Greg Dortch catches (nearly) everything on Day 6 of Cardinals training camp

Jul 30, 2024, 8:22 PM

Cardinals reporter, ArizonaSports.com editor

GLENDALE — Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Greg Dortch entered training camp as a lock for ample playing time out of the slot.

On Tuesday, he further proved that point.

Whether it was one-on-one work or lining up with the first- and second-team offenses, Dortch was reeling in passes left and right.

A couple standouts from today’s Arizona Cardinals training camp:

– Greg Dortch (caught everything)

– Darius Robinson (more first-team reps, went to work vs. second-team offense) pic.twitter.com/vwndw0O06u

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) July 30, 2024

His upped usage offensively has been noticeable throughout camp. Much like Rondale Moore last year, Dortch is lining up mainly out of the slot with some backfield looks thrown in.

The only real down part to Dortch’s day came while fielding punts.

Competing with DeeJay Dallas and Xavier Weaver for who could hold the most balls at a time, Dortch was slightly edged out by the former, 6-5.

Still, it was about the only time Dortch let a ball hit the grass on Tuesday.

A look at the other observations from Day 6 of Cardinals training camp:

Marv being Marv

By now, everyone has seen a multitude of Marvin Harrison Jr. doing Marvin Harrison Jr. things this camp.

But on Tuesday, he topped his previous top plays as a Cardinal.

Touchdown, Marvin Harrison Jr. #AZCardinals #BirdGang pic.twitter.com/Lj4aZ3TCF2

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) July 30, 2024

During red zone work near the end of practice, quarterback Kyler Murray zipped one Harrison’s way and the rookie wideout did the rest.

Despite being draped by nickel corner Garrett Williams, Harrison still managed to reel in the football and keep his feet in bounds for the “touchdown.”

With that being said, there was a flag on the play, though it’s unclear what the penalty was.

For now, we’re calling it six points.

Hjalte Froholdt goes down

The first injury of Cardinals training camp came Tuesday when starting center Hjalte Froholdt got rolled up on late in the day.

Luckily for the offense, Froholdt was back on his feet walking around but didn’t see any more action for the remainder of practice.

With Froholdt out, the Cardinals moved over starting left guard candidate Evan Brown to center. It’s a spot the veteran knows well after racking up 16 starts at the position for the Seattle Seahawks last year.

Taking over first at left guard in place of Brown was rookie Isaiah Adams. He eventually made way for the “less limited” Jon Gaines II, who continues to impress the coaching staff nine months removed from a season-ending knee injury as a rookie.

Arizona Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon with more praise for OL Jon Gaines II:

“He’s doing a pretty good job. He looks good playing multiple spots. … Very pleased with where he’s at. He’s about to be full-go here in a minute.” pic.twitter.com/1ZMcaG8iRO

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) July 30, 2024

“He looks good playing multiple spots,” head coach Jonathan Gannon said ahead of Day 6 practice. “We were talking about it this morning. … Very pleased with where he’s at. He’s about to be kind of full-go here in a minute.

“Mentally, there’s a reason why we drafted him. He’s got a certain skillset, can play all three interior positions, which for some guys can be a challenge. Both the physical and mental part.”

On top of his left guard and center duties, Gaines was also seen Tuesday working at right guard for a second day of practice.

Defense “miles ahead”

Arizona’s defense across the board has looked much improved this camp. The upped play has been even more evident after pads were introduced Monday.

Don’t just take my word for it, either.

“I feel like we’re definitely miles ahead than we were last year at this time,” MIKE linebacker Kyzir White said Tuesday. “I feel like we’re in a good spot and gotta keep climbing, keep growing.”

“The whole defense and the team in general — a lot of people might think it’s going to be a slump year, another slouch year, but we’re coming out working each and every day to make sure that doesn’t happen,” he added.

Along with White’s leadership and Arizona in its second year under Gannon, the influx in talent that includes Darius Robinson, Max Melton, Sean Murphy-Bunting, Bilal Nichols and Justin Jones has been huge in the development of the unit.

Tune up with the 2s

The QB2 battle between Clayton Tune and Desmond Ridder is far from over, but on Tuesday, it was Tune getting first crack with the second-team offense.

The second-year pro had some miscues, including a red-zone interception (Owen Pappoe), but was able to rebound with rather quickly with a touchdown pass to Zach Pascal on the very next play.