Wednesday marked the Miami Dolphins final practice of the week. The next time any of us will get to see the team, it will be Friday night, when the Dolphins take on the Atlanta Falcons in their first preseason matchup of 2011.
The Dolphins rebounded from a disappointing practice on Tuesday, too once again look crisp and in control. The offense, led by quarterback Chad Henne, once again looked fresh and ready for the season. A day after Henne returned to his erratic and inaccurate passing, he once again found his groove.
Head coach Tony Sparano commented on Henne's recent performance, "In the last four practices, I've seen him make a jump. He's practiced pretty well.
"One thing I'll say about this guy is, during the lockout, he's been really self-motivated," Sparano continued about his starting QB. "He's done a tremendous job that way. The challenges of the new system, and him keeping up with that system, and having command and being in command, that challenge has been good for him."
Throughout the practice on Wednesday, Henne routinely dropped in passes over defenders, finding receivers with no issues. He picked a good day to succeed, as some of the bigger, national media have started showing up to Dolphins camp. Hall of Fame wide receiver Michael Irvin broadcast his radio show live from camp yesterday, and Fox Sports and NFL Network analyst Jay Glazer observed yesterday's practice.
Meanwhile, Dolphins spokesman Harvey Greene asked fans not to post camp practice video on the internet. "We have rules in place that don't allow fans to take video of practice," Greene said after reports of Dolphins practice segments showing up on YouTube. "Those rules exist so that we're not placed at a competitive disadvantage by having the teams we play see video of any portion of our practices."I'm sure that our fans understand that concern and I'm confident they will follow our camp guidelines to prevent that from happening again."
Rookie center Mike Pouncey, however, seemed to struggle on Wednesday. The rumored snapping issues Pouncey was supposed to have finally showed up in training camp. While it is one practice, and Pouncey's performance thus far has been surprisingly solid, it is bothersome that he had several botched snaps yesterday.
The Dolphins are not on the practice field on Thursday, as the prepare for their first preseason game up in Atlanta. The game will be televised live in the Miami area on CBS4 Friday night at 7:30. The game will be replayed nationally on NFL Network Saturday at 1pm.
The next chance to see the Dolphins on the practice field will be Sunday at 11am, back at the Nova Southeastern University campus.