Dolphins' Tannehill And Wallace Working On Chemistry
DAVIE (CBSMiami) – When the Miami Dolphins signed Mike Wallace to a five-year, $60 million contract last spring the expectation was that the speedy wide receiver would stretch opposing defenses and be a constant threat for deep passes.
In his first season with the Dolphins, Wallace and quarterback Ryan Tannehill had a difficult time connecting on those long routes which caused plenty of displeasure among coaches and fans alike.
That led to the duo putting in a lot of extra work during the offseason in order to get their timing down and add the vertical threat that Miami's offense so desperately needed last season.
So far during training camp and the preseason, Wallace and Tannehill have still struggled completing those deep passes, though there have been some encouraging signs with the occasional long touchdown during practices.
Still, the pair has been seen working on their timing after practice as unlike last year, there will be plenty of opportunities for them to make plays on routes other than the deep balls.
"That's what we're here to do, work," Wallace said following Monday's practice. "We're going to be here anyway. We've got a couple more hours left, might as well work while you're here. You don't want to be in here just sitting around, wasting time."
The work on completing deep passes hasn't been limited to Wallace and Tannehill's post-practice workouts. Improving on that aspect of the passing game has been a part of Dolphins practices since the season began.
"We do a period every day for about three minutes where we'll practice the vertical throws," Dolphins head coach Joe Philbin said on Tuesday. "Every single day we've done it, probably at least 20 times. I think we've had 21 practices, so we've committed that portion of our practice to just the trajectory, the touch and receivers understanding where the ball's going to be. Then we have a number of them scripted during the practice."
Compared to last season, one of the biggest differences in new offensive coordinator Bill Lazor's scheme is that the wide receivers are lining up in all different places and each wideout has the possibility of running any of the routes featured in the playbook.
In Miami's most recent preseason game, last weekend's win over the Dallas Cowboys, Tannehill failed to hit Wallace on their one deep attempt but that was the only target that the two didn't hook up on. While that's still an area of concern, Wallace was very optimistic about the growing on-field relationship between he and his quarterback.
"I think we're doing pretty well," Wallace said of his chemistry with Tannehill. "We might have missed the deep ball, that was the only pass we didn't hit. We were seven-for-eight. We've got to his the deep ball regardless, we have to get it done.
"I think we're doing a lot better. Like I said, we were seven-for-eight within the targets between himself and me. I think that was all right. If we can hit that deep ball and make it eight-for-eight, that would be even better."
Expectations for Wallace in the Dolphins new offense are higher than they have been during his time in Miami.
Even with the struggles that Tannehill has throwing the deep balls, the possibilities for utilizing Wallace all over the field have the sixth-year wideout excited for what the results could be.
In 2013 Wallace had a respectable 73 receptions and 930 yards but he only got into the end zone five times. Those numbers should see a rise in the upcoming season, with scoring more touchdowns being the biggest priority.
"We have a lot of opportunities [to score more touchdowns]," Wallace said. "It's going to come; it's going to present itself again in two weeks [against New England]. We're going to have a lot more opportunities. Hopefully, we can cash in and get a lot more touchdowns than last year."
The difference is that unlike the previous season, receiving touchdowns for Wallace won't be mostly based on the completion of long throws.
There will be plenty of routes all over the field that utilize Wallace's speed and agility. He may also see more red zone targets that seemed to go elsewhere due to his smaller size (6-0, 200lbs).
Lazor seems to recognize that when you have a player with the physical attributes that Wallace has, there are plenty of ways to get them involved.
Wallace has never been someone to set individual goals, he simply wants to lead in every receiving category. And while he was pleased that his 73 catches last year were a career high, Wallace knows that those numbers can grow much larger in 2014 if he can Tannehill can continue building their rapport.
"I think with us having more chemistry, we'll be able to do that," Wallace explained. "I think we left a lot of plays out there [last season]. Just hitting on those plays that we are in for that we could have had. I had a career high [in receptions], I could have had more. A lot of that has to do with me. I've got to get better from a personal standpoint every single day just to make up for that."
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