Flores briefing: As Rosen trade talks continue, Dolphins prepare for cuts, Cam Newton
News, notes and observations from Brian Flores’ Friday news conferences:
▪ Flores confirmed that the Dolphins have fielded calls from other teams about a potential trade for Josh Rosen, who looks increasingly like the odd man out in the team’s three-man quarterback competition.
“It’s the day before cutdown day,” Flores said. “There’s a lot of names floating around. Chris [Grier] is fielding calls left and right about Josh and a handful of other players. I think that’s the case around the league.”
Asked if the Dolphins’ willingness to listen to trade offers suggests Tua Tagovailoa is ready to play, if needed, Flores responded:
“No decisions have been made. We’re going to go out and practice today and made decisions on the roster tomorrow. We’re fielding calls on a handful of players, and I think every team is doing the same thing. Josh has competed. Josh has made some great throws. I think he’s gotten better over the course of training camp. That’s where we are with him.”
▪ The Dolphins turned over basically a fifth of their roster in the eight days leading up to regular season last year, making moves that included the Laremy Tunsil, Kenny Stills and Kiko Alonso trades.
When asked if the more veteran-laden 2020 Dolphins will be quieter from a personnel standpoint, Flores responded:
“Depends on who’s out there, who’s available. We look at everyone. ... Last year is different than this year. You never know who’s going to be on the wire, who’s going to be available. I’m not going to pigeonhole myself and say we’re good with what where we’re at. That’s always going to be the approach.”
▪ Dolphins players have not yet selected team captains for the 2020 season.
Flores said he thinks having the team pick the leaders is “the the right way to do it. ... We have a captains’ meeting every week. We have conversations about schedule, game plan, any issues surrounding the team. ... It’s a big role. It’s an important choice we have for the players. It’s not a popularity contest. It’s a serious position and they should take it seriously.
▪ With the season just days away, the Dolphins will soon learn just how much ground they lost due to the coronavirus crisis.
“Compared to years past, we’re 10 OTAs and three minicamps practices behind. But every team is in the same boat. We’re a young team with a lot of rookies and new players. ... I feel like we’ve worked hard, we’ve improved. Where we’re at vs. past years, it is what it is. But it’s the same for every team. We’re not making excuses or pointing fingers or placing blame. I think the guys have worked really hard in trying to build that continuity. That takes time. Like any year, hopefully we’re better two, four, six, 10 weeks from now than we are today.
▪ Flores on the report that the Patriots — Miami’s Week 1 opponent — named Cam Newton their starting quarterback: “I think we all had an inkling that was going to be the case. We were preparing for all three quarterbacks, and we’ll still do that. ... It’s hard to win on the road. It’ll be a challenge. We know that. No matter who the QB is, it’s a challenge against that team.”
▪ Dolphins receiver DeVante Parker has not practiced since Aug. 24 with an undisclosed injury. Both he and Kirk Merritt did conditioning work during the portion of practice open to reporters Friday. Patrick Laird continues to show improvement from last week’s minor injury; he no longer wore the red non-contact jersey.
And linebacker Kyle Van Noy continues to wear a soft cast on his right hand.
This story was originally published September 4, 2020 at 9:32 AM.
