryan Tannehill #17 was sharp, quick, and deliberate. Had a couple off throws, but not by much. Had a lot of tight window throws that were on the money. Hazel wasn't running his route full speed or correctly on the deep pass he dropped and also was right along the sideline, didn't leave much room for error. I saw Ryan talk to him after and was explaining how to run the route, as if he was the WR, pretty cool. The Stills drop across the middle, Kenny stopped because there was what would've been a collision between him, the DB, and the Safety. The Jennings deep throw was a little short but Greg did get his hands on it, just bobbled and dropped it. Ryan and Juice did stay after practice to throw and catch for a few minutes too. Matt Moore #8 had some good deep throws, but a couple really off short throws.
Lamar Miller #26 looked good, still fast even though I heard he is heavier than last year. Damien Williams #34 had a really good practice, a handful of good hard runs. Jay Ajayi #33 I didn't see much from him, had one good run. LaMichael James #27 only thing I remember was one run he either ran into or tripped on a lineman and fell down, lol. He is fast though, just really tiny.
Kenny Stills #10 is QUICK. His slants are gonna be a dangerous weapon for us. Had a really nice catch that he had to jump up above Grimes to come down with. Greg Jennings #85 still has it. Because he runs routes so well, he looks like he is moving faster than he really is. Will be great to have around the young guys to teach route techniques and concepts. Jarvis Landry #14 had some nice catches, but just seemed to be having an off day.. dropped one which would be a tough catch to everyone else but thought he'd come up with. Also dropped multiple punts. He just seemed out of it today, not really energetic or lively like I was thinking he'd be. I do like the blue visor like Wake he was wearing and he did split out wide during 11 on 11's.. ran a streak and was open, didn't see who he burned but he had him, pass went to other side of field. Did see a couple one handed catches during individual drills, but offensive guys were on the far field. One thing that a lot of the WRs today had was lack of concentration, lots of dropped passes that were hitting guys in the hands.
Jordan Cameron #84 had one good catch going across the field, has good speed. Dion Sims #80 don't remember seeing him do anything all day. Jake Stoneburner #86 and Tim Semisch #82 had some nice catches.. think Jake had 2, Tim had 1. CK you were right though, Semisch is slow as s***.. still like him though.
No pads so not much to see. Mike Pouncey #51 did catch a touchdown on a fake field goal, which all the players and fans enjoyed. It was against no defense and just a rainbow throw, don't get too excited. It was fun watching him dance throughout practice as did Delmas and Vernon. Jamil Douglas #75 and Billy Turner #77 started with the 1's at guard, thank God. When Dallas Thomas #63 got in he still sucks, would've gave up a crushing sack by Suh if this was real life.
NDAMUKONG SUH #93 is huge, and fast off the ball, and just a nice guy but really scary at the same time, haha. He's gonna get called for a bunch of offsides this year. Ryan caught him and a few others with hard counts. Cameron Wake #91, another hard practice worker like Grimes and Suh. Olivier Vernon #50 is gonna have a good year, hope we can resign him.. showed some flashes on D but hard to tell anything without pads on. Also liked watching him dance to the music that was playing. They crank it up when the offense breaks the huddle, then turn it back down once the ball is snapped. Jordan Phillips #97 is gigantic, him and C.J. Mosley #94 were in with the 2's. Suh and Earl Mitchell #90 are the 1's. Didn't see much from anyone else, again no pads.
Chris McCain #58 is extremely athletic but also really awkward in how he moves, I don't know how to explain it. Saw one really good play, he was playing DE on a stunt inside which he got stuffed but he didn't quit he jumped and swatted the ball down at the line of scrimmage and since they play it out like a live ball he took off after it, beat everyone to it then scooped it up and ran into endzone. Didn't really see much flash out of any of the other LBs.
Already spoke about Bobby and Brent, Jamar Taylor #22 played well.. seemed like they challenged him a lot today, the somersault almost interception would've been pretty nasty if not ruled down. He seems to have his confidence back, walked around with pride.. not boasting, just confident.
Louis Delmas #25 has moves, I think he brings a good vibe to the team. He makes a lot of calls on the field, no wonder we were hurting last season when he went down. Reshad Jones #20 played good, couldn't tackle anyone but he was in good position to lay the wood on a lot of run plays. Michael Thomas #31 practiced hard, chased a lot of guys down even after the whistle like Grimes. Had one really good pass breakup and put up the fin sign he started.
Brandon Fields #2 leg didn't look right, had a couple booming punts then some really short ones. Caleb Sturgis #9 made a handful, missed 2 or 3. Blah. John Denney #92 LOOKS like the oldest tenured Dolphin, lol. Perfect snaps every time though.
Funny moment:
Backstory, I've talked to Walt Aikens #35 a few times on twitter, we went to school in the same area (Charlotte, North Carolina), and I just moved back to Florida from up there.. so anyways players were signing autographs, you need to have special wristbands to get the good guys I guess (Tannehill, Suh, Wake, etc) so we were getting a lot of backup's backups other than Mitchell, Misi, and Jenkins and everyone was about to go in. I saw Aikens still on the field with some assistants or ball boys like seriously 30 yards away and I yelled, "HEY WALT, 704 (area code for Charlotte) BABY!" He started looking around like where'd that come from. So I threw my arm up, I am kind of tall 6'5, and yelled, "North Carolina!" No lie this guy half sprints 30 something yards specifically over to where I am. He says something like, "North Carolina?" I show him my forearm, I have a tattoo of the outline of NC, and he smiles. He signs some autographs for the little kids there, says "QC (nickname for Charlotte is Queen City) baby" hands me his sharpie and runs off. Then they close practice, bahaha.
