There’s enough reason for the rest of the NFL to be scared about the Miami Dolphins.
They didn’t just bring in a few guys to revamp their offense.
Instead, they overhauled their roster to be competitive.
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will have more targets around him like Jaylen Waddle, Mike Gesicki, Cedrick Wilson, and Tyreek Hill.
New head coach Mike McDaniel will also employ the same run schemes that garnered success with the San Francisco 49ers.
Miami didn’t stop there because they also added Terron Armstead and Connor Williams to improve the protection around Tagovailoa.
But as the offense improves, the Dolphins’ defense welcomes the challenge of covering their talented receivers at practice.
Scrimmaging with some of the best players in the league will help improve what has been their calling card over the last two seasons.
Brian Flores’ defensive philosophy helped them win ten and nine games in two seasons, but didn’t make the playoffs.
This time, the Dolphins want their campaign to go beyond the regular season.
To make that goal happen, cornerback Xavien Howard will not give an inch at practice.
Howard told McDaniel "I've got to get my hammys" right because of speed on offense, which he must contend with in practice. Said he and Tyreek Hill will focus on "getting each other better" in what should be fun practice matchups.
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) April 6, 2022
Miami Herald writer Barry Jackson shared, “Howard told McDaniel ‘I’ve got to get my hammys’ right because of speed on offense, which he must contend with in practice. Said he and Tyreek Hill will focus on ‘getting each other better’ in what should be fun practice matchups.”
Practicing To Become The Best
Lining up against a fellow All-Pro will only help Howard prove that he’s worth the five-year, $90 million deal he signed.
If he will have success covering arguably the fastest player in the NFL, then guarding other receivers should come easy.
Likewise, Hill will also benefit from lining up against a physically-imposing cornerback in Howard.
It will help him fend off cornerbacks of the same nature and break out for home-run catches.
NEXT: Xavien Howard Takes Subtle Dig At Former Dolphins Coaches