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My first Camp Report for 2008

Discussion in 'Miami Dolphins Forum' started by Ozzy, Jul 26, 2008.

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  1. Ozzy

    Ozzy Premium Member Luxury Box

    Well, it's that time of year again. I get my usual early start on seeing how the Dolphins are doing, One or two things of note first. Since the Mini Camps have already taken place without fans you won't see a lot of reports as to how the coaches are really getting into teaching the players, and especially in the team drills. Most of the teaching has been going on for months now so we'll probably see a little more about screw ups and how players are getting punished or yelled at. Case in point would be our new LT Jake Long. First play of the team drills and he is a little late off the snap then the second play he jumps early. His Coach stops play and signals for Jake to take a lap. Jake heads off towards the other end up the field, running up and back. The crowd loves it, and of course so did I. We were yelping it up, and giving the coaches applause. Jake took it well, and came back in, took on Holiday, and looked good. He got a nice ovation for his effort.

    No Joey Porter, Lehan, and Henne. Porter and Lehan were running up and down the sideline but I wonder what happened to Porter to keep him off the field on day one.....

    Now this is the first day of training camp, and it's nothing more than one persons opinion so take it with a grain of salt. I'm not making claims of some young undrafted rookies making such outstanding plays so that they're surely going to make the team. For the most part, most of these undrafted players will be looking for work by the end of August but it is NICE to see some of their efforts. But I usually find one rookie that I like and give him a little boost up due to some good plays, efforts or attitudes. I found one today in Devone Bess. More on him in a little bit though.

    Lets start with the Qb's

    Beck goes with the first squad early and it looks like he totally overthrows his first pass by 10 yards, but actually Tedd Ginn took to long to get off the line, and had to cut off his route early because the Cb sealed him off outside, and the Safety was closing in. Beck might have been able to read the defense better but the pass was supposed to be 20 yards, not 12. Beck still looked the better of the two Qb's. He made some nice intermediate throws, and even though his mechanics were slightly changed to a more overhead motion, his release is still excellent. He took one snap, dropped back 3 steps, and the LDE blew by Carey. He stopped on a dime, turned to the hot route and zipped the ball out just in time. A slower delivery and that was a sack. Even still he was not spectacular, just a pretty good FIRST DAY in pads.

    McCown was not so good IMO. In individual drills, he launched deeper passes on three different occasions, and all three had Wr's slowing down, or stopping their routes dead because of poorly under thrown passes. He was not moving around like he is known for so maybe they instructed him to just sit in the pocket today. He did throw a real nice pass, all the way across the field that found it's mark just at the sideline for a completion. I thought he was getting better as practice moved on but near the end of practice, he once again started throwing some bad passes. Overall not a great practice for him, but it's the first day.

    They only have 3 Qb's on the roster so they better get Henne in soon. Not just because it's a lot of work for two Qb's to handle all the passes during training camps but Henne has a chance to impress the coaches. Every single snap he gets farther behind though.

    Rb's

    Ricky Williams looks fantastic, and he has this thing about him during practice where no matter what happens on the play he continues it. If the play is dead, he continues to twist, go outside, go backwards then forward, puts his shoulder into a defender in his way, or runs around everyone so he can run just past the ref standing in the middle of the field about 25 yards downfield. I know some coaches make this practice a habit for MOST plays but Ricky does it on every single play, and it's catchy too. All the Rb's are doing it by the end of practice. Probably because the crowd likes it, and it pumps them all up but its a good practice for sure. Ricky is looking real fit, and in great shape. He never turns down some contact, and even got the snot knocked out of him once today by Merling. He just got up, looked around, and headed off the field, waiting for his next turn.

    Ronnie also looks in fantastic shape. He made some good cuts but to me, he is still taking it just a LITTLE easy on his repaired knee. I'm not sure how many people who report on camps will have seen this though, but Ronnie tweaked something on the second to the last play of practice. It looked like it might have been his shin muscle, and it did not look too serious but he was for sure favoring it, and rubbing it as the team gathered together at mid field.

