The lesson from the Dolphins’ Kohou pursuit. And updates on Armstead and new injuries

There’s a reason that NFL teams ask their assistant coaches to watch tape and offer feedback on draft prospects every spring.

That process played out perfectly with the Dolphins and impressive rookie cornerback Kader Kohou in April.

Kohou had played at a small school - Texas A&M Commerce - but defensive coordinator Josh Boyer became intrigued as soon as he began watching his tape.

“I think that he was physical, he had a great play style,” Boyer said Thursday.

So Boyer mentioned something about Kohou to general manager Chris Grier, assistant GM Marvin Allen and the team’s scouts.

The team arranged a pre-draft Zoom session with Kohou, and he immediately developed a rapport with the Dolphins’ defensive coordinator.

Kohou said it “was a big deal for me” that Boyer showed interest in a Zoom session before the draft. “Josh was upfront and real,” Kohou said.

That — combined with a $130,000 guarantee — were among factors that swayed Kohou to opt for the Dolphins over 19 other offers.

Boyer offered insight into the pre-draft process with Kohou, days after Kohou made three big defensive plays - including a forced fumble - in 18 defensive snaps against New England:

“I remember it very well. It was actually the day before the draft, if I remember correctly. Usually, there’s a lot of players that you look at going into the draft, and for me, I usually always save the corners for last.

“I believe that was right before an OTA session, if I’m not mistaken and I saw him on film – and I’ve got a list of every position and then you just start moving guys up and down your list where you got him – and I saw him and I was like, ‘I like this kid and I need to talk to him.’

“It was a matter of could I fly out there before or could we just do it on Zoom, and we had a Zoom conversation. It was very clear to me how I thought he would fit in this defense and we had a good conversation. I had a good conversation with his agent [Drew Pittman].

“Then it came to the process of talking to our scouts, who they all have their evaluations and talking to Chris (Grier) obviously. In fact, I mentioned something to Chris, out on the field, and Chris has got a lot going on. He’s got thousands and thousands of guys. He’s looking at the other side of the ball, too, before the draft. So he’s probably looking at me like, ‘Hey, who are you talking about?’ But Chris was awesome. And he goes, ‘Okay, I’m going to get on that.’ And then really, Marvin Allen did an awesome job when it came to post-draft, to make sure that we were able to secure Kader.”

One key for Boyer with undrafted free agents is that he lays out a plan for them before they decide where to sign.

“When you’re talking to players, you have to have a vision for what you see them doing and their desires, skillset, kind of have to match that vision,” he said. “And when that’s matched, there’s an element of getting the best of that player, whether it’s Kader, whether it’s Zach Sieler.”

THIS AND THAT

▪ Left tackle Terron Armstead returned to practice but was limited with a toe injury. The other starting tackle, Austin Jackson, missed practice for a second day in a row with an ankle injury, leaving his status for Sunday’s game in Baltimore very much in doubt.

Cethan Carter (concussion protocol) also missed practice.

Besides Armstead, seven other players were limited: Brandon Jones (hip), Eric Rowe (pectoral), Xavien Howard (not injured; got a veteran’s rest day); Christian Wilkins (back); Cedrick Wilson Jr. (toe), Salvon Ahmed (heel) and Tanner Conner (knee).

The injuries for Jones and Wilkins are new; they weren’t on Wednesday’s injury report. Players must be listed if they get treatment for a particular injury.

▪ Offensive coordinator Frank Smith said of Mike Gesicki: “We want to get him involved.” Gesicki had only one target and one catch - for one yard - in the opener.

What about his blocking? “He’s been improving since the day he got here.”

▪ In last November’s win against Baltimore, the Dolphins used inside linebacker Jerome Baker a lot at outside linebacker.

“My job is pretty fun - sometimes inside, sometimes outside,” he said Thursday. “Sometimes, I’m essentially a safety.”

▪ One big question Sunday is whether the Dolphins blitz as often as they did in that Thursday night game last season.

“I really think they’re prepared for what we did to them last year,” Xavien Howard said.