Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Ogbah motivated for bounce-back season
Miami Dolphins defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah never got going in 2022. And right when you thought maybe he could have a productive second half of the season, a triceps tear sidelined him for the remainder of the year.
But Ogbah, who was last heard saying he was going to attempt a playoff comeback had the Dolphins advanced further than the AFC wild-card playoff loss to the Buffalo Bills, has now received full clearance as the team is bound for the final phase of the offseason workout program with organized team activities beginning next week.
“It’s going good,” Ogbah said Tuesday in a web conference call with reporters. “They’re taking it easy on me during camp, but I’ve been fully cleared and I’m ready to go.”
Ogbah himself described the thought of playing in last postseason’s divisional-round game — or beyond — “a longshot,” but it showed he had made significant progress since the Nov. 13 injury in a win against the Cleveland Browns.
Four months later, he’s primed to show his disappointing 2022 season was more an aberration than his new normal.
“Definitely,” Ogbah said of whether he enters 2023 with extra motivation or something to prove. “They’ve taken care of me. I’ve got to go out there and put some good juice on tape. Obviously, I battled some injuries last year, but I’m ready to go this year. I’ve got to take care of my body better this year and just focus on the little things.”
Even before the triceps ailment, Ogbah wasn’t up to his normal standard. He recorded just one sack and 11 tackles in nine games played. That for a defensive end whose Dolphins-leading nine sacks each of the two seasons before that earned him a four-year $65 million deal last offseason.
Ogbah’s quarterback hits were also down to seven, from the 24 and 21 he had in 2021 and 2020,
respectively. His trademark ball-batting at the line of scrimmage was absent from his game, ending the year without one after an eye-popping 12 in 2021.
Now, Ogbah hopes to take a step toward returning to his old self while surrounded by reinforcements in the Dolphins’ pass rush. He can come into packages alongside a potentially fierce outside linebacker tandem of Bradley Chubb and Jalean Phillips. He barely got to play with Chubb last season as his triceps tear occurred in Chubb’s second game with the Dolphins since the former Bronco’s acquisition at the trade deadline.
Ogbah is learning new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s scheme, and although he didn’t have much to share on the early teachings, he indicated he could be playing across the defensive line — inside, outside and even stand up pre-snap — as opposed to strictly being a hand-inthe-ground defensive end.
“I’m excited for him,” Ogbah said of Fangio. “He’s a great defensive mind, coach.”
Earlier this offseason, Ogbah made a trip out to Africa as part of an NFL initiative to grow the game on the continent. Ogbah, who migrated to the United States from Nigeria when he was 9, was in Kenya in April, teaching young athletes about football.
“It was an amazing experience,” he said. “How quickly they wanted to learn about the game, and how they view it as a big opportunity for them. And they’re excited just to learn from us players.
“Those kids, they didn’t have much, but they still wanted to listen and learn, take coaching from us. They don’t have football out there. Just being able to inspire them, a kid like me, I was born in Nigeria. I came in when I was 9. So they can kind of see (similarities).”
Wynn gets started in Miami
New Dolphins offensive tackle Isaiah Wynn said he’s comfortable playing on either side of the line as he spoke with reporters a day after officially signing with the team.
“I’m good playing either way, either position,” said Wynn, who started off as a left tackle for the New England Patriots when selected in the first round in 2018 but moved to right tackle later on. “I’m just here to help the team to achieve one goal and that’s win.”
Wynn has missed time in the NFL due to Achilles, knee, toe and, most recently, a foot injury last year in New England.
He said he’s “all good now” regarding the foot ailment that sidelined him in 2022 and also expressed an affinity for the widezone run-blocking scheme he’ll be running under Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel in Miami.
Ogbah is familiar with Wynn from going up against him in AFC East matchups.
“I’ve had my battles with him,” Ogbah said. “He’s a good player, and he’s a good pickup for us.”