How Miami irritated All Pro Crosby: ‘He’s kind of easy to aggravate.’ And Dolphins nuggets
A six-pack of Dolphins notes on a Wednesday:
▪ The Dolphins not only held Raiders All-Pro edge player Maxx Crosby without a sack or tackle for loss on Sunday, but they also seemingly got under his skin.
Dolphins right tackle Kendall Lamm and right guard Liam Eichenberg offered amusing background on that in the Dolphins locker room on Wednesday.
Eichenberg drew a personal foul penalty on Crosby on a third down on the Dolphins’ first drive. Eichenberg had tugged on Crosby and Crosby then smacked him across the head, drawing the unnecessary roughness penalty.
“I don’t know if he had a bad week or something was going on,” Eichenberg said. “He got aggravated pretty quick. You’ve got to hold your composure and focus on the game, not personal stuff.”
Lamm, who did much of the blocking on Crosby, said “Crosby was chirping to Liam the whole game.”
Eichenberg said: “He made a reference about my brother [Raiders linebacker Tommy Eichenberg] and I said something and he started laughing. For the most part, I was just trying to bother him as much as I could. I enjoy playing Maxx; he’s a great player, but he’s kind of easy to aggravate… I have lot of respect for him. I was more excited to see my brother out there.”
How does Eichenberg aggravate Crosby? “More I was always trying to make sure he wasn’t near the play, try to stay connected as long as I can. Those two things kind of annoyed him.”
Crosby had three quarterback pressures, tied for his second fewest in a game this season, and five tackles.
“I’m just trying to play hard and play through the whistle,” Eichenberg said. “It’s nice when we get an extra 15” yards for drawing a personal foul penalty.
Lamm cracked: “Sometimes I tell [Eichenberg] to shut the hell up because I have to go against” the guy he’s needling.
But Eichenberg said he didn’t say much to Crosby.
NFL Films caught Mike McDaniel jokingly saying to Tommy Eichenberg during the game: “Mom loves Liam more.” But Liam said Wednesday that Tommy is his mother’s favorite son.
▪ Fullback Alec Ingold said the calf injury that sidelined him the past two weeks has again left his status in question for Sunday’s game.
“It might come down to a game day decision,” he said. “Last couple weeks, we haven’t been able to pull that trigger. We’ll see how my body is responding.
“Anytime you are dealing with soft tissue, you always feel close but then can you get over that hump or not? It’s been frustrating for me. I love playing football and being out there with the guys.”
How did the injury happen? “Playing hard, running fast. It progressed. It wasn’t one single event from the Cardinals game to the next week’s practice and then to the Bills game. It kind of deteriorated on me over time.”
▪ The Dolphins held only a walk-through on Wednesday. But if they had practiced fully, left tackle Terron Armstead (knee) and cornerback Kendall Fuller (concussion) would not have practiced. Mike McDaniel said he’s pessimistic about Fuller’s chances of playing Sunday against visiting New England (1 p.m, CBS).
Six players would have been limited on Wednesday: receiver Tyreek Hill (wrist), Ingold (calf), defensive tackle Benito Jones (shoulder), guard Robert Jones (knee/groin), cornerback Jalen Ramsey (knee) and guard Isaiah Wynn (quad/knee). Wynn remains on the PUP list; the Dolphins have 14 days to activate him.
▪ Aaron Brewer is rated by Pro Football Focus as the NFL’s fifth best center this season, and Tua Tagovailoa said Wednesday that he “would love to have Brew here for a long time. I love how he goes about his business, how we communicate.”
The two sacks that Brewer allowed on Sunday were the first two he has given up all season.
Meanwhile, Armstead remains PFF’s top rated tackle.
“If you didn’t see him in the New Orleans days, you have no clue you are watching a Hall of Fame tackle… with 12 years of wear and tear,” Lamm said. “Not many that do it the way he does it.”
Armstead didn’t practice at all last week because of a knee injury but didn’t allow a quarterback pressure on Sunday.
“There’s been a lot of things he’s been dealing with injury wise,” Tagovailoa said. “I have a tremendous amount of respect for him trying to fight through those and compete.”
▪ Per PFF’s Ryan Smith, Dolphins rookie Chop Robinson has 18 pressures in the past four games, and his 17.3 percent pass rush win rate this season ranks 15th among all edge rushers.
Over the past two weeks, his 25 percent pass rush win rate is best among all edge players.
“He’s found a way to disrupt the passer for us, which is exactly what the doctor ordered and the right time,” McDaniel said of Robinson, who has sacks each of the past two weeks.
▪ Dolphins running back De’Von Achane now has six receiving touchdowns and 73 NFL catches (for 546 receiving yards) without a single drop.
Tagovailoa said he could tell last year what good hands Achane has.
“He’s really supreme with how he catches the ball,” Tagovailoa said. “It’s taken away because he runs very well too.”
This story was originally published November 20, 2024 at 4:12 PM.
