MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa put his contract situation aside and participated in 7-on-7 drills Wednesday as Miami began training camp workouts.
The fifth-year QB is seeking a new, lucrative deal to place him on the same category as fellow quarterbacks who were selected alongside him in the 2020 draft. On Tuesday, several of Tagovailoa’s teammates anticipated he would join them in pads.
Tagovailoa did not speak with reporters Wednesday.
“All those things are a distraction if you allow them to be,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said. “Myself, I have an open conversation about that stuff to the team. We’re all not robots. You have to consciously make sure that you worry about the right stuff and I think our team is. Our team is really excited about practicing against each other.”
While Tagovailoa’s contract will remain a storyline until it’s resolved, the Dolphins began the third year of McDaniel’s tenure with anticipation of finally breaking a 24-year drought of playoff wins.
Miami was on track for an AFC East title before losing three of its last five games, including a home defeat to Buffalo that gave the Bills the division title and dropped the Dolphins to a wild-card spot. Miami’s season’s season ended with a first-round loss to eventual Super Bowl champion Kansas City in frigid conditions.
Former Bills safety Jordan Poyer, who signed as a free agent with Miami in the offseason, said Tuesday there was a perception by opponents that the Dolphins “would fold” if they fell behind against top teams.
“It doesn’t really do anything for me or move me in a type of way,” defensive back Jalen Ramsey said of those comments. “Last year’s team is different from this year’s team in a lot of different ways, including having (Poyer) on the team now. This is day one. We have to build our identity.”
The differences from last season include the hiring of Anthony Weaver as defensive coordinator. Weaver, who was a defensive assistant with the Baltimore Ravens the past three seasons, will utilize schemes deployed by his former club.
Signing 17-year defensive lineman Calais Campbell provides an additional link to the Ravens’ system. Campbell spent three seasons with Baltimore from 2020-22.
“This is a very interesting defense,” Campbell said. “It is understanding the terminology and the different things, you can do. I think they did a really good job in the spring of getting the guys prepared, especially in the development of what we want to do.”
Another notable offseason addition didn’t participate in workouts Wednesday, when veteran wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was placed on the physically unable to perform list.
Beckham, a two-time second team All-Pro while with the New York Giants in 2015 and ’16, is expected to serve as a slot option to complement outside threats Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
“It’s important for him, coming to this team and this offense that he’s able to focus on the timing and execution of how he plays the position,” McDaniel said. “If he’s compromised in any regards to do that, then the challenge becomes cerebral.”
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