Latest news with #TahjWashington
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
USC football countdown to kickoff—Tahj Washington in focus
The countdown to USC's 2025 football season is officially on! The Trojans kick off their new campaign 16 days from today. You need something to help you while away the days and hours in the spring and summer. This is one way to do so. In this new series, countdown to kickoff, we will be counting down the days by highlighting a notable Trojan who wore each number. Today, we look at former USC wide receiver Tahj Washington. Position: Wide receiver Years played at USC: 2021-2023 Career highlights: Washington played his first two seasons of college football at Memphis, before transferring to USC in 2021. In 2021 and 2022, he finished second on the team in receiving, behind future first round NFL Draft picks Drake London and Jordan Addison, respectively. As a redshirt senior in 2023, Washington finally got the chance to be the Trojans' go-to option in the passing game. He finished that season with 59 catches for 1,062 yards and eight touchdowns. After USC: The Miami Dolphins selected Washington in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL Draft. However, he missed his entire rookie season with a leg injury. Washington returned to the field this year and impressed in Miami's preseason opener this past week. He is looking to earn a spot on the team's roster and playing time in 2025.
USA Today
11-08-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Studs and duds from the Dolphins' 24-24 preseason tie vs. the Bears
.@MiamiDolphins @PatrickPaul_76 looked very sharp in his 24 Size yet he moves so easily. He has everything it takes to be as good as he wants. #phinsup #BaldysBreakdowns Positives outweighed the negatives for the Miami Dolphins in their 24-24 preseason tie with the Chicago Bears. While that was helped by the Bears resting the majority of their starters, including quarterback Caleb Williams, the Dolphins still did more than enough to give their fans optimism heading into the 2025 season. Here's who stood out most for the Dolphins on Sunday and who had a preseason opener to forget: Stud: First-team offensive line No, they didn't get the job done near the goal line on their first drive of the game. The list of negatives ends there, though. With Patrick Paul, James Daniels, and Jonah Savaiinaea taking over three of the starting roles and Larry Borom starting at right tackle in the place of the injured Austin Jackson, the Dolphins offense was rolling early. The Dolphins are hoping their rebuilt line can produce better results on the ground than the team managed in 2024. It wasn't perfect Sunday, but there's plenty of reason to be optimistic about their chances. Stud: Washington & Washington Tua Tagovailoa's first four completions Sunday were all to Malik Washington, including a clutch fourth down conversion. His fifth completion was to Tahj Washington. The latter finished the day as Miami's leading receiver with three receptions for 53 yards. Tahj Washington making the defender miss in space. Granted, with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle watching from the sideline, Tagovailoa's non-Washington options were limited. But the two 2024 draft picks looked like a pair of players primed to make an impact in their second NFL seasons. Dud: Backup quarterbacks Woof. Zach Wilson made a couple plays downfield, connecting with Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Tahj Washington for 35- and 34-yard pickups. But the former No. 2 overall draft pick struggled to get the ball out of his hand quickly and missed throws, including a lob to tight end Tanner Conner that should've been an easy score. Zach Wilson in midseason form It seemed Quinn Ewers was primed to hold Wilson's feet to the flame. But the seventh-round rookie's day was significantly worse than the veteran's. Ewers completed only five of his 18 passes and fumbled twice in Chicago territory. Stud: Dolphins special teams So far, so good for Craig Aukerman's squad. It didn't seem to matter who was back to return Sunday, they had room to race upfield into good field position. Dee Eskridge, A.J. Henning, and Erik Ezukanma took kick returns back 41, 38, and 37 yards, respectively. Malik Washington had a 19-yard punt return and Eskridge had a 16-yarder. Meanwhile, the Bears picked up no more than 22 yards on their kickoff returns and they didn't do much with 50- and 59-yard punts from Ryan Stonehouse and Jake Bailey, respectively. Dud: RB Jaylen Wright All signs pointed to a breakout year for Wright in 2025 after the team parted with Raheem Mostert earlier in the offseason. But the 2024 fourth-round pick has put together an underwhelming training camp and parlayed that into a ho-hum preseason debut. While he eventually broke loose for a 7-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, Wright was stuffed on three straight runs inside the Bears' 2-yard line on the Dolphins' first drive. The second-year back finished with 16 yards on nine carries, a paltry 1.8 yards per attempt. The two running backs behind him on the depth chart shined, though. Alexander Mattison bulldozed through the defense on a 1-yard touchdown run and broke loose on a 21-yard reception before his day ended with an injury. Rookie Ollie Gordon II took over and recorded 33 rushing yards and 39 receiving yards. Wright's spot on the 53-man roster is safe, but he'll need to show more if he hopes to keep Mattison and Gordon from eating up his regular season touches. Stud: EDGE Derrick McLendon It's tough sledding to stand out as an edge rusher with the Dolphins right now. Buried behind Chop Robinson, Jaelan Phillips, Bradley Chubb, and a couple veterans, McLendon has an uphill climb to earn a spot. But he played like a man possessed Sunday. While he picked up a roughing the passer penalty for landing on the Bears' Case Keenum, that's an easy mistake to forgive for a player who made so many plays in the backfield, including a sack. EDGE Derrick McLendon is another guy who was good on the defensive line today. Going to be interesting to see what guys they keep there. There simply aren't many roster spots left for the taking and McLendon may be the odd man out, regardless. But he made a strong case Sunday to stick around in Miami.
Miami Herald
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Kelly: Did the Dolphins upgrade or downgrade the 2025 roster?
