Pennington Knows His Fate with the Dolphins is Tentative

Tony Sparano, coach for the Dolphins, had always been aware on the winning strengths of Pennington. However, he does not want to place any pressure on his throwing shoulder, having been subjected to three operations during the previous season. Along with younger quarterbacks Tyler Thigpen and Pat White as well as starter Chad Henne, Pennington is often seen as a mere spectator during offseason practices. These workouts proceeded until Saturday, involving more minicamp sessions. Pennington has not been used to staying in the sidelines, watching his teammates do drills, having been the NFL Comeback Player for the Year twice. Sparano has plans of holding down Pennington to no more than 55 throws and no less than 40 throws in practices, which is considered to be a fairly light load. No complaints However, there are no complaints from Pennington, being a spectator from the sidelines for now. On Saturday, Pennington admits to being completely fine with the present set-up. First off he understands what the team is trying so hard to accomplish and secondly he appreciates the fact that he doesn’t have to exhaust himself come May. In August, the real action is bound to take off and that is when he expects himself fully able to perform. He knows putting himself too early on the field will place everything that the team has worked so hard for at risk. This season is the third for Pennington with the Dolphins. In 2008, he won several accolades after having lead Miami to the AFC East title, a year after the team had been doing poorly during a 1-15 campaign. Last season had been full of high hopes, especially before Pennington dislocated his right shoulder during the third week against San Diego. Take over by Henne For the starter position, Henne was the one who took over, and for the rest of the period he’d been No.1 on the depth chart for 2010. Although he’s pretty confident with what he’s been doing for the team, he does not mind having Pennington around. Henne knows Pennington is a smart player who knows what is going on and is able to communicate well about it. He is helping Henne with the team and the game as well as how to progress effectively as a player. This coaching or mentoring job for Pennington is not something that’s entirely new to him however. Despite having been hurt last year, Pennington would still participate in meetings with the quarterbacks, especially on Tuesdays, recounting what he’d seen during the game and providing insights whenever needed. Pennington’s next career option may heavily involve providing coaching assistance to the younger players. Pennington’s father had been coaching high school students for thirty years and Pennington has considered taking up a coaching position should his playing days come to a halt. He has said that he’d been able to play on three levels, and with Friday night football, donning a jersey to school, and smelling popcorn, things could not possible get any better if he ever goes for a coaching career.