Falcons-Dolphins joint practices kick off with a pass rush powerup, offensive struggles, and conflict

minh | Miami Dolphins
August 7, 2024

Joint practices and training camp sessions alike create real buzz and the potential for panic. A couple of big plays or drops from a relied-upon receiver can influence that player’s perception well into the following season, and it’s difficult not to get carried away with our first real dose of football in many months.

Adnan Ikic did an excellent job of breaking down the details of Atlanta Falcons training camp practices thus far without declaring that Kirk Cousins will be great this year (though he probably will be) or that, say, John FitzPatrick is doomed after his spate of drops (though he might be). I’ll try to use similar caution in rounding up reports from the Falcons-Dolphins joint practices, which kicked off today. We’re not at these, so as always, a major thanks to the hard-working beat reporters for both teams who are.

Pass rush gets home

Here’s music to everyone’s ears.

Arnold Ebiketie and Lorenzo Carter were among those putting real pressure on Miami’s quarterbacks, a testament to both how relatively weak that Dolphins offensive line is and (hopefully) the way Atlanta’s pass rush is finding its feet. They did so without rookie Bralen Trice, too, who was out sick.

When it comes to the pass rush, which has been somewhere between terrible and decent for many years now, you should take small signs of progress with the appropriate grain of salt. Still, there’s young talent on the edges and a stout rotation up front, so there’s the hope that Raheem Morris and Jimmy Lake will be able to coax further improvement out of this group. Giving Miami some trouble in practice, especially if it continues into the first preseason game, will be welcome indeed.

Offense starts fast in one-on-ones, stymied later

On the other side of things, aside from a few highlights, the Falcons offense did not light it up in larger practices. Michael Penix beat some blitzes, per assembled reporters, and there were a couple of nice balls from Kirk Cousins, particularly to Drake London. Overall, the story from Miami was one of a speedy and relentless Dolphins defense giving Atlanta some fits on the ground and through the air. Dolphins beat writer Adam Beasley noted that Tyler Allgeier and Bijan Robinson, who were sharing first-team work, did not have a ton of space in which to operate.

That’s the bad news, though it’s just a single snapshot ahead of the first preseason game. In one-on-ones, however, Cousins was dropping them in there and Penix had far better luck, with Atlanta’s receiving options (Drake London and Ray-Ray McCloud in particular) seemingly winning their matchups. It’s a bright note on a quieter day.

That said, Miami observers took note of Atlanta’s strong showing from the offensive line, particularly a second team line keyed by Storm Norton and Kyle Hinton that paved the way on the ground. The line should be one of Atlanta’s strong suits this year once more, so any positive early returns there help our optimism.

Clark Phillips pushing

One of my bedrock convictions is that Phillips should be a starter, even though Mike Hughse has been decisively running as one this entire time. Phillips offer ballhawking capabilities and potential that intrigues, even if Hughes is clearly holding his own.

These are just quick notes and clips from individual moments, but Phillips is capable of sustaining more than that, and it’s not out of the question that he’ll use the remaining month or so before the regular season to push his way into a starting role instead of Hughes, who had his considerable ups (an interception, some nice coverage) and downs (Tyreek Hill is a tough matchup). Phillips has been worth watching for a while, and with game action right around the corner, he remains worth watching.

Carlos Washington rolling

Sometimes you’re right about a player, but in the wrong timeframe. I was somewhat of a Washington enthusiast last summer, but while he stuck with Atlanta, he did not beat out Godwin Igwebuike for an initial spot and did not find much of a role with the Falcons under Arthur Smith and company.

This year, however, he’s running ahead of rookie Jase McClellan and looking good doing so, as our own Adnan Ikic has reported multiple times. Washington ripped off a nice run against Miami, too, showcasing the comfort and

I can’t imagine the Falcons parting ways with McClellan, who has real promise as a well-rounded reserve, but they’ll have a tough decision to make regarding keeping four backs or trying to sneak McClellan on to the practice squad if Washington continues to excel.

Stray notes

  • Both Cousins and Penix reportedly lofted some passes that were off the mark today, possibly owing to that Dolphins pressure. I’m not in the business of overstating things, so let’s just say we won’t want to see that repeated in game action. With more physicality being very much in this line’s wheelhouse, hopefully we will not.
  • As mentioned above, Bralen Trice was out sick today, and appeared to be the only player not participating. The Falcons will hope to have him back out there tomorrow.
  • Calais Campbell was out there for the Dolphins, which I have to admit was a little jarring to see even though he only spent a single year in Atlanta. I do miss the guy.
  • Donnybrook!

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