MIAMI GARDENS — New Dolphins offensive line coach Butch Barry is coming off a tumultuous season with the Denver Broncos and has a couple of question marks on his new unit in Miami.
Barry will be in charge of developing a line that had a personnel upgrade in 2022 with left tackle Terron Armstead and center Connor Williams, but still has work to do around them and right guard Robert Hunt.
Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel has said a move from previous offensive line coach Matt Applebaum to Barry was made because, last season, offensive coordinator Frank Smith had to work too closely with the line and McDaniel, in turn, had to take on some of Smith’s coordinator duties.
With three-fifths of the offensive line apparently in place, although Williams skipping out on mandatory minicamp mildly complicates that, the two spots in question are left guard and right tackle. Third-year lineman Liam Eichenberg and fourth-year blocker Austin Jackson, respectively, are expected to get their opportunity to start in those slots.
McDaniel has stated he believes those two need a second year in his offensive system before they can truly be judged. That second year will take place under new positional tutelage as Barry is the Dolphins’ 10th offensive line coach in nine years.
Barry sees potential in Jackson, whose fifth-year option was not picked up this offseason, putting him on the final year of his rookie contract after Miami used a first-round pick on the USC product in 2020.
“He’s been awesome to work with. He really has,” said Barry, who also was Miami Hurricanes offensive line coach in 2019 before former UM coach Manny Diaz fired him after one season. “He’s been very intentional in everything that we try to do. He’s taking the approach, the process, the standard that we’re trying to go about it and he’s embraced it.
“And look, it’s not going to be perfect. No player plays the perfect game. No player has the perfect practice. But he has intentionality in everything he’s trying to do. And he comes with an emphasis every day. Every day, he has an emphasis on what he wants to get better at, and as a coach, that’s all you can ever ask for.”
Eichenberg had an interesting stretch through organized team activities and minicamp. Without Williams, a converted guard last offseason, Eichenberg has taken snaps at center. A standout left tackle in college at Notre Dame, Eichenberg was moved to left guard last season. He still hopes to win the left guard spot.
“When things like that happen, it gives you those opportunities to have other people step up to the plate,” said Barry, who was assistant offensive line coach with the 49ers in 2021, when McDaniel was offensive coordinator in San Francisco. “So now you’ve got another guy who hasn’t really had a lot of exposure to that position go out there and help this offense execute at a pretty high level throughout the offseason and do some really good things for us.”
Eichenberg finished minicamp the last Dolphins player to wear the orange practice jersey as the previous session’s player of the day, showing the coaches appreciated his work at center.
“I think that it’s great cross-reference reps, and he’s done everything in the right way to be the left guard also,” Barry said. “So he’s done a lot of really good things.”
At left guard, the Dolphins could also go the way of Robert Jones, Dan Feeney or Isaiah Wynn, who has mostly played tackle but is versatile enough to play on the interior of the line.
Barry doesn’t necessarily come to Miami on a career upswing. His dismissal, after Broncos 2022 coach Nathaniel Hackett was also fired, was reportedly welcomed by players in the Denver locker room, according to KOA Colorado.
But he also valued the season with the Broncos as a learning experience.
“I think it’s always a great opportunity to be in front of players and understand what players are wanting and needing to be at their best,” he said. “Players have to be coachable and you have to work yourself around what makes them be their best, right? Because our job is to fulfill dreams for the players. That’s why you get into coaching, is to help players fulfill their dreams. And so you have to know how to maneuver yourself within the room to make the most out of that.”
As for Barry’s job thus far in Miami, he has received positive feedback from Smith.
“It’s been great. Butch is a great teacher,” the Dolphins offensive coordinator said. “Obviously, his familiarity with Mike (McDaniel) helps because coming from being in the system in San Francisco, he had an understanding of the concepts and what we’re looking to accomplish.”
