Ten notes from Dolphins assistant coach media briefing: Needham, Chosen, a concern, more

Ten nuggets from availability with a few Dolphins assistant coaches on Thursday:

▪ While none of the coaches were ripping any of them, it’s clear that the Dolphins expect more from their Christian Wilkins/Zach Sieler/Raekwon Davis defensive line.

On their combined pass rush numbers (two sacks, average number of pressures), defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said: “They need to do a better job of that. We need to do a better job of getting them in those positions” to do that.

Asked about his starting defensive line’s play overall, Fangio said: “Our whole defense hasn’t been as productive. The unit is not playing up to snuff, both coaching and playing.”

Defensive line coach Austin Clark, asked how Christian WIlkins is playing: “It’s OK. We had two games where we played close to the standard and two games we haven’t.”

On Raekwon Davis, Clark said: “Raekwon has been able to align in different spots. How he played in the New England game is how we want him to play all the time. Inconsistencies with the group, I’ve got to coach him better. There’s not a lack of effort. It’s got to be more consistent.”

▪ Receivers coach Wes Welker acknowledged that losing River Cracraft - who’s out indefinitely with a shoulder injury - was hurtful because he’s the team’s best blocking receiver.

“Cracraft has been with me for four years; as far as techniques he can probably teach it just as good as I could,” Welker said.

So who does that leave as the team’s best blocking receiver? Welker didn’t offer a name, but said “guys who aren’t quite there yet will get there.”

▪ Welker, on losing Erik Ezukanma for an indefinite period because of a neck injury: “He had a great offseason, good training camp. It’s unfortunate he’s not there right now. But he’s progressing well. He’s trying to get out there on the field.”

▪ The Dolphins love what they’re getting from receiver Braxton Berrios, who has 13 catches for 146 yards and a touchdown.

“Braxton is a real pro,” Welker said. “On top of all of his assignments, he has great quickness in and out of breaks and he’s been a great addition for us. He owns all the techniques, catches when thrown to him.”

And what about Robbie Chosen?

“Still progressing but doing a heck of a job,” Welker said. “Did a really nice job against Buffalo in terms of his assignments. We’re continuing to work with him.”

▪ Offensive coordinator Frank Smith, when asked if Austin Jackson is playing at the level of an above-average NFL right tackle: “That’s an interesting question…. We feel very good about his improvement. Very pleased with how he’s developing.”

▪ Smith said that he, head coach Mike McDaniel and running backs coach Eric Studesville aren’t going into the week deciding how many snaps to allocate to Raheem Mostert, De’Von Achane and Salvon Ahmed. Achane played more than Mostert last week.

“You.. decide throughout the week,” Smith said. “Certain plays have guys tagged to be in them. It’s a good problem to have when you have a room with such depth - When you have a room that deep, how do you use them [requires thought].”

▪ Cornerback Cam Smith didn’t even get into the game in garbage time last Sunday, and it doesn’t appear that the Fangio is ready to play him.

“He has to keep improving in practice,” Fangio said. “We’ve been giving him a fair amount of reps. We need to keep seeing consistent progress.”

▪ The decision to play Duke Riley more against Buffalo (18 snaps) wasn’t spontaneous. “We planned to give Duke some reps during the game,” Fangio said.

▪ Fangio isn’t sure how soon the Dolphins can get something from cornerback Nik Needham, who on Wednesday practiced for the first time since an Achilles injury last October.

“He has some work to do coming off a full year of inactivity,” Fangio said. “He tells me he feels good. We will see how he does the rest of this week and coming into next week.”

The Dolphins now have 20 days to decide whether to place Needham on the 53-man roster or keep him sidelined all season.

▪ Clark, on veteran defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand, who has played 44 defensive snaps: “As a run defender, he’s provided a good anchor. He had 16 plays [against Buffalo], had a couple tackles. He’s tough as nails, smart guy, wanted to be a civil engineer at Alabama. Great kid. Love him.”

Our Daniel Oyefusi will have more from Fangio later today, including his explanation for leaving Kader Kohou on Stefon Diggs.