Chop Robinson’s pleasant surprise. And injury news, 10 Dolphins quick hits
A 10-pack of Dolphins notes on a Thursday:
▪ Chop Robinson captured the imagination of Dolphins fans by delivering six sacks during an eight-game stretch in November and December and finishing with an impressive 56 quarterback pressures, most among all rookie edge rushers.
But he also captured the attention of some of the game’s premier pass rushers.
One of Robinson’s offseason highlights was being recognized by three of the game’s top edge rushers — Las Vegas’ Maxx Crosby, Cincinnati’s Trey Hendrickson and Cleveland’s Myles Garrett — at the NFL Honors awards.
“It’s crazy they knew who I was,” he said Thursday. “They knew my name and everything. Trey came up to me and said he loved my game. He was the sack leader [last season]; so words coming from him meant a lot..... Crazy experience. I’m blessed.”
Robinson said his offseason focus was “my hand placement in the run game. Toward the end of last season, I started being better.”
He correlates his midseason improvement as a pass rusher to playing more freely and “not thinking too much.”
He said “I hope we see a lot” of the pass rush package with himself, Bradley Chubb and Jaelan Phillips.
▪ Just a day ago, Mike McDaniel suggested that tight end Darren Waller would participate in red zone and third-down work on Thursday. But something unforeseen must have happened, because Waller did not practice at all Thursday; the team listed a hip injury beside his name on the injury report.
McDaniel did not speak Thursday but will address reporters on Friday. Waller wasn’t seen in the locker room, but players who do not practice are not permitted to speak to reporters.
Tua Tagovailoa said Wednesday that even though their on-field work has been fairly limited, “I think he’s been really locked in throughout the past couple weeks, and then we’ve had some reps with him as well, so we’ll see how much playing time he gets this Sunday.”
What makes Tagovailoa confident that he will be able to do what he’s asked to do? “There’s some plays that he’s made out there that I would say I’m pretty confident that he’ll make some plays for us,” he said Wednesday. “Now is he going to have a lot of playing time — that I’m not too sure with what the coaches got going on and with the game plan aspect of it, I’m not too sure.”
▪ Cornerback Ethan Bonner (hamstring) and running back Jaylen Wright (knee) also missed practice Thursday.
Receivers Tyreek Hill (calf/oblique) and Dee Eskridge (concussion), running back De’Von Achane (calf) and safety Ashtyn Davis (calf) remained limited participants.
Two players popped up on the injury list as limited practice participants: guard James Daniels (ankle) and safety Elijah Campbell (knee).
▪ Tagovailoa said it will be “cool” competing against former Dolphins cornerback Xavien Howard, who signed with the Colts last month after sitting out last season.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for my dawg. He was really ‘The Last of the Mohicans.’ When I got [to Miami], he was the OG when I got in here, so I’ve got a lot of respect for him and I think he was the longest (tenured) Dolphin that I can remember since being here.”
▪ Center Aaron Brewer, on what makes him optimistic about rookie left guard Jonah Savaiinaea besides his diligence and maturity: “He’s huge a big boy. He’s big, and he can move — if you have those traits, [that’s a good start]. You need to be athletic in this offense, and that’s a big plus for us.”
Brewer expects Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo to throw wrinkles at Savaiinaea and left tackle Patrick Paul because of their inexperience: “Defensive coordinators try to pick at the guys who are fresh.”
▪ The Dolphins produced just 16 takeaways last season (sixth fewest in the league) despite practicing trying to chop the ball out of the hands of Dolphins offensive players throughout the 2024 offseason program and training camp.
“We’re still emphasizing it and talking about it every day,” linebacker Jordyn Brooks said. “... Takeaways come when you’re in the right position. I dropped four picks last year that could have helped out.”
▪ The Dolphins four-game winning streak in season openers is tied for second longest in the league, behind only the Saints. Meanwhile, the Colts have lost 11 openers in a row.
▪ Even beyond running back Ollie Gordon II’s preseason production (126 yards rushing on 4.8 per carry), here’s what else general manager Chris Grier appreciates about him:
“Ollie in the spring, it was an acclimation for him to the NFL. He came in a little bit heavy because in college he had gotten bigger trying to protect himself after he won the Doak Walker [award for the nation’s best running back]. I think he played about 10 pounds heavier. He got here, we told him, ‘No, we need you down a little bit.’ So unprompted – we just told him that – he came back to camp, he was like nine, 10 pounds lighter and has been great for us.”
Grier also raved about fifth-round cornerback Jason Marshall Jr.: “Jason is the same way. You don’t even know he’s out there, he’s so quiet. He’s a really good person but just works every day. Just comes in, puts his head down. I was proud of him. He had a little hamstring for a day it’s something he battled and then went back out there and has not missed a day since.”
▪ Kudos to edge player Cam Goode for beating out Derrick McLendon, Grayson Murphy, Mo Kamara and Quinton Bell for the Dolphins’ No. 5 outside linebacker job.
“This is the first time I made the initial 53,” he pointed out. “The competition was strong.”
He said his acumen on special teams is “probably the main reason I’m here, showing I can be trusted on special teams. And proving I can be dependable backup on defense.”
He has studied Phillips, Chubb, Robinson and Matthew Judon in an attempt to become a more proficient pass rusher.
“They say use my length a lot,” he said. “I’ve got long arms; keep these big guys off me that weigh a lot more than me. I’m working on that, keeping that extension and using my arm length.”
Lack of ideal arm length is one reason why Murphy hasn’t found an NFL job, even on a practice squad. Phillips said he was probably the best pure pass rusher on the team before the Dolphins released him.
▪ Quick stuff: The Dolphins seem to have decided that talking up their team publicly doesn’t necessarily help.
“Enough with the talking,” Tagovailoa said. “We’ve just got to go show that.”
Tyreek Hill uttered a line we’ve heard several times last month: “They talk. We do.”...
CBS is sending Sunday’s 1 p.m. game to 10 percent of the country, including all of Florida. The network’s No. 4 team -- Andrew Catalon, Charles Davis and Jason McCourty - will call Miami’s first two games, including the Sept. 14 home opener against New England.
Here’s some news from Dolphins assistant coaches on Thursday.
Here’s what national pundits are predicting from the Dolphins this season.
This story was originally published September 4, 2025 at 5:07 PM.
