HOUSTON — On any other day, what Robert Hunt said about the Miami Dolphins‘ offensive line would have been a bigger story than it was.
But Thursday was no ordinary day here, not with Terron Armstead scaring the hell out of (and then hours later calming the nerves of) Dolphins fans from coast to coast.
And assuming Armstead is back from a leg injury on the timeline suggested — sooner rather than later, with Week 1 on the table — the Dolphins should be feeling pretty good about an O-line that showed improvement week over week in joint practices.
Miami Dolphins’ Offensive Line Ahead of Last Year?
Hunt, the Dolphins’ excellent right guard, was asked after practice Thursday about the still-unresolved left guard battle. With Liam Eichenberg banged up, the door remains open for Lester Cotton, Isaiah Wynn, and Robert Jones to win that job.
The downside of having a training camp battle on the offensive line is it cuts into the time needed to build chemistry with what will ultimately be the starting unit. And now with Armstead — who was already on a very limited snap count — potentially out for a couple of weeks, it’ll be more mixing and matching.
That dynamic didn’t seem to concern Hunt that much, however.
“I don’t think it affects anyone negatively,” Hunt said. “I mean we all know, as a human, competing at your job is something you feel some type of way about. But this is a business. We’re all fighting for a job. We’re all going to make the best of this short time that we have in the NFL, and that’s that.
“I think as an offensive line, though, I think we’re a lot further along than we have been,” Hunt added. “I think we’ve got the right stuff brewing. I think we’re playing well. Not by any means is it perfect, but I think we’re doing a lot of really good stuff. I think we’re headed in the right direction.”
Hunt might be right. He’s playing great. Austin Jackson at right tackle looks as good as he ever has. And while Connor Williams showed rust early in camp after skipping spring ball over a contract dispute, he’s been better too.
“It’s a beautiful day out”
Yes, yes it is @RobertHandyHunt ☀️🌴 pic.twitter.com/iwCrUCV99j
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) August 4, 2023
“As I watch it as a whole in film, it looks good,” Hunt said. “I think a lot of guys are playing hard. I think we’re running off the football. I think there’s a lot of good stuff happening. You can see that even with guys that aren’t typically Day 1 starters right now at this point.
“Last week in the preseason game, you still can see that. You see guys running off the ball. It’s a testament to us. I was talking to a couple of those guys yesterday, and they were like, ‘D—, y’all are so far off the ball. I thought y’all would be running off the ball today.’ It’s talked about and it’s seen, so I think it’s going well.”