Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Adapting to their work conditions
New defensive scheme calls for linebackers to be interchangeable
DAVIE — The Miami Dolphins defense is a complicated puzzle — much like the Rubik’s Cube — where every turn, every rotation brings a different combination.
And at the center of it is a linebacker unit that is learning to be fluid.
When Miami is in the nickel package, which is designed to stop the pass, Jerome Baker and Sam Eguavoen are usually the linebackers on the field.
When the Dolphins are in their base package, which is geared toward stopping the run, Kiko Alonso, Raekwon McMillan and Chase Allen get in mix.
Sometimes pass rushers such as Charles Harris and Nate Orchard enter the equation, retreating from the line of scrimmage and dropping back into coverage.
And then other times, safeties such as Reshad Jones and T.J. McDonald are creeping up to the line, replacing a traditional strong side linebacker.
The hybrid defense head coach Brian Flores is bringing over from the New England Patriots and installing in Miami uses linebackers as if they are interchangeable pieces, and the goal is to put players in position to play to their strengths and disguise weaknesses.
That means linebackers will likely be coming in and out of the game all season. To make that approach work it’s going to require everyone involved to minimize their ego, and that appears to be taking place based on the first couple of days of training camp.
“Whatever Coach says, I’m going to go with it,” said McMillan,
Miami’s 2017 second-round pick, who has spent the past two practices working behind Eguavoen, a former CFL standout the Dolphins signed this offseason.
“We’re just trying to get reps in for preseason and see what’s going on.”
It seems as if McMillan, who contributed 105 tackles and forced two fumbles last season as a 16-game starter, has to prove to Miami’s new coaches that he’s not a liability in pass coverage and deserves to be on the field for passing downs. The former Ohio State standout came to training camp weighing 239 pounds, down from his playing weight of 245 last season, with the goal of doing just that.
“He’s worked extremely hard over the summer and has come back in great shape,” Flores said when asked about McMillan. “He’s on top of everything in the meetings. He’s done a really good job.
“What I’d like to see from him is consistent play, consistent communication [and for him to] consistently know where to be.”
McMillan is working on mastering the playbook, but he hopes his sleeker physique improves his overall quickness.
“Everybody knows I need to get quicker,” said McMillan, who missed his rookie season in 2017 because of a seasonending knee injury he suffered during that preseason.
“I need to get faster on the field. It’s nothing to hide from. I put the work in this offseason and hopefully it shows in training camp.”
McMillan will likely get his chance to work in Miami’s nickel package, but it was telling that Eguavoen, who played the past three seasons in the pass-happy CFL, got first crack at handling that role.
While McMillan was sidelined by a knee injury during the offseason, Eguavoen thrived as his replacement and he’s benefiting from it now.
“Good, young, talented guy who has some developmental characteristics,” Flores said of Eguavoen. “He’s done a good job.
“[We] give him something — [if ] he’s done a good job with it, we’ll give him more. If you do a good job, we’ll give you a couple more things to do.”
Eguaveon, a three-year starter at Texas Tech — where he contributed 225 tackles, 3 1⁄2 sacks and one interception — started 35 games for the Saskatchewan Roughriders the past three seasons, totaling 159 tackles and two interceptions.
During his time across the boarder, Equavoen said the CFL helped him learn about route concepts and discover the finer points about playing in space. However, he acknowledges there’s a massive transition he must make going from one league to another.
“I’m blessed for the opportunity to be in the NFL coming from the CFL,” Eguavoen said. “This is a different ballgame and I still got a lot to learn.
“The NFL is more condensed. You can’t take as many false steps. You take one bad step and that guy is gone.”
Eguavoen has probably figured out he can’t afford one bad day at practice because his linebacker role could be gone.