Well in one week, the Dolphins will be holding their 2nd mini-camp.  Though it is "voluntary," it's expected that most of the veterans will be in Davie for the camp.  After all, with Bill Parcells in town, "voluntary" means "you better be there."  This will be our 2nd chance to see the rookies and our first opportunity to see the other new players that this regime has brought in. 

So what I wanted to do was just talk about some of the players I'm most excited/anxious to see in a Dolphins uniform as we head towards training camp in July.  Today we'll look at the offensive side of the ball and then we'll talk about the defensive side of the ball some time next week.  The list isn't in any particular order and I'm sure everyone's list would be different, which is why I encourage you all to tell us who you are most excited to see.  My offensive list is below:

Chad Henne - Just because I'm a very vocal John Beck fan doesn't mean I hope Henne fails.  It's just the opposite.  I'd love to see both become very good players.  After all, it's only fair that after so many years of not having a really good quarterback, we can now have two.  It's been widely reported that Henne struggled at the final practice of the rookie camp a few weeks back, with the coaching staff even making Chad run a lap.  But his first 2 days were reportedly solid and I'm very anxious to see him progress from day to day once camp rolls around.

Jayson Foster - If watching the many highlight videos of Foster's college career doesn't excite you, then you might not even have a pulse.  Sure, he's pretty damn small, but it tells you something that Foster was one of the few players that Bill Parcells said a word to at rookie camp.  I'm curious to see how his speed and quickness translate to this next level once the pads go on.

Davone Bess - Bess opened some eyes at rookie camp, catching everything that was thrown his way.  He lacks ideal speed and is on the short side, but his route running and feel for the game really translate into potentially big upside as an NFL slot receiver.  I'm looking forward to hearing the camp reports on how he does getting open once the veterans arrive.

Ernest Wilford - Wilford comes to Miami from Jacksonville and will likely have the inside track to winning the starting receiver job opposite of Ted Ginn.  And he's really the ideal complimentary receiver to a player like Ginn.  As I discussed right here, Wilford is going to be a major upgrade over Marty Booker.  He's got reliable hands, moves the chains, and is a great red-zone target.  I'm looking forward to seeing how he works with the Dolphin quarterbacks in camp.

Jake Long - For obvious reasons, all Dolphin fans will be closely keeping watch on Long and how he does transitioning from the college game to the pros.  I cannot wait to hear the camp reports on how Long is doing in pass protection against some of the speed rushers off the edge (Jason Taylor, Quentin Moses, Joey Porter, etc...).  He's going to learn very early on in camp that dealing with NFL pass-rushers is quite different than dealing with those in the Big 10.

Justin Smiley - There are many reasons why I'm anxious to see Smiley take the field.  One, the Dolphins did pay a decent amount of money to him.  Two, he's coming off of a torn labrum.  And three, Smiley seems to be a very intense player who is also not afraid to speak his mind.  He plays with a nasty streak and that's the kind of play this team needs.

Just missed the list:  Boomer Brigsby, Shawn Murphy, Tab Perry

So those are my top 6 new Dolphin players that I'm most excited/anxious to see on the offensive side of the ball.  We'll get into the defensive side next week. 

Be sure to tell us all which new offensive players you are most excited to see in aqua and orange.

Thoughts below...

Incase you've been living under a rock for the past 48 hours, you know that the main story of this weekend for the Dolphins was their rookie mini-camp, the first one of 2008.  And with it's conclusion on Sunday, there's really only one thing that Dolphin fans (and football fans in general) are thinking:  Football season can't get here soon enough.  All this weekend's mini-camp really did was wet my appetite for, of course, more football.  But we'll have to wait a little bit for that.

Here are some of the storylines that came out of this weekend's mini-camp:

A NEW ERA HAS BEGUN
For Tony Sparano, this weekend really marked the beginning of what will hopefully be a successful head coaching career.  And he was just as excited as anyone to get on the practice field for the first time.  On Friday, Sparano shared with the media:

"It was great. I was excited; didn’t sleep much last night. All of the administrative stuff for me, from that standpoint, was put behind me last evening and I was excited to get out here and get on the field."

And with that, a brand new era kicked off in Miami for the 2nd time in as many years.  But as Dolphin fans, we're all hoping this one is different.  And we're hoping it's long-term.

The good news is that it does seem different right now.  In all of Sparano's press briefings the past few days, he's shown us all that he is indeed a "football guy."  He's not going to put spin on anything like Cam Cameron did.  And he doesn't seem like a blatant liar like Nick Saban.  Instead, he comes off as a person who is just excited to be on the field again and who will tell it like it is.  How refreshing is that?

