MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Noah Igbinoghene sacked Mike White in practice Thursday, which would have made a lot more sense in 2023 than it does in 2024.
Igbinoghene, the Miami Dolphins‘ third of three 2020 first-round picks, is back in town this week. He’s playing the same position but with a different organization.
Still just 24 years old, Igbinoghene is now a backup cornerback for the Washington Commanders, representing his third team in less than a year.
Catching Up With Ex-Miami Dolphins CB Noah Igbinoghene
In the DMV, Igbinoghene has a fresh slate. There are none of the pressures, expectations, and ultimate disappointments that tainted his three seasons with Miami.
Igbinoghene chatted with PFN following Thursday’s practice. And to hear him tell it, the Dolphins did him a favor by trading him to the Dallas Cowboys last August.
“Honestly, it just wasn’t the right time for me,” Igbinoghene said. “[There were] so many things I learned being in Dallas last year, honestly. I feel like Dallas really changed me, who I was as a player, as a man.
“I learned what it actually took to play in this league, not saying I didn’t know before, but, you know, sometimes you think you know something, until you actually go through it …
“Actually, not playing really helped me figure out [that] I want to play. I want to be on the field. I want to be a starter. You got to know how to do it. You can’t just say it. You actually have to go out and perform on a daily basis. The opportunity’s here now.”
Igbinoghene isn’t a starter in Washington, at least not yet. But he has something with the Commanders that he at times lacked in Miami — the full support of a head coach who believes in his promise.
Igbinoghene didn’t play much for the Cowboys, but he connected with then-defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.
When Quinn got the Commanders’ top job this offseason, Igbinoghene — who allowed a 113.1 passer rating against and 8.8 yards per target during his three seasons with the Dolphins — followed him to the nation’s capital.
“I think just honestly being in Dallas last year, being up under DQ, when he got the new opportunity, you know, I just kind of wanted to still stay around him,” Igbinoghene said. “[There was] a culture he brought to the defense last year, to the team as well. I saw what that defense did to the team, to the Dallas Cowboys.
“Being able to go to the Commanders with him, seeing his new opportunity, having a new opportunity myself,” he added, “I’m going to prove myself and improve.
“Prove why I was a first-round pick, you know, that I can play in this league. You know, and I’m getting to show that now. I’m not saying I didn’t get to before. But you know, we learn. We live and learn and go through stuff in life. So I’m glad to say I’m here with this team, and it’s a blessing.”
