Miami Dolphins Stock Report: Joint Session with Texans (Practice 14)

Two seldom-used pass catchers came alive for Tua Tagovailoa during the Dolphins' first of two joint practices against the Houston Texans

HOUSTON — It's put up or shut up time for the Miami Dolphins players fighting for starting spots, prominent roles, and spots on the 53-man roster.

This is the second set of joint practices the Dolphins are holding, and based on day one against the Houston Texans there isn't single snap to spare because it was mostly first-team and second-team work, with a few third-teamers sprinkled in.

Miami's coaches are testing out packages on both sides of the ball, and asking players to dial in on their technique and assignment.

"It's about players developing their technique at a critical juncture for the roster decisions that come. How do guys take failure, or successes and move forward?" coach Mike McDaniel said, addressing the agenda for this week's joint practices against the Texans, which leads into Saturday's preseason game at 4 p.m. ET.  "This is going to be a great opportunity to see that with a fully digested playbook at their disposal.”

Here's a look at how the All Dolphins team — which collectively has 50 years of Dolphins coverage on our resume — evaluated Wednesday's practice after watching the action on both fields.

Here's my column on Christian Wilkins beginning his second week of a hold-in, as he advocates for a new contract that guarantees him $50-60 million.

If you missed our offensive breakdown for day one, you can find it here.

If you missed our defensive breakdown for day one, you can find it here.

Top Performers

Tight end Durham Smythe - The Dolphins tight ends have been awfully quiet throughout training camp, bringing up questions about whether the team should have done more to address the position in the offseason. But Smythe, who has started 56 games for Miami the past five seasons, was a major factor in the passing game Wednesday, concluding a strong performance with a 38-yard reception from Tua Tagovailoa in the two-minute drill at the end of practice. It was one of four catches for Smythe on the day.

Linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel - The versatile linebacker, who is being cross-trained to work as an inside linebacker, pulled down an interception of a pass from Texans quarterback Davis Mills, which he leaped into the air to get. Van Ginkel had a decent return on the interception, but would have been stopped before he reached the end zone. Van Ginkel, who has started 31 games for the Dolphins at outside linebacker the past three seasons, also broke up two passes in coverage, and one of them prevented a touchdown during a red zone period. His performance Wednesday hints that he's inside linebacker No. 4, which could put Channing Tindall, Miami's 2022 third-round pick, in jeopardy of not making the 53-man roster if he doesn't nail down a prominent special teams role.

Pass rusher Jaelan Phillips - Phillips' performance Wednesday might cost George Fant his roster spot because the replacement for the injured Tytus Howard, the Texans' starting right tackle, had his lunch money taken by Phillips, who spent most of the practice in Houston's backfield. Phillips recorded at least two sacks and two pressures during the 11-on-11 periods, and that's being conservative. It was good to see Phillips dominate an offensive tackle for the first time all camp because at times he's struggled against Austin Jackson.  Wednesday's performance from Phillips hints that Jackson is not catfishing the Dolphins and might have resurrected his career.

Wide receiver Braxton Berrios — The wide receiver was back working in team periods for the first time since sustaining a cut on his forehead in the preseason opener against Atlanta, and he picked up where he left off before he was sidelined. Berrios had the biggest play of the day for the offense when he got himself wide open behind the Houston secondary to catch a 50-yard touchdown pass from Skylar Thompson despite the pass being underthrown. Berrios had five catches on the day, including a touchdown from Tua Tagovailoa in the red zone and a nice low grab on a pass from Mike White.

Stock Down

Outside linebacker Emmanuel Ogbah - Christian Wilkins’ hold-in provides Miami’s coaches the ideal opportunity to test out Ogbah as a defensive lineman in Vic Fangio’s scheme, but there seems to be little interest in seeing the seven-year veteran, who has produced 19 sacks in his 42 games with the Dolphins the past three years, with his hand in the dirt. The Dolphins seem adamant about having Ogbah practice as a standup outside linebacker, and his lack of quickness has led to a quiet training camp. He was in the Texans backfield for one noticeable play despite lining up against a lackluster offensive line all day. At this point, Ogbah is a $15 million backup.

Center Connor Williams — While Liam Eichenberg has taken his share of criticism this training camp, Williams has had some rough outings as well. On this day, there was some spotty work in one-on-one pass-blocking drills, a low shotgun snap that disrupted the timing of a pass play (though it still was completed) and Tagovailoa’s first attempt being disrupted by immediate pressure right up the middle. Williams skipped the offseason program because he wants a new contract, but his performance in camp frankly hasn’t helped his cause.