Skylar Thompson Was a Top Performer In First Dolphins Minicamp Practice

Red zone work is my favorite day of football practice because if your quarterback is half-decent it will feature a ton of scoring.

After all, the offense starts each drive on the 20-yard line and moves in with every completion.

Those weekly practices require finger-snap-speed decisions on offense and defense, and pinpoint passes.

Here are the five observations from the first of three minicamp sessions the Dolphins are holding this week: 

Don't sleep on Skylar Thompson

Skylar Thompson continued his campaign to be the No. 2 quarterback with a strong red zone performance Tuesday. He had a series that included two touchdown passes to Tyler Kroft on short throws. One wasn’t perfectly placed, but Kroft beat Justin Bethel for the back of the end zone reception.

 Thompson wasn’t perfect on the day. He threw an interception Bryce Thompson pulled in after Erik Ezukanma fell down on the route. That was the only interception of the day. 

I’ve already suggested Mike White could be in trouble because of his lackluster arm, and I’m doubling down on this because of how Thompson looks as a practice performer (it clearly didn't translate to games last season, though). For the record, White had a solid day, but throwing short passes — which is required on a red zone day — benefits him.

Mitchell Agude is twitchy athlete

The former University of Miami starter the Dolphins added as an undrafted rookie was so dominant Tuesday he might cost Kion Smith his training camp roster spot. 

Smith, the offensive tackle with snapping experience, had no chance blocking Agude, who is a force on the edges, especially when the team isn't in pads. Agude had nearly a half-dozen impact plays in his 20-30 team snaps. 

We’re talking would-be sacks, tackles for loss, stops on running plays, pressure that moves a quarterback off his mark. Agude reminds me a lot of Chris McCain, who was another twitchy player.

Bailey vs Turk

Saw the punters punting for the first time this offseason, and while Michael Turk has a leg that can produce 50-yard punts, he lacked the hang time that Jake Bailey had during practice Tuesday.

Maybe it was one day, but the Dolphins need a punter to pinpoint the ball inside the 20-yard line, not just boom it downfield with little hang time.

Bailey, a former Pro Bowl punter who was guaranteed all of his $1.23 million, shouldn't overlook Turk. But based on my first look of this punter battle, I'm not sure I'm willing to flush $1.23 million down the toilet for a punter who produces less hang time.

Who wants to be tight end No. 2?

Because it was a red zone day, we got a chance to see the tight ends come alive in this offense. Kroft was my top performer out of everyone not named Durham Smythe, who had a relatively quiet day (not sure he took a ton of reps). 

During a hurry-up situation in 11-on-11s, I saw Smythe run the slowest route possible, but Tua Tagovailoa found him wide open in the seam for a 15-yard gain that delivered a first down. 

I can’t reveal much more about the play, but the fact the defense opted not to cover Smythe was a head-scratching decision, especially with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle not being on the field for that snap (Hill didn't participate in anything but fielding punts).

That No. 2 tight end spot is wide open. When I say wide open, it’s the size of the Grand Canyon. Can’t pick it right now.

Trill Williams is massive

We got a look at Williams for the first time all offseason and he looks jacked. 

Williams, who is listed as 6-1, 202 pounds (he's probably bigger), looks like the knee injury he was rehabbing for the past 10 months made him do chest and arm work all fall and spring.

The former Syracuse standout is clearly the size of a safety, which might explain why his father has been hinting at a position switch this offseason. 

Williams worked on the side, and I couldn’t get a good sense of his movement skills during practice, but I’m excited to see the former cornerback make the same transition Bobby McCain, Jamal Perry and Elijah Campbell made before him in going from cornerback to safety. 

Speaking of the secondary, Jalen Ramsey, Brandon Jones, Nik Needham and Keion Crossen were in attendance, but not participants. DeShone Elliott did individual work but no team work.