OT: Miami Dolphins Practice/Michigan Relevance Notes

Although I'm an M student, I grew up, and still live in South Florida. Today I had a chance to go to the Miami Dolphins first free, publicly-viewed practice. I, of course, sported my M gear, and went out to specifically view how Chad Henne and Jake Long have progressed in the offense. In addition, I kept an eye on Pat White to see how they would use him.

Here is a link to the Dolphins home page, where in their "Aquavision" area they have a video of some short drills from today. Henne is shown a little bit.
http://miamidolphins.com/newsite/flash_content.asp

Here are my notes, some from little drills, and mostly from 11-on-11 play:

Chad Henne:
He looked solid in passing drills with even more improved mechanics. Playing on the second squad, he had a few off throws but for the most part threw with great "zip" and accuracy. One of the two things that stood out the most was how great he was at throwing screen passes. Seeing him lead his receivers and getting the ball to them quickly really made me remember how effective those plays can be if done correctly. It will be very helpful if Tate can get the ball to our fast little guys out wide (consistently) as Henne did today. The other thing that stood out was a deep throw down the left side of the field that was thrown perfectly to Brandon London.

Jake Long:
He was extremely impressive in every drill. He played with the first team, of course, and, as far as I saw, never got beat on a play. He manhandled a few D-Linemen, and even threw Jason Taylor to the side on a Ronnie Brown Run-Left play. He's big, very big. And fast for a man that big. Hopefully Lewan can somewhat try to fit in his shoes.

Pat White:
Although not of complete Michigan relevance, he was coached by RR and I thought I'd mention a few things I noticed about him. He was very quick, but seemed to have trouble making decisions before a D-Lineman got near him. On the run he was spot-on with his throws, but he will most definitely be used in the Wild-Cat Formation, for the most part, along with a few other trick plays.

Also not that much of a Michigan relevance, but Ginn:
He was very quick off the snap, but was beaten in long routes consistently by corners. He made one nice catch with his fingers very close to the ground, but he dropped a few easy passes and one over-the-head deep-route throw (that he should have made). Patrick Turner, rookie WR from USC, was praised for his size (6'5") and quickness. He seemed to have better hands and seemed faster (!!!) than Ginn. Overall, Ginn did not impress; just the opposite.

To wrap it all up, Long and Henne will both be starting in a year or two, and I will definitely be following (and rooting for) the Dolphins for those years. It was exciting to see them play again and I even got both Henne's and Long's signature on my white U-M hat! They're great guys and will be great players for the Dolphins in the short future.