There are a lot of things you can call Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, but he isn't someone who will throw the players under a bus.
Earlier in the offseason, Chris Grier sat in front of a microphone and said that Cam Smith needed to step up because they could no longer hold his hand. It was a harsh message and out of character for Grier to call out a player by name.
Early in mini-camp, and from what we have heard through OTAs, Smith has not been very good so far. It seems as though McDaniel doesn't share that consensus belief. In fact, he recently spoke quite highly of his potential starting corner.
"Cam is in a great spot, doing an outstanding job in where we’re at this offseason. His key is how is he going to build on it. His key is, all right, after these eight weeks, we feel very good about a ton of things that we’ve communicated that he’s been able to make gains on in his game, and proving [he’s] very, very on it with the whole defensive scheme at a couple of positions. What does that mean moving forward?
Mike McDaniel sees improvement in Cam Smith during Miami Dolphins OTAs
Fans on the social media platform are not buying into what the coach is selling, and frankly, until it is actually seen in training camp, I'm not sure the media will buy into it fully either.
Clearly, the Dolphins need Smith to step up and take over the role vacated by Kendall Fuller. Storm Duck has been pushing for playing time. It has been reported that both are competing for a boundary spot.
It is great to hear that Smith might be playing well, but this is OTA practices, when the pads are on and the sessions are physical, we will know more about what Smith is doing. He isn't winning the starting job in mid-June any more than he is keeping himself from being cut.
The Dolphins concluded their final OTA practice on Thursday and now head into the longer portion of the offseason. A few moves may trickle in between now and the start of training camp in late July, but for the most part, this is the slowest part of the offseason.
McDaniel's proclamation sounds great if you believe him, but when fans are watching from the stands and the media is at every practice, we will know if Smith is turning a corner or not.