MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Miami Dolphins’ depth at cornerback might soon get significantly tested. A week after Jalen Ramsey suffered a knee injury expected to keep him out the first couple of months of training camp, another notable defensive back was forced out of practice with an undisclosed injury.
We get into that, Robbie Chosen’s big day, and a big improvement from Mike White in our training camp Day 8 Miami Dolphins practice report.
Miami Dolphins Practice Report: Latest News From Training Camp
Cam Smith Scare
Early in practice — long before the heavens opened up and drenched the players — rookie cornerback Cam Smith appeared to injure himself during a one-on-one drill.
Smith’s momentum took him through the back of the end zone and onto the sidewalk behind it. His cleats didn’t mesh well with the change in surface, according to multiple reporters who saw it happen (we didn’t, sadly), and Smith apparently felt something abnormal.
It was enough to end his day and send him inside for further evaluation.
If Smith’s issue is significant, it will further strain a position group that’s already down Ramsey, Nik Needham (who is on the PUP list with an Achilles), and Keion Crossen (undisclosed).
Smith has been an early bright spot in Dolphins camp, getting his hands on passes almost every day so far.
“He’s played a lot of different coverages throughout the course of his career, and he’s one of those people, he takes it very seriously,” Dolphins cornerback coach Sam Madison said prior to practice.
“He wants to be good, and he just wants to put his best foot forward every single play, every single down. It’s just been fun throwing him in different situations throughout the course of the camp, and he’s handled it very well.
“He’s a true defensive back because, when you’re talking about giving up a play or coming up with a play, he has a short memory span, and then he gets right back out there and gives it his all.
“So it’s just going to be fun, you know, first have an opportunity to work with him and then, secondly, see exactly how far he can go and what he can be. So we just want to keep working on all the little small details of the defense and, you know, a lot of these guys coming from college is a lot of terminology and the defense coordinator that you’re working with and playing for, they want to hear their verbiage, and a lot of these guys have to be able to get over that hump and do that.”
More Practice Observations
- Beyond Ramsey and Crossen, wide receiver Erik Ezukanma and linebacker Malik Reed did not practice at all Friday. Defensive backs Trill Williams and Brandon Jones, who are both coming off ACL reconstructive surgeries, participated in red non-contact jerseys.
- Two highlights from Tua Tagovailoa early in team drills Friday: His no-look pass to Durham Smythe and his 50-yard bomb to Robbie Chosen (who beat reserve corner Tino Ellis so badly that he was able to wait on a slightly underthrown ball and still catch it with ease). Tagovailoa did seem to lose his accuracy when the torrential rains arrived, however.
- That wasn’t Chosen’s only big play Friday. He also pulled in a roughly 40-yard bomb from White, who was able to make the play despite pressure from Emmanuel Ogbah by stepping up in the pocket.
- White also hooked up with Julian Hill on a 25-yard completion late in practice.