Here are some news & notes on this Wednesday, as the Dolphins returned to the practice field to begin preparing for the Cardinals:
BUONICONTI CRITICIZES GINN
It's one thing for former Dolphin greats to compliment players, but I get kind of pissed off when one feels the need to publicly rip a current player - especially a young player who has just 17 games under his belt. But that's what Nick Buoniconti did in a radio interview. He says of Ginn:
"The kid looks like he’s lost on I-95. The guy can’t find his way out of the huddle."
"Here’s a guy who’s finally got to step up and start performing. They’ve been treating Ted Ginn with kid gloves, and I understand that. But younger guys now have to rise to the occasion, and they have to start playing."
While it's true that Teddy was disappointing last Sunday, can we give him a little bit more time. First of all, it's usually a receivers' 3rd season when they finally reach their potential and play like they are capable. And when you consider Ginn wasn't even a receiver until he got to Ohio State and they converted him, he's still learning the position. I think the fact that he is this team's #1 receiver is opening up Ginn to unnecessary criticism. The fact of the matter is Teddy shouldn't be anything higher than a #3 receiver right now. Unfortunately, the Dolphins completely lack any talent at the receiver spot.
In due time, I'm still confident that Ginn will actually be a very good #1 receiver for the Dolphins. But it's not going to be this year, in my opinion. So can former Dolphin greats chill out and let the kid grow. Maybe if Buoniconti actually realized that Ginn has only been playing the WR position for 5 years, he'd understand why it's taking him so long to develop. But instead he had to open his mouth and speak ignorantly.
Classless.
RONNIE BROWN AHEAD OF RICKY?
It's being reported that Ronnie Brown, who looked quite good as far as his comeback form knee surgery is concerned, actually is getting some work ahead of Ricky Williams, who started last week. And while this might not signify a change in who starts or who gets the bulk of the carries, it is an interesting sign simply because it was Williams who had been receiving the bulk of the first-team reps over the past couple of weeks.
Of course, many (including myself) believe that Ronnie actually looked better than Ricky last week against the Jets. Personally, I believe that Brown should be the starter and get the majority of the carries. I say this because a) Ronnie did show good burst and great vision last week, and b) Ronnie is the kind of back where he gets better as he gets more carries and into a rhythm while Williams doesn't necessarily need many carries to be effective.
Just something to keep an eye on at this point.
NDUKWE TAKES THOMAS' SPOT
Today was the first practice since rookie starting RG Donald Thomas was placed on IR, and it was Ike Ndukwe getting the first crack to fill Donald's shoes. Ndukwe has only played in 5 career NFL games and they all came back in 2006 for the Ravens. So inexperience is clearly going to be an issue.
The recently signed Evan Mathis worked with the 2nd team today, but probably will be the guy to take Thomas' spot once he gets better acclimated to this team. Of course, that shouldn't take too long considering his experience with both Dan Henning and OL coach Mike Maser.