Dolphins 2023 Camp: August 13 Practice Observations

What stood out during the 12th practice of Miami Dolphins training camp

Highlights, lowlights and observations from the 12th practice (day 19) of Miami Dolphins training camp Saturday:

-- The Dolphins initially weren't scheduled to practice Sunday, but head coach Mike McDaniel said there was a "re-think" because he didn't want the players kept out of the preseason opener to go four straight days without practice.

-- The team practiced inside the Baptist Health Training Complex with no fans in attendance.

SMITH DOES SOME WORK, WADDLE OUT

-- We'll start off with the attendance check, which was highlighted perhaps by the presence of rookie cornerback Cam Smith, even though his participation was limited.

-- Those who didn't practice Sunday were WR Jaylen Waddle, FB Alec Ingold, WR Braylon Sanders, RB Myles Gaskin, OL Dan Feeney, CB Jalen Ramsey, CB Keion Crossen and S Brandon Jones.

-- Veteran tackle Terron Armstead did work with the offensive linemen but did not participate in team periods.

-- For a second consecutive practice, nobody wore an orange jersey. McDaniel explained that there was no orange jersey for the second joint practice with Atlanta so as to not put a bull's-eye on a player who would have been deemed to have had the better of the Falcons in the first joint practice.

-- WR Robbie Chosen, who McDaniel said was kept out of the preseason opener because of some injury issues, was a full participant in practice. Rookie cornerback Ethan Bonner also was back in action.

ROUGH PRACTICE FOR TUA

-- After sitting out the preseason opener against Atlanta, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa took every snap in team work, including late-game situations and red zone, in practice and did not have a good outing, to put it very politely.

-- Tua was picked off three times — by Noah Igbinoghene, Jevon Holland and DeShon Elliott — and was off target on a couple other occasions.

-- IIgbinoghene had his second interception against Tua in practice in eight days when he jumped a route near the left sideline and stepped in front of Cedrick Wilson Jr. for what likely would have been a pick-six in a game situation.

-- Wilson also was the intended receiver on the third interception, a pass in the end zone that was thrown behind the receiver and deflected right into the hands of Elliott.

-- Wilson did have a spectacular one-handed catch in the back of the end zone that was highlighted on the team's social media accounts, though it did come on a play where Tua would have been sacked in a game situation.

-- The pick by Holland came when he stepped in front of Tyreek Hill on a deep pass down the middle of the field.

-- Tua did have three shorts touchdown passes in red-zone work, one to Jeff Wilson Jr. on a nice throw over the middle one to Hill and the last to tight end Durham Smythe.

-- Tua's best pass of the day was a strike down the middle to rookie tight end Julian Hill that would have been good for some 30 yards.

THE HILL-APPLE SHOWDOWN ARRIVES

-- Media members who had so been looking forward to new cornerback Eli Apple covering Hill, given their prior social media exchanges and Hill's playful trash talking after Apple arrived, got their wish Sunday as they went head-to-head three times.

-- The first such matchup came with the offense near the goal ilne and Apple won that rep after getting right in Hill's face at the line and closely guarding him before Tua completed a pass to Wilson on other half of the field.

-- Hill came back with a touchdown catch on a nice back-shoulder throw by Tua despite tight coverage by Apple. Hill also caught another pass against Apple in the open field near the sideline.

-- Hill also had a nice low catch in the middle of the field against a different defender.

-- Apple later came back with a pass breakup against WR Erik Ezukanma.

OTHER DEFENSIVE HIGHLIGHTS

-- Linebacker Channing Tindall followed up his active preseason opener by knocking away a Tua pass in the middle of the field.

-- The defense again had its share of would-be sacks (understanding that some of them are the result of QBs looking to extend plays to attempt a pass), with Bradley Chubb, Raekwon Davis, Jaelan Phillips and Malik Reed all getting to Tua.

-- Reed was very active in the pass-rushing department and he had another pressure on a play where Jaylen Twyman tackled De'Von Achane for a loss.

-- The last play of practice, fittingly enough, featured a pass breakup in the back of the end zone, with Xavien Howard knocking the ball away before it got to Hill.

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