*** DOLPHINS NEWS ***

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Jun 05, 1996: -- Mini-Camp Update --

The Dolphins were into their third day of mini-camp today and the picture of how the Dolphins will look for the 1997 season is just beginning to emerge. A number of notable changes have been made to the lineup and a lot of new starters will replace familiar players on the Dolphins' squad.

The first major change made on Monday was the addition of Jack Del Rio to the Dolphins defense. Jimmy Johnson immediately moved Del Rio to the starting middle linebacker's position, moving Dwight Hollier back to the outside linebacker slot. Aubrey Beavers was bumped down to the second string by Hollier.

Other changes include moving Calvin Jackson to the right cornerback slot to compete with JB Brown for the starting job. JJ has been very complementary in his remarks about Jackson this spring and has also praised Terrell Buckley, who is now the starting left cornerback.

If Jackson plays well enough at the right cornerback position to unseat Brown, it is likely that Brown will be cut to save his $1.2 Million 1996 salary. This will help the Dolphins sign their draftees, because the team still needs to find about $1.5 million to get all their rookies signed this summer.

Another defensive player who has impressed JJ has been defensive tackle Norman Hand. Hand, a 330 lb draft pick last year, played at Mississippi with Tim Bowens and could, if he plays well enough, be a force in the middle of the defensive line.

Daryl Gardener, the Dolphins 1st round draft pick, is being tried at defensive end, a position that he played in college. With a defensive line of Cross, Hand, Bowens and Gardener, the average weight would be 310 lbs.

In other news about Gardener, the Dolphins have made him an offer which he may accept as early as the end of this week. The deal is reportedly worth about $5 million over 5 years.

On the offensive side of the ball, the retirement of Ron Heller has reduced the competition at the right tackle position to Billy Milner and James Brown. However, since offensive line coach Larry Beightol coached Brown with the Jets and since Brown has several more years experience that Milner, you can probably expect to see Brown as the staring right tackle. In the backfield, JJ is reportedly impressed with the running of just about all his backs, but on Monday, the Herald reported that Irving Spikes stood out from the pack. However, Terry Kirby is still listed as the starting running back.

Bernie Parmalee is back from injury and is running well, and rookie Jerris McPhail is also reported to have had a good workout. And some reporters are saying that Stanley Pritchett stands an excellent chance to be the starting fullback by the end of the year. However, Pritchett is reported to be about 10 pounds over the playing weight that JJ would like at this time. He reported to camp weighing 251 and JJ has said that he'd like Pritchett to weigh in around 242.

Missing this mini-camp are running back Karim Abdul-Jabbar (UCLA), wide receiver Brice Hunter (Georgia), guard Jeff Buckey (Stanford), linebacker Anthony Harris (Auburn), and tight end Andy Fuller (Auburn) due to final exams at their schools.

Related Info:

Miami Herald:

Miami Herald Dolphins Page