Final thoughts:
I had a great time today, it was a few of the best hours of my life. I feel really good about this team and it's future. Our stars are practicing like they are hungry, our young guys are stepping up big, and the new acquisitions are fitting right in. THE PLAYOFFS ARE COMING. I'll be going back to training camp next Wednesday and Thursday if anyone would like me to write up something again on those days. This concludes my first "write up," thank you for reading!
Practice #6: http://www.thephins.com/forums/show...RAGE-s-2015-Training-Camp-Practice-6-Thoughts
Practice #7: http://www.thephins.com/forums/show...RAGE-s-2015-Training-Camp-Practice-7-Thoughts
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Great write up, so much better information than the beat writers. The photos in the other thread are really excellent as well. Thanks for the words and pictures!
SICK and A13OVEAVERAGE like this. -
-
-
PhinFan1968 To 2020, and BEYOND! Club Member
Good show ole' chap!
Nice info there...better than reading the beat guys' stuff (more optimistic...we are fans after all!).
I easily shrug off the Juice issues...first practice, could have a cold or something bugging him, like you I'm not worried...we know who he is.
The Albert stuff though...I don't know how to take that. I still expect his recovery to be on-track because of what a few experts have stated, I just hate hearing about a limp becoming more exaggerated after bubble work...maybe its just because he'd gotten his *** whooped by the trainers and was feelin' it.
Thanks for taking the time brother!
Edit: I'd love to read more from the next practices you go to...wish I could be there!
Only 2 short weeks from the first pre-season game...man...I'm fired up!A13OVEAVERAGE likes this. -
-
And no worries about Juice, I was just really excited to see him in person. I'm sure next week he'll wow me.
Edit: Another thing I was just thinking, it's been storming down here.. wonder if the weather has been making it bother him a little more than normal. I know my ankle/leg that I've broke a few times in the past has been aching. -
A13OVEAVERAGE and SICK like this.
-
-
Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member
-
-
-
Awesome stuff man. Thank you.
Aikens seems like a good dude. He's hungry and I hope he can make a name for himself.A13OVEAVERAGE likes this. -
-
Well done Bro..Time for a nickname..hmmm, your screen name is a tuffie..so ill go with the real, CJ baby..
ok enough of that, what time are you gonna be there 2maro and the next day, and the next day?..were all counting on you as well....be the ball danny.
Out of all the offseason clips two players had the best flashes of skill that i saw...one was D-park and the other was bobby mccain, I wrote about the mccain one for days it was so impressive...absolutely explosive plant and drive..like seriously..a lot of corners take that little extra step, he didn't which means he will arrive earlier than the norm..
maybe your brent grime admiration will stop some folks from thinking he's lost a step or declining..physical talent doesn't disappear that quickly, the defense around him deteriorated and lost their best communicator...thats the excuse for that guy.
I too enjoy watching Ryan practice, I remember being blown away at how talented he was compared to moore and that phoney garrard his rookie year..throws a beautiful seam pass right?
little concerned with ajayi dancing a bit, did you see that?
so you think Jamil douglas moved better today than thomas?A13OVEAVERAGE likes this. -
You should totally make up a "ThePhins" correspondent media pass...C'Mon, all access, we'll back you up, crash the interview and ask a question.:chuckle:
Fin4Ever and A13OVEAVERAGE like this. -
Brent Grimes has not lost a step, he's gonna be fine and I'm sure Miko has told him about Madden 16 snubbing him by not being rated as a top 5 corner. He is a freak athletically, saw small samples of it today. He just makes it look so easy.
Ryan controls this offense, you can feel it is his team. Ryan is better a QB in all facets.. but Moore has a beautiful deep ball.
Sadly Ajayi didn't impress me today, only had one decent run. Williams looked way better but not gonna make a judgment till the pads are on.
Douglas is a huge improvement, he looked really strong against the sleds. Thomas was already giving up what would've been sacks during a not full speed no pad practice. He needs to gooooooo! -
-
-
-
DOLPHAN1 Premium Member Luxury Box
-
CJ, Thanks again, and I really like the way that you did it...reporting on everyone and everything..so refreshing to see one of our own really telling it like it is, and not having to depend on the garbage reporting that we get from the media....I am off everyday...I wish that I could get down there and I would try to help out by reporting back to my favorite site.
A13OVEAVERAGE likes this. -
Fin4Ever likes this.
-
I would love to, but I am not medically cleared to drive due to my vertigo and at times my BP gets so low that I could pass out at the wheel...I do not want that to happen...and although I could get by that with no problem..I just don't want to..I pretty much live due east of you about 45 miles...so Like you, I understand the drive part...Lol..from here I can get to Davie in 1.5-2 hours.
-
I even have cousins within 5 miles of TC that I can stay with..it's just the getting there...lol
-
Thank you sir!
-
Craigslist to split gas should work. Hell, pm aboveaverage and split the gas. -
I attended training camp last year, and while it was like sitting in a 450 degree oven, it was a good time. If I didn't live about 12 hours away, I'd love to go. I can get a credential pass to cover the Falcons' training camp, but that's not quite the same as the Dolphins'... :shifty:
-
Anyway, as everyone else has said, great write up man! It makes coming to this site worth it.A13OVEAVERAGE likes this. -
And thank you, all the support means a lot plus it's enjoyable.cbrad likes this.