Take the following as a good example of this.  On Saturday, Sparano was asked what jumped out the most after watching the tape of Friday's practice.  Sparano could have said something like "great effort."  But he didn't.  He said:

"I think what I saw last night after viewing the film is I saw, clearly in my mind, we had some guys who lacked some stamina, some conditioning and some of those things. As we got on in practice, you could see that show up. And the point I just tried to make to them in the meeting this morning is that this is just a small sample of what’s going to happen and what lies ahead."

Then to further make a point about conditioning, Sparano had this to say about the signing of UDFA Anthony Toribio:

"Honestly, I think one of the things, and to his credit certainly not to ours, he came in here and he was in outstanding shape."

That's right.  It seems we got a no-nonsense, straight-shooter in Miami.  It's about damn time if you ask me.  Let's just hope things turn out differently under this head coach than they have under the team's previous 3 or 4.

DAVONE BESS IMPRESSES
One of the hot topics entering this mini-camp was which of the undrafted free agents that the Dolphins brought in would take this opportunity to stand out from everyone else.  The answer?  Hawaii WR Davone Bess.  And this doesn't come as a shock to me because, like many, I thought the signing of Bess following the draft was an outstanding move.

The Pam Beach Post writes that the Dolphins new offensive coordinator, Dan Henning, is really taken a liking to Bess:

Offensive coordinator Dan Henning, a veteran of 28 NFL seasons, likes what he has seen from rookie wideout Davone Bess. Sure hands. Sharp routes. Nice dreads.

Henning, 65, looked to narrow the generational gap when he complimented Bess' signature blond-tipped dreadlocks during Saturday's practice.

Henning, who even asked Bess for the name of his hairdresser, may have been joking. But for Bess, it was nice to be noticed again.

Even Sparano has taken notice of this former Hawaii standout:

"I see a player that has pretty good ball skills right now. He certainly needs to do some things from a conditioning standpoint. But the one thing with him is, he has been in an offense where they are running a bunch of routes every game. I think that is a positive."

I said this once and I'll say it again because I really believe it:  Davone Bess is going to be a Miami Dolphin in 2008.  Call me crazy, but I really like the idea of lining up Ernest Wilford and Derek Hagan on the outside and Teddy Ginn and Bess in the slots when Miami goes with 4 wide receivers.  I think that Bess' quick-twitch ability will really allow him to effectively work the middle of the field to get open.  Many NFL corners will have some issues with how quick Bess can get in and out of his breaks.  Just watch his Hawaii highlights and you can see a player who runs good routes and who knows how to get open.  And I don't care who it's against.  The ability to effectively get open is something that you really can't teach.  Bess just has a great feel for the game.

QUICK HITS
Here are a few other things that came out of camp:

-Chad Henne had a tough day on Sunday but that's to be expected.

-Jake Long is showing why he was a number 1 pick.   Many reports all claim that he looked so much lighter on his feet than anyone else despite being the largest of all the offensive linemen participating in camp.  It's early, but that's good news.

-Early reports are that Phillip Merling looked a little sluggish at times.  But that's too be expected when you consider he's coming off surgery and isn't in football shape yet.  He did show great strength, though, when he was taking part in drills and such.

Thoughts below...

It seems that there's a new rivalry brewing in the NFL.  And this rivalry comes straight out of college.

Jake Long and Vernon Gholston battled once a year in college when their respective teams, Michigan and Ohio State, faced off in their yearly big game.  Now, with Long a Dolphin and Gholston a Jet, these two will play each other two times per year, beginning on opening day in Miami.

Well it seems Jim Tressel is spouting off at the mouth , and Jake Long certainly won't be too happy to hear this:

"You know, in all the highlights on Saturday, I never saw any of those plays where he carried Jake Long into the quarterback's lap," Tressel said in a telephone interview yesterday from Columbus.

The one highlight played consistently was of Gholston beating Long for a sack - the only one Long gave up all season - but Tressel said that wasn't the only play in which Gholston bettered Long. There just wasn't a sack to show for the other ones.

Carried Jake Long into the QB's lap?  Somehow, I don't believe that.

And considering Long only allowed one sack to Gholston, I'm really not to worried about what's going to happen when the Dolphins and Jets face off.  However, being the competitor he is, I bet that Jake will make it a point to knock Vernon on his ass a few times.

Regardless, Tressel needs to realize one thing: that Jake Long is the American Dragon, and Vernon better beware of the consequences from his college coach's words.  If I was Vernon, I'd call Tressel and tell him to put a cork in it.