The Miami Dolphins are intentionally fielding a younger, and subsequently a cheaper roster. But did South Florida's NFL team get better or worse from a talent standpoint this offseason? That question can only be analyzed after evaluating who left, and who their replacements are in each unit. Some units — like linebacker and safety — got better because of additions made in free agent signings, trades or the return of veterans who were sidelined by injuries. And then others — cornerback, tight end and defensive lineman — potentially got worse. Take a look at how we break down each unit, evaluating whether the Dolphins upgraded or downgraded the roster: ▪ Quarterback: Tyler 'Snoop' Huntley and Skylar Thompson Alexander Mattison and Ollie Gordon II The Dolphins intentionally moved on from Mostert, who was released and signed with Las Vegas, and Wilson (still unemployed) because the goal was to get younger in the backfield, which now belongs to De'Von Achane, who gained 907 yards and scored six rushing touchdowns on 203 carries, and Jaylen Wright, a second-year player who averaged 3.7 yards per carry last season. Mattison, who is entering his seventh season, and Gordon, a Doak Walker Award winner Miami drafted in the fifth round, should add some much-needed power to Miami's finesse rushing attack. But this unit is relatively green. However, durabilty and dead legs shouldn't be too much of a factor in 2025. ▪ Receiver: Braxton Berrios, River Cracraft and Grant Dubose Darren Waller and Pharaoh Brown Smith set every franchise record for the tight end position last year, but the Dolphins weren't willing to give him the type of extension he reportedly got from the Pittsburgh Steelers, receiving an additional $12 million, in the trade that sent cornerback Jalen Ramsey and Smith to Pittsburgh in exchange for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and a swap of 2027 late-round picks. The Dolphins quickly added Waller, a 2020 Pro Bowler who abruptly retired last year. While Waller turns 33 this season he has only had four seasons where he'd played 500-plus offensive snaps. His familiarity with offensive coordinator Frank Smith should allow Waller, a recovering addict who has faced multiple NFL suspensions, to adjust to the offense quickly. Brown will compete with Julian Hill for the in-line role, but he's speed deficient and has only caught 72 passes in his seven seasons in the NFL. If Waller struggles, or sustains an injury, expect Tanner Conner to step up as a front-line contributor. ▪ Offensive line: Terron Armstead, Robert Jones, Isaiah Wynn and Kendall Lamm Kenneth Grant, Jordan Phillips, Zeek Biggers. Ben Stille, Matthew Butler Three of Miami's five top defensive linemen signed elsewhere, with Zach Sieler, a double-digit sack producer the past two years, and Benito Jones being the only veterans retained. Campbell, a captain last season, joined the Cardinals. Hand signed with the Chargers, and Ogbah joined the Jaguars. Miami replaced them with three draftees — Grant, Phillips and Biggers — and signed Stille and Butler to join Matt Dickerson as veterans battling for a spot on the back end of the roster. Grant, a nose tackle Miami selected in the first round, Phillips, a three-year starter at Maryland the Dolphins selected in the fifth round, and Biggers, a seventh-round pick, are all young, big and athletic, and each possesses upside. But the Dolphins will likely miss Campbell production and leaders, and Ogbah's veteran presence. The hope is that the trio of rookies are quick learners. ▪ Linebacker: Anthony Walker Jr., Tyus Bowser, Duke Riley > Willie Gay Jr., K.J Britt, Grayson Murphy Miami seemingly swapped Walker for Britt, exchanging 2024 starters with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Britt, who will likely serve as a backup to Jordyn Brooks and Tyrel Dodson, isn't in the same league as Walker from an experience standpoint. But he's four years younger, slightly more athletic, and definitely more durable. Gay has started 55 of the 72 games he's played the past five seasons, and brings a versatility to the unit that Miami has been missing since Andrew Van Ginkel left a year ago as a free agent. Bowser and Riley haven't signed with an NFL team yet. Murphy, who impressed during training camp as a rookie before suffering a knee injury, will likely compete with Quinton Bell, Mohamed Kamara and Channing Tindall for one of the four or five backup linebacker spots behind Brooks, Dodson, Jaelan Phillips, Bradley Chubb and Chop Robinson. ▪ Cornerback: Jalen Ramsey, Kendall Fuller > Artie Burns, Kendall Sheffield, Jason Marshall Jr. No unit on the team took a steeper drop-off from a talent standpoint than Miami's cornerbacks because Ramsey and Fuller have collectively started 238 games. But Ramsey's difficult off-field demeanor led to his trade to Pittsburgh, and Fuller was released because of the knee injury he sustained late last season, which will likely keep him off the field in 2025. The Dolphins only added Burns and Sheffield, two journeymen who have experience as starters, to a young cornerback room that features Kader Kohou (an established nickel cornerback), Cam Smith, Miami's 2023 second-round pick, Storm Duck (three starts as a rookie in 2024), Ethan Bonner and Isaiah Johnson, former undrafted rookies who have flashed talent in camp, and Marshall, a former University of Florida standout the Dolphins selected in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. Miami might add another veteran as training camp approaches, or wait until August after seeing how players perform in camp. ▪ Safety: Jevon Holland, Jordan Poyer < Minkah Fitzpatrick, Ashtyn Davis, Ifeatu Melifonwu, Dante Trader Jr. Holland and Poyer were probably the least-productive starting safety tandem in Dolphins history considering they failed to record a single interception, and only produced one sack and forced one fumble in all of 2025. Poyer seems to be headed toward forced retirement because his play last season hints he has lost a step. Holland signed a lucrative free agent contract with the Giants this offseason and will be replaced by Fitzpatrick, a five-time Pro Bowl selection, whose leadership and football intelligence should help sew up the seams of Miami's secondary. Davis and Melifonwu, two veterans Miami signed this offseason, will compete with Elijah Campbell, Trader, a 2025 fifth-round pick, and Patrick McMorris, a 2024 sixth-round pick, for the other starting spot, and the two to three other spots on the 53-man roster for safeties.
