Miami Dolphins wide receiver River Kraft plans to keep football from its first touchdown of the regular season, sending the team back in the fourth quarter in Baltimore, right by his bed.
“Something I’ll keep forever,” Cracraft said of the two-yard landing reception. “Definitely a highlight. I like to keep those coming. It’s a starting point.”
If Cracraft is going to keep those coming in with Dolphins, the team may soon have to decide whether to sign it to the full-time active roster.
Kracraft was lifted twice in two weeks from the coaching staff. NFL rules in 2022 allow a team to bring in a coaching team player three times. If they want to upgrade the same player again, they have to register him in the active list. If the team then wants to bring him back to the coaching staff, they will have to release him first, making him eligible to be claimed by other clubs.
“These decisions are made every week about what is the best thing for the football team that week in specific matches,” coach Mike McDaniel said Friday. “If we get to that point where he loses all that eligibility, we have to cross that bridge.
“I’m not getting ahead of myself because that includes his playing. That also includes other people’s playing, so we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”
In addition to his ability, Cracraft, the 6-foot, 198-pound hole-receiver from Washington State, is a sought-after player available on game days due to his knowledge of McDaniel and wide receivers coach Wes Welker over the past two seasons at San. Francisco. He’s been an up and down coaching staff with 49 players and through three previous seasons with the Denver Broncos.
“I like to take pride in myself as someone who can be relied upon,” he said. “I’d like to put that on the table, and we’ll see what happens in the future.”
Welker sees Cracraft’s work ethic he can appreciate as an unpolished fellow recipient – one who made five Pro Bowls and is a Hall of Fame nominee.
“On his days off, he’s always here, and he’s always doing more post-workout, even during the spring and all these different things. It all adds up,” Welker said.
Dolphins currently have an open spot on the active roster, using only 52 of 53, but that’s with cornerback Byron Jones on the reserve/physically unable to perform and handling Austin Jackson on a short-term injured reserve.
While Cracraft was awake, Erik Ezukanma, who picked the fourth-round rookie, a training camp and pre-season team, was healthy inactive in the first two games.
“I think he responded really well,” Welker said, adding that Dolphins feel they have great players in front of them in the position. “He will get there. He just needs to keep working and understand that it is a process and when he is ready we will know he is ready.”
Phillips did ‘some good things’
The Dolphins made sophomore year out of linebacker Jaylan Phillips a statistically slow start. He only had two tackles through two games, plus a major late recovery against the New England Patriots.
Although he didn’t spin the ball much between that win and last Sunday in Baltimore, advanced metrics still say he’s playing well. ESPN has a pass-win rate of 31 percent, which is two games higher than the 28 percent who led the league’s Browns’ Miles Garrett last year. Pro Football Focus had Phillips among the highest-rated defenders in Miami against the Ravens.
“You never want to chase numbers and chase statistics,” Phillips said. “It’s all just about effort and focusing on refining your craft. I will keep trying to improve and put some pressure on.”
If Phillips simply continues to win games against his boxers, it should lead to more statistical activity, including the pressures, center strokes and sacks he’s known for following the franchise’s debutante record of 8-sacks in 2021.
“He’s playing within that scheme, and I think he could improve,” said Josh Boyer, Dolphins’ defense coordinator. “He’s done some good stuff. I think that’s like everyone else. I mean, we’re week two of the season. To sit here and say, ‘This is it.'” This is what it is. This is not this. this is good.’ I mean, I don’t think that’s the case. I think it’s an evolving thing we’re all trying to improve. I think he did some good things. I think you will continue to do so [see him] Doing some good things, and I think he will get better at some things.”
Crossman explains the return of TD
Dolphins special teams coordinator Danny Crossman was expected to be upset with his loneliness that allowed Devin Duvernay’s return to land in the opener against the Ravens last Sunday.
“There is fitness. Think of it as running play — there are guys who have certain shifts and certain responsibilities,” Crossman said. “Against a dynamic comeback guy, if everyone wasn’t where they were supposed to be, there would be a problem. Then we doubled that up with a second release for a minor player. So, it was a very bad play. I take the blame for that.”
Although Crossman is heard aloud giving his instructions to his unit during the media-watching portion of Wednesday’s practice, he doesn’t say anything that changes with the way he approaches teams covering kicks and matches.
“Whether it’s good or bad play, it’s play and you have to move on,” he said. “As long as you train and teach the same things and don’t go and try and change things, you will be fine. We have been, in my opinion, fairly successful in what we have been doing and how we cover the kicks.”
Crossman also clarified a McDaniel stat earlier in the week, that in fact he hasn’t previously given up a kickoff – not any kickbacks overall.
“I’ve given up on another couple, unfortunately,” Crossman said. “It’s been a while, though.”
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from San Jose News Bulletin https://sjnewsbulletin.com/the-emergence-of-river-cracraft-may-soon-force-dolphins-to-make-a-difficult-decision-the-mercury-news/
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