Hunter Long has mastered the Rubik’s Cube to the purpose he can clear up the 3-D mixture puzzle in lower than a minute.
Unfortunately, maturity and the NFL was a extra perplexing puzzle, one which took the Miami Dolphins tight finish a complete season to determine.
“Year one on and off the field is a huge growing phase for anyone to make that leap. I learned a lot about myself and what I can do,” the 2021 third-round choose mentioned, referring to his rookie season, a yr the place he seldom performed and caught only one go for 8 yards.
Many followers don’t understand this, however Long started his NFL profession as a starter.
The rookie tight finish was on the sector with the beginning unit for the season opener and performed 18 offensive snaps in Miami’s 17-16 win over the New England Patriots.
It was package-based work, however the critiques should not have been favorable as a result of from that time Long disappeared.
The former Boston College standout seemingly bought misplaced enjoying behind Mike Gesicki, Durham Smythe and Adam Shaheen, three veteran tight ends who had extra familiarity with Miami’s offense.
Because Long wasn’t a core particular groups contributor he was inactive for eight of the following 10 video games. He finally bought enjoying time later within the season when accidents impacted Miami’s tight finish unit, however Long admits the challenges of what comes with being an NFL rookie, and adulting in the actual world, overwhelmed him.
“Living in general and trying to handle the off-field stuff [was difficult],” Long mentioned on the conclusion of Tuesday’s one-hour OTA follow session, which units up subsequent week’s obligatory minicamp.
“In college you don’t realize how much of that stuff is taken care of for you. You get thrown out here and got to [figuring it out] for yourself,” Long mentioned. “I grew a lot off the field and that has helped me on the field by being able to block out stuff.”
Whether or not he’s previous his rising pains and able to contribute the Miami’s offense hasn’t been decided but.
There’s nonetheless work to be achieved, and there are tight ends clearly forward of him on the depth chart.
But Long is doing his half by studying Miami’s new play-action based mostly offense, which can function tight ends loads, by seemingly bulking up.
His shoulder are broader, and that wasn’t unintentional.
“I most definitely bulked up. I haven’t gained much weight, but I gained some muscle and lost some fat,” Long mentioned. “I’m just trying to do what I can do. I’m trying to attack this offseason and keep attacking it.”
What motivated the bodily metamorphosis?
“Everyone watches their own tape, and it’s on tape,” Long mentioned, seemingly addressing his shortcomings as a blocker. “There are changes I felt I needed and I attacked it.”
So far Long hasn’t made any splash performs within the two OTA follow periods the media has watched this spring, however not less than his head isn’t swimming in new data.
And he’s gained some familiarity to his environment, and the group, in contrast to final season.
Gesicki, Smythe and the tight ends all the time took Long underneath their wing, although they realized he was probably drafted as their alternative, contemplating they have been each impending free brokers final offseason.
Nothing has modified this yr as Gesicki is enjoying on the franchise tag, which is one-year deal value $10.9 million, and Smythe re-signed a one-year deal value $2.75 million.
Long could possibly be the inheritor to the tight finish throne if he can blossom, turning into the versatile, multi-faceted participant he was at Boston College, which motivated the Dolphins to pick out him 81st total in 2021. But that might take a while, probably greater than his rookie season.
There is a sentiment within the NFL that outdoors of quarterback, tight finish is probably the most troublesome place to be taught as a younger participant.
The reasoning behind it’s that there’s three completely different sides of the job a participant should grasp, and no different unit has that a lot placed on their plate.
Tight ends should run routes, on and off the road of scrimmage. Then, most are also chargeable for run blocking and go blocking, like offensive linemen.
That’s why it’s been 20 years because the Dolphins had a good finish who made a major affect in his rookie season.
That participant was Randy McMichael, a former Georgia standout the Dolphins chosen within the fourth spherical of the 2002 NFL draft. McMichael caught 39 passes for 485 yards and scored 4 touchdowns as a rookie.
He went on to play 11 seasons, beginning 150 video games, and 80 of them got here from the 5 seasons he spent with the Dolphins.
Charles Clay caught 16 passes for 233 yards and scored three touchdowns in his rookie season with the Dolphins again in again in 2011. His profession took off in his third season, when he caught a career-high 69 receptions and turned them into 759 yards and 6 touchdowns again in 2013.
That 2011 sixth-round choose had a productive nine-year NFL profession, and first 4 of which was spent with the Dolphins.
Gesicki and Smythe, who have been each early picks within the 2018 NFL draft, every bought off to gradual begins.
Gesicki caught 22 passes for 202 yards within the 400 offensive snaps he dealt with as a rookie, however even he’ll acknowledge that his rookie season was a disappointment.
But Gesicki has blossomed right into a playmaker the previous two seasons, and Smythe, who caught six passes for 50 yards within the 176 offensive snaps he performed his rookie season, has served as a practical in-line tight finish, complementing Gesicki.
The hope was that Long can handle each roles — in-line blocker and go catching risk — however to show that, he’ll have to earn this teaching employees’s respect and carve out a job for himself.
“My world hasn’t changed. I’m going to come out and do what I can do,” Long mentioned when requested concerning the upcoming season. “How much I play, and when is up to them.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com