Dolphins coaches dish on injuries, special teams errors, Cam Smith, tight end change, more
Asking and answering questions from Thursday’s session with five Dolphins assistant coaches:
▪ Do the Dolphins expect to have outside linebacker Emmanuel Ogbah (bicep) and safety Jevon Holland (broken hand) available at Indianapolis on Sunday (1 p.m., Fox)?
Defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver said he’s “optimistic” about Ogbah playing and “hopeful” that Holland can play, while wearing a club or protective covering on his left hand.
“If I was going to count on anyone to get there to play, it would be him,” Weaver said of Holland. “We are preparing for both situations” — with Holland playing and not playing.
But Holland seemed very limited in practice on Thursday; he caught one pass, with his non-injured hand, and that was the extent of his individual drills.
Jordan Poyer (shin), like Holland, also remains limited in practice. Marcus Maye and Elijah Campbell are the backups.
Ogbah returned to practice Wednesday, on a limited basis.
▪ What’s the deal with rookie outside linebacker Chop Robinson, who has eight pressures but no sacks in 66 pass rush chances?
“His last game was his best game to date,” Weaver said. “Setting the edge, impacting the passer. I’m pleased with his trajectory and how he’s grown this season. I know the sack hasn’t been there yet, but he’s been close.”
▪ Why has Julian Hill consistently led the tight ends in offensive snaps (165 for the season), compared with 131 for Jonnu Smith and 126 for Durham Smythe?
“A lot of it was training camp,” offensive coordinator Frank Smith said. “A lot of things he’s doing really well. He’s a young player still ascending. I know with him right now, he’s conscious of certain areas he needs to improve on. The big thing we love about Julian is focused on how important it is for him. Being an in-line blocker isn’t easy in the NFL.”
Specifically in run blocking, Pro Football Focus ranked Hill seventh among 72 tight ends this season.
▪ What in the world is going on with the Dolphins’ special teams, which is ranked 32nd by Pro Football Focus and suffered the indignity of a blocked punt, a field goal hitting the upright and an errant field-goal snap that botched another field goal against New England?
“I like a lot of things we’re doing in the play,” special teams coordinator Danny Crossman said. “We are just doing too many things that we have to do better before the play or at the end of the play. We have to eliminate the penalties.”
Does Crossman rip his players for mistakes? “They know they messed up; they don’t need me reminding them,” he said, adding that he will correct their technique. “Blake [Ferguson] knows he had a poor snap. Jason [Sanders] knows he missed a field goal. If things happen in practice, I get a little more upset. It’s private [then], keep it in house.”
Crossman said he has had only three botched field-goal snaps in his long coaching career. Bottom line on all the mistakes: “If your technique is off a little bit, bad things can happen, especially against good players.”
▪ The Dolphins have seven more days to activate cornerback Cam Smith from injured reserve if they want him to play for them this season. What has Smith shown now that he’s fully practicing after a preseason hamstring injury?
“Cam has been awesome,” cornerbacks coach Mathieu Araujo said. “The greatest thing about Cam is his natural ability. He’s so natural at playing corner. Without any coaching, he can fly around and make plays.”
Where has he improved from last year?
“Just confidence playing with his technique,” said Araujo, who was promoted to replace Sam Madison during the offseason. “Taking his technique from what he did in college and using it on receivers he’s seen in the league. He has a natural football awareness to his game. In the meeting room, we’re looking to help him progress there, trying to teach him that.”
▪ What stood out to Weaver in self scouting during the bye week?
“Biggest thing is explosive run numbers,” he said. “If you take [the biggest] explosive run out of each game, we’re top five in yards per carry” allowed, instead of tied for 21st at 4.7.
“I don’t think it will require wholesale changes. I’m pleased what we’re doing on third down” where Miami leads the league.
▪ Is the quality of play from starting right guards Rob Jones and Liam Eichenberg up to the team’s standards?
Offensive line coach Butch Barry paused briefly and said: “They keep progressing in a really good direction every week. Are there plays all of us wish were better or want back? Yeah. That’s every team, every player. They have versatility; they work together… That’s why we like having them in the room.”
Pro Football Focus ranks the 2024 performance of Eichenberg 53rd and Jones 54th among 75 NFL guards.
▪ What has changed for Kader Kohou, who has gone from having a very good 80.7 passer rating against as a rookie in 2022, a bloated 133.4 rating last season but now an exceptional 63.2 rating against?
“The biggest thing I talked to him is don’t worry about making a mistake; just go play,” Araujo said. “You saw that in the last game; on third down, he was hesitating on one of the tackles. Then later in the game, he shot and made the tackle. He can do a lot of great things. When he plays with that confidence, you can see who he really is.”
This story was originally published October 17, 2024 at 12:56 PM.
