Dolphins camp: Tua throws two interceptions vs. Texans, Jaelan Phillips shines again; plus stock up, stock down
HOUSTON — Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa tossed a pair of interceptions that would’ve been returned for touchdowns while the defense, led by another standout performance from edge rusher Jaelan Phillips, was solid in the team’s first of two joint practices with the Texans in Houston on Wednesday.
Tagovailoa’s second pick-six thrown was in a simulation of a two-minute drill. He quickly drove the offense to the red zone, but a slant to wide receiver Robbie Chosen was cut off by Texans safety Jalen Pitre, who had open field in front of him for about an 85-yard touchdown return.
Earlier in team drills on another field, Tagovailoa was throwing short left and linebacker Christian Harris intercepted it for a shorter touchdown return in Dolphins territory.
Those negative plays aren’t what define the practices for the players, however, with the outlook more honed in on the process than the outcome.
“I liked (Wednesday’s practice),” said left tackle Terron Armstead, who participated in team drills as he works his way to season readiness. “We’ve been having some challenges, some struggles. More so, just the timing and the vibe of the offense, trying to run that operation and make it run like a machine, and we haven’t been able to do that the way that we have grown accustomed to when we’re rolling.
“Today felt normal. It felt more normal. Still had some hiccups, of course, but from an operation standpoint, it felt like a real offense.”
Tagovailoa, who threw three interceptions in Sunday’s intra-squad practice and one each in the two joint sessions with the Atlanta Falcons last week, added there’s some experimentation going on for the Miami offense throughout training camp.
“We’re trying to put a lot more stress on our guys on the back end with our motions and understanding what we’re trying to do play-wise,” he said. “There’s a lot of things we’ve got going on this year that (coach Mike McDaniel) has wanted to try for our guys, and try to see who does what the best and try to go from there.”
Defensively, the Dolphins held strong against the Texans offense.
Phillips continues to have standout practice after standout practice as a prime candidate to break out in his third NFL season. He had two sacks and other pressures on Houston quarterbacks. Andrew Van Ginkel had an interception and two other pass breakups.
The day could’ve looked different for the Dolphins defense, though, if rookie Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud was able to connect with a couple of receivers that had a step on defenders deep.
Observations
Tagovailoa’s second pick-six came after it seemed like the Miami offense was rolling in the two-minute drill. Two completions — to tight end Durham Smythe for 38 yards and then to Tyreek Hill for 15 yards — quickly got Miami to the Houston 22-yard line. He also had a solid drive earlier, also finding Smythe and Hill. …
Tagovailoa had a fine red-zone portion of practice. He connected with River Cracraft for a great touchdown in the corner of the end zone against Texans cornerback Tavierre Thomas. Hill, Raheem Mostert and Braxton Berrios also had red-zone touchdowns. …
Skylar Thompson found Berrios wide open for a deep touchdown over the middle of 60-plus yards. Berrios had to slow down for the throw, but with no one around him, the play was never in doubt. …
Aside from Phillips, Bradley Chubb, Raekwon Davis and Jerome Baker were among Dolphins with sacks. Zach Sieler batted a ball at the line of scrimmage. …
Texans tight end Dalton Schultz gave the Dolphins some trouble. Versatile defensive back Elijah Campbell got some reps against tight ends, giving up one long completion to Schultz but also getting a pass breakup. …
Kader Kohou, while unknown entering Wednesday if he would do team drills, broke up a pass in a late two-minute drill. Xavien Howard had a pass interference called against him. …
In 1-on-1s between the offensive and defensive lines, Lester Cotton, who is surging as a candidate for the Dolphins’ starting left guard spot, looked unmovable winning three reps. Fellow guards Robert Hunt and Robert Jones were also seen with wins, and right tackle Austin Jackson held firm in his first shot at Texans rookie edge Will Anderson Jr. Anderson did get him with his speed at times, though, in team drills. …
The Miami offense was run-heavy early in team drills, with some runs for various backs squirting through and others bottled up. Mike White had a connection over the middle with Chosen for about 20 yards that came among the work on the ground. …
The Dolphins went back to not having an orange jersey for previous practice’s player of the day at Wednesday drills. McDaniel said last week he didn’t want to put a target on a player going against another team when the team held joint practices with the Falcons. …
Among sightings at Wednesday’s practice in Houston were former Dolphins greats Mark Clayton and Richmond Webb, University of Miami and Texans great Andre Johnson and baseball pitcher Roger Clemens, a Texas native. Clemens had a picture and jersey exchange with Hill and also had a moment to meet Tagovailoa after practice.
Who wins in a race… @cheetah or my fastball? pic.twitter.com/a5E6h8VuGD
— Roger Clemens (@rogerclemens) August 16, 2023
Injury report
Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle is being held out of joint practices in Houston with his midsection injury.
Rookie cornerback Cam Smith participated in individual drills with a red, non-contact jersey.
Left guard Liam Eichenberg and running back Myles Gaskin were seen working out on the side of the practice fields.
Safety Brandon Jones did not practice again after he was seen ramping up practice participation last week in joint practices against the Falcons. Others not seen in drills were fullback Alec Ingold, cornerbacks Keion Crossen and Justin Bethel and wide receiver Braylon Sanders.
Cornerback Nik Needham (Achilles) and tight end Tanner Conner (undisclosed) remain on the physically-unable-to-perform list.
Stock up
Linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel was around the ball constantly in pass defense, intercepting Texans quarterback Davis Mills and picking up two other pass breakups. Van Ginkel could end up being a versatile rotational piece in the Dolphins linebacking corps, capable of playing inside and outside in Vic Fangio’s defense. “That dude will ball no matter where he’s at on the field,” Howard said.
Stock down
Center Connor Williams had a 1-on-1 rep where he was easily pushed back by a Houston defensive tackle, which would have had the pocket completely collapse if there was a quarterback he was protecting. As if to compensate, Williams then threw the defender to the ground in what would be a clear hold. Williams also had at least one low snap to Tagovailoa that the quarterback had to dig out, but he had some fine moments blocking in the run game.