    Pattrick Cobbs made one really good cut inside and was gone for at least 20 yards before any defender would have had a chance to get to him. A real nice play by him that was supposed to be a stretch play to the far outside corner, but he saw that opening and did not hesitate. His Coach made a motion like he was asking Cobb if he knew it was supposed to be run to the far outside and Cobbs just nodded yes, but made a gesture to him that the cutback lane was there. He got up to the coach and received a nice pat on the helmet. Good Vision for sure...

    Lex Hilliard made a nice run to the outside and man he is one built dude!

    Wr's

    Ginn was kind of invisible today. I mean I saw him out there but nothing to note about him.

    Hagan had a real nice catch in traffic on that quick release strike by Beck. The pass was just about neck high, and right as he cut inside but he made a nice grab with two defenders closing in fast.

    Ernest Wilfork is one BIG Wr. He made a couple of catches on the inside that could have been long gainers..

    Anthony Fasano stole the show with a one handed Orande Gadsden type of catch that had the crowd go nuts.

    Now we have Devone Bess. He was all over the place this morning, and he dropped nothing. He made a real nice catch on the sidelines on that throw from McCown that I spoke about earlier. The ball was just a little over his head but he made a nice reaching grab for the ball, bringing it in just as he got his second foot down which made him tumble to the ground but he held on. He may be a tad small but he knows how to find seams, and is a constant threat to get open. I like his chances to last until the last cuts. We'll see how it goes though.

    OL

    Starters were LT Long, LG Smilely, C Satele, RG Derilek, RT Carey

    Jake Long has the task of going up against Vonnie Holiday on most plays. Vonnie is not taking it easy on him either. GOOD thing right? Yes it is, and I do notice that Jake actually has a pretty darn good kick step. Very quick feet out there today. I would say that he did rather well for his first day. Nothing spectacular and other than the first two plays, nothing bad either. He seems real good out in space and knows how to direct players with his arms. His hips stay pretty level, and he's got some spring in his legs. He looks stronger than an OX too. They gather around in a huge circle at one point, and I'm just going back and forth looking for players, and matching numbers to get to know them better, and in the middle of that circle I see one helmet sticking up above all the rest. He might have had some of the smaller players around him but man his helmet was standing out in a crowd, by a good 4-6 inches. Dudes a monster!

    Smiley is looking recovered and making a lot of contact on running plays. He is fast off the ball, and it looks like they want him on the left side with Long. At least for now.

    Satele looks in good shape too. Heck the entire team looks in very good shape.

    Derilek is starting on the right side for now, with McKinney coming in behind him, at least I think it's McKinney. Now I don't know much about Derilek but with a name like that I'd be playing with one bad attitude!!!

    I did not take much notice of Carey this morning for the most part.

    I did take notice of one rookie lineman though and that's Shawn Murphy. He is very similar to Smiley. He gets off the ball real quick and loves him some contact. I was diggin on his mechanics today. His hands snap up, and he moves into his stance very naturally. He also looks like he plays with a nasty attitude. I think I'm going to like watching him develop into a player!! So far he's is second on my favorite new players list.

    OK that's a little on the offense. I'm posting this up for everyone to read while I get something to eat. Then I'll start up some defense in a little bit.

    I hope everyone enjoys the read, and remember. I'm just a fan like all of us. These are meanly my opinions, and they could be wrong, and surely can be slightly different from what others might see or report.

    Oz
     
  2. 54Fins

    54Fins "In Gase we trust"

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    over there
    Great job.Always look forward to reading your reports.
     
  3. TotoreMexico

    TotoreMexico Your retarded

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    Thanks for the report Ozzy, good stuff as always:up:
     
  4. Zippy

    Zippy The Man in Black. Club Member

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    Thanks! Always enjoy your updates.
     
  5. Bpk

    Bpk Premium Member Luxury Box


    Good. I want Beck to win this job. Let henne sit for a year.


    We're gonna notice this a lot. This regime has pushed our players to their phycial peaks. They are bigger, badder, stronger. :)



    Not a good sign from a #1 WR. As for Davone bess, we'll see how he does i real games. I hold out hope that he can be out Slot guy if he comes on through training camp.


