Up-and-coming
DAVIE — To evaluate Josh Rosen’s performance during the Miami Dolphins’ gamelike scrimmage Saturday, let’s first start with his brief and only stint with the first-team offense during a twominute drill toward the end of practice.
First play: Rosen throws a bullet of a pass to wide receiver Kenny Stills, but a penalty negated the play.
Second play: Rosen held onto the ball for too long, bouncing multiple times in the pocket before throwing a pass into coverage that could have been intercepted but was not.
Third play: Rosen throws a pass to wide receiver Isaiah Ford, who is unable to haul it in thanks to standout cornerback Xavien Howard breaking up the play.
And here’s where the best sequence Saturday starts for Rosen and the Dolphins:
Rosen threw a pass of about 50 yards to a streaking Stills, who went up and secured a football that Howard nearly intercepted.
Then, Rosen threw a pass in the end zone that could have been Howard’s fourth interception of the day. Instead, the football dropped right into Ford’s hands, giving Rosen the red-zone score in the two-minute, fourth-quarter scenario Dolphins coach Brian Flores was aiming to emulate.
Sure, Rosen got a little help from his teammates — Howard included.
But the series capped off Rosen’s most impressive practice with the Dolphins, and his third good performance in a row as he continues to gain ground in the team’s quarterback battle with Ryan Fitzpatrick.
“(I) threw it really deep to Kenny and then got really lucky at the end, trying to sneak it in to Isaiah,” Rosen said following the performance and a lengthy talk with team owner Steve Ross.
“That’s one of those plays where in retrospect, everyone says, ‘Oh, yeah, cool, it’s a touchdown.’ But it definitely should have been a pick and it’s definitely something I’ve got take (and) realize it’s first and goal in the low red zone, and (I) got to be smarter than that.”
Rosen worked the second-team primarily with offense during Saturday’s scrimmage before his quick series with the first team, which came following Fitzpatrick’s second interception of the day to Howard.
Throughout the scrimmage, Rosen took advantage of the receiving targets he was most familiar with: Rookie Preston Williams, who he has a brief, previous relationship with dating back to their time at Nike’s summer 7-on-7 tournament called The Opening in 2014; and veteran Brice Butler, who was briefly with Rosen and the Arizona Cardinals last season.
But the Dolphins offense, primarily the second team, was hurt greatly by penalties, mostly by the second-team offensive line. In all, the Dolphins had 17 of them, which hindered Rosen’s performance with the second team more than it did to Fitzpatrick with the first team.
“I thought there were some really good things, some bad things. A lot of penalties. Pretty sloppy,” Rosen said.
“I had two delay of games myself, which is definitely not OK. But everyone had a little bit of good, a little bit of bad. I think it’s about being a little more consistent, personally as well. I’d have a really great play and a not-so-great play.”
More important than the penalties, Rosen was getting in a groove with the second team — highlighted by a 40-yard pass floated right into Williams’ hands — while Fitzpatrick was on the sidelines unable to maintain his momentum after leading the first-team offense to its only score on the first drive of the day.
Fitzpatrick opened the scrimmage a 1-yard touchdown pass to running back Kenyan Drake.
Fitzpatrick’s second drive ended with a deep pass to Stills that was intercepted by Howard. And his second interception to Howard occurred during the second half before the Dolphins ended their scrimmage working on red-zone and goal-line scenarios.
He ended practice with a oneyard touchdown pass to tight end Nick O’Leary after the defensive line stuffed the offensive line at the goal line.
“It wasn’t good enough,” Fitzpatrick said encapsulating his day. “We had a really good first drive, but wish we could’ve been more consistent. On offense, that starts with the quarterback. I’ve got to continue to get better, continue to grow, and we’ll go as I go. I’ve got to do a better job than I did today.”
Flores, before the scrimmage, praised Rosen for making improvements “across the board with things people don’t see” like footwork, mechanics, decision making, and the ability to make play adjustments at the line of scrimmage.
Saturday’s pseudo-game ended the Dolphins’ second week of training camp with Rosen gaining ground on Fitzpatrick in their battle for the starting quarterback job — four days after Flores named Fitzpatrick the leader in the competition.
The Dolphins will return to practice on Monday and Tuesday before their first preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, where how much playing time Fitzpatrick and Rosen share will continue to be the most intriguing storyline for the team heading into the season.
“I know I said (Fitzpatrick) was leading the way the other day (ahead of Rosen), but again, let’s be clear: there’s still a lot of time and a lot of competition left,” Flores said.