NAPA, Calif. -- According to The Associated Press, Miami Dolphins rookies played more snaps in Week 1 than any team since at least 2006; unsurprising for the league's youngest team.
While linebacker Jacob Rodriguez and wide receiver Caleb Douglas were among Miami's standout performers in Sunday's loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, cornerback Chris Johnson's day wasn't as smooth -- at least on paper.
The first-round pick was targeted 11 times, according to NextGen Stats, allowing six catches for 62 yards. He was also the nearest defender on two of Kirk Cousins' touchdown passes.
But teammates and coaches say Johnson's performance was more than what the stat sheet suggested, and they know the rookie's confidence won't waver going into this week's matchup with the San Francisco 49ers (4:25 p.m. ET on Fox).
"I think Chris, when you watch the tape and you look at the scheme and you don't just point fingers at a guy who you think was at fault -- I think there's certainly some plays that Chris wants back," Dolphins coach Jeff Hafley said. "I think Chris showed a lot of flashes and played a solid game. He was good against a run at his nickel position. ... He's hard on himself, too, because he's the one that it's showing up on. Chris did a lot of good things [Sunday] and Chris should be confident that he can do a lot of good things in this league."
Johnson was in coverage on Cousins' touchdown passes to Jack Bech and Ashton Jeanty, but Hafley said neither score was actually his fault based on scheme responsibilities.
Miami was in Cover 1 on Bech's touchdown catch, which features a deep safety and sometimes a "robber," where either the other safety or a linebacker covers shorter routes over the middle of the field. Safety Zayne Anderson and linebacker Jordyn Brooks both covered Raiders tight end Michael Mayer, and Bech scored on a slant route directly to the area of the field Anderson vacated.
The Dolphins were also in Cover 1 on Jeanty's touchdown and the Raiders took advantage of a similar mistake -- this time, Brooks and rookie safety Michael Taaffe both covered Mayer, and Cousins found Jeanty in the space that Taaffe vacated.
"Really just have to clean up some of my techniques," Johnson said after the game. "I feel like I was responsible for a few touchdowns but at the end of the day, I've got to be cleaner in my coverage. The team is relying on me to do that."
Taaffe told reporters that he was responsible for one of the touchdowns attributed to Johnson but didn't clarify which one. Hafley said the players who missed their assignments immediately owned up to it on the sideline after each play.
Johnson did finish with 11 tackles in his NFL regular-season debut, as well as two pass breakups and an impressive tackle for a loss where he wrapped Jeanty up behind the line of scrimmage on the Raiders' first offensive drive.
Dolphins players and coaches have also pushed back on the notion that Johnson was "targeted" by the veteran Cousins. Johnson said the number of targets he saw was a by-product of him playing multiple cornerback positions, while defensive coordinator Sean Duggan said Cousins "put the ball where we allowed him to."
"Some of that's a little overblown. I don't think necessarily the quarterback was looking his way," Brooks said. "Some of that stuff wasn't his fault -- that was a breakdown in the defense as a whole. And so I'm not worried about a guy like Chris. Chris is the ultimate confidence guy, very sure of himself. I think he's going to be great. He's got all