Training Camp Historical High (sometimes low) lights!
By author
Hi Guys
Well with training camp a little under a week away, I wanted to take a look at some of the high & low lights of previous seasons, to see how our beloved team and its players/coaching staff, have played with our emotions & expectations around this time of year.
See, the trouble with this time of year, is we have no way of knowing just how the drafted players, free agents, schedule coaching and injuries are going to pan out . All we have is hope, so over the next couple of weeks we’ll take a sometimes funny, sometimes sad and sometimes down right scary look at past training camps.
To start with, here are a couple of bone head training camp historical high low lights.
Its 1998 and draft genius JJ is looking to fill plenty of holes, add a few more pieces to a solid defense and find the next “Micheal Irvin” for his offense. We fans hoped and prayed for that one piece to give Marino a shot at another Superbowl.
Most fans had hoped for Randy Moss! but oh no we traded down and got John Avery ?? go figure !! We did get that tall rangy wide reciever though, Larry Shannon.
“With Larry Shannon coming to our football team, he’s probably a step faster than Randy Moss. So he’s bigger, taller, he’s faster” said JJ after passing on Moss in the draft. The word Doh!! Is so apt at this point! Shannon had a history of ankle injuries, missed the first year and never caught a pass … oh how different the landscape might have been if we had picked Moss….
But bone head picks, pale insignificance to this next gem, does the name Alfred Oglesby ring any bells? Alfred had been a 3rd round pick in 1990 out of Houston (the same year Miami picked Richmond Webb, Kieth Simms 1 & 2 respectively).
Alfred had made the team and actually looked ok for a 6’4 and 290lb guy, but it all went downhill when in 1992 Alfred had missed practice, no one could get hold of him or knew where he was… now this bit you couldn’t make up honest, he was… wait for it … he was kidnapped at gunpoint and taken to the Everglades!! yes that’s what he said! The truth only came out under heavy questioning by authorities, he was “out late” (very late) by all accounts.
As you can imagine, he didn’t last long in a Dolphins uniform! He also played for Green Bay, NYJ and the Bengals. He totalled 59 career games but sadly passed away in 2009.
These and many more stories from previous training camps will follow over the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned.