2026 Texas Tech Rookies Impress During First Week of Dolphins Training Camp
With training camp kicking off earlier this week for the Miami Dolphins, there have been some good and bad performances throughout their first few practices. Guys like Jordyn Brooks and Aaron Brewer have held their own as expected. Even the former first-rounder Chop Robinson had his own mini breakout performance on Wednesday, showing off the weight he put on to become less of a liability in the run game this upcoming season. All of those guys, however, are to be expected on a team as young and lacking in talent as the 2026 Miami Dolphins. What has been a surprise, or not, has been the performance of the two former Red Raider rookies, with one poised for a potential starting role right off the bat.
Texas Tech Rookies Shine in Week One
It should be no surprise to see at least one of the two rookies from Texas Tech making their mark on the field, with the second-round pick Jacob Rodriguez already showing the skills that made him a borderline Heisman finalist a season ago. Rodriguez managed to disrupt a handful of passes, alongside a punch-out fumble on De’Von Achane. The other Tech rookie, however, was a bit of a surprise to see break out as early in training camp as he has in wide receiver Caleb Douglas. He had a pair of spectacular catches from Malik Willis during Friday’s practice, including a one-handed touchdown catch. The former third-round pick was prescribed as a bit of a reach for most draft analysts, mainly due to the six drops that Douglas had in 2025 alongside some focus drops. The good thing is that you can fix focus drops. It’s pretty hard to teach someone how to be six-foot-four like Douglas, which is something that the Dolphins’ wide receiver room has severely lacked during the Mike McDaniel era. At the very least, his above-average frame can create a huge challenge for opposing cornerbacks and safeties, not just in the passing game downfield, but as a blocker in the run game.
Can Douglas Build Off His Breakout Training Camp?
It’s hard to say whether the former Red Raider can keep up his success so far, considering how valuable it would be to have that size for Malik Willis and the passing game. It’s become pretty well-known how much of a pushover this secondary is expected to be in 2026, and that’s somewhat shown throughout the first week of practices. I think we’ll get a pretty good idea of what to expect from Douglas and the other rookies during their joint practices in the postseason alongside the actual preseason games themselves. I can’t say I 100% expect him to continue this success once it gets to that point, however. There is a reason why Douglas was valued as a reach early in the third round, with guys like Chris Brazzell, Ja’Kobi Lane, and Chris Bell all on the board when Miami selected Douglas. He’s good in the different phases, primarily as a downfield threat, but a lot of his best qualities had a hard time showing up consistently last year. Certainly, with the lack of quality bodies in the wide receiver room for Miami this season, the soon-to-be 23-year-old rookie will have plenty of chances to grow on the field.