    Darilek at RG, huh? McKinney is #2? Hm. I hope roster cuts later in camp produce some good waiver wire Guards for us. I am not blown away by Darilek. Given your observations about Murphy, I wonder if he has a good chance of moving up the RG depth chart as he proves himself to coaches. Any deficiencies in his game that you could see, Ozzy?

    Glad to hear Holliday was playing hard. He is probably angry about Taylor being gone, and about this team being about three years from now instead of 'right now' lol. Maybe he's taking it out on Jake. better than Vonnie moping, though.


    Impressed by Ricky's work ethic and leadership. I laughed at the comment about how Merling smacked him and Ricky just went on with his business.

    Great catch on noticing Ronnie tweakng something. Hopefully just banged his shin on a helmet on the ground or something.

    GREAT REPORT, OZZY!!!
     
  6. jim1

    jim1 New Member

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    Great report, thx. Heckuva nice boat, too!
     
  7. Fin Fan In Cali

    Fin Fan In Cali Dolphin fan since 1970 Luxury Box

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    Awesome report as usual brother!:up:
     
  8. larfo2224

    larfo2224 Season Ticket Holder Club Member

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    Great report OZ.
     
  9. AbideN703

    AbideN703 Yes, I'd hit it

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    I have the feeling you'll have 10,000 thanks by the end of training camp :up::yes:
     
  10. Die_Nasty

    Die_Nasty Well-Known Member

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    Absolutely awesome writeup. I was waiting impatiently for some news ever since the beginning of training camp.

    I liked the comment about Merling laying a nice hit on Ricky in camp.

    Also I hope Beck can really step it up. I'm sure you'll be noticing Ginn a lot more throughout camp (only the first day).
     
  11. Superself

    Superself Season Ticket Holder

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    Thanks a bunch as always, Oz you consistently deliver the goods!!
     
  12. Themole

    Themole Season Ticket Holder

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    Point of the matter is; Ozzy, you were there and took time to make notes and share with your brothers and sisters that couldn't be. :up:
     
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  13. calphin

    calphin deadly at 250 yards!!

    Ozzy, I was thinking about you early this morning, hoping and praying we would get reports from you like we have in years past. being on the west coast, I really look foward to your posts. keep up the great work.


    Thanks a million
    Mike
     
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  14. Bpk

    Bpk Premium Member Luxury Box

    Dude, please don't quote Ozzy's whole post in your reply. It takes like an hour to scroll through it again!

    Lol.

    Esp. On a Blackberry.
     
  15. alen1

    alen1 New Member

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    :lol:
     
  16. gafinfan

    gafinfan gunner Club Member

    Great post ozzy many thanks.:up::hi5:
     
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  17. first&goal

    first&goal Luxury Box Luxury Box

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    Great job Ozzy Thanks :up:
     
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  18. alen1

    alen1 New Member

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    I remember having that over at FH. It was great. I'm sure the staff will do that for us over time. You should go post that in the S&Q forum.:up:
     
  19. evz

    evz Feral Druid Club Member

    Man I look forward to your reports every year. I can almost hear the pads clacking...

    Woohoo! Football is back!
     
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  20. PMZQ

    PMZQ Banned

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    Great write up Ozzy. That Shawn Murphy just impresses more and more. I have followed him since the draft, and read several article and seen a couple of interviews on MiamiDolphins.com, and he is more impressive each time. I think we have a winner in this guy. Wouldn't it be great if he anchored that line with Jake & Satale for the next 10 years ? :up:

    Davone Bess, seems to be another steal for The Trio.

    I know its the 1st day, but still it feels like I am a kid in a candy store ! :wink2:
     
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  21. FinsAreLife

    FinsAreLife Well-Known Member

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    good stuff and a great read man
     
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  22. FanMarino

    FanMarino Season Ticket Holder

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    Wheres the Love for Carey??? :up:
     
  23. PMZQ

    PMZQ Banned

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    Carey has at best 5 more years. The others could be together another decade. :wink2:
     
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  24. FinSane

    FinSane Cynical Dolphins Fan

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    If bess continues to play like this, hes a lock for sure.
     
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  25. GISH

    GISH ~mUST wARN oTHERS~

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    this is why i drafted you. woot!
     
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