Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa Using Camp To Work On Deep Throws
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – DeVante Parker was a welcomed addition to padded practice for the Dolphins. He joined a receiver group that enjoyed a pass happy offense Wednesday afternoon. Fins QB Tua Tagovailoa has been making it a point to find those open guys.
"It's something he's placed an emphasis on, it's something we've placed an emphasis on. Not pushing the ball down field but taking advantage of those opportunities if they're there," said head coach Brian Flores.
"If a guy's open, I'm going to throw it to him, that's what I could say to that. I would say it's no different than my time at Alabama throwing deep balls," said Tagovailoa.
Finding those open receivers and timing up with their speed doesn't happen by accident. In addition to throwing sessions in the offseason with his receivers, Tagovailoa has been popping into defensive meetings.
"It's being able to see their alignment and their positioning. You know why do they align this way? For me it gives me an edge to know where to go with the ball a lot quicker. It speeds up my process," said Tagovailoa.
While the offense is working on taking flight, keeping things on the ground, more specifically behind the line of scrimmage, has been the focus of the defensive line.
Since Flores took over as head coach, the Dolphins have gone from one of the worst run defenses to middle of the pack. But that's not good enough.
"It's tough to be a good defense or the defense you want to be, or be great, if you can't stop the run. We got to be able to do that first. If you take care of that it takes care of a lot," said defensive end Christian Wilkins. "It takes away half their options. So you got to make plays in the run game and do all you can to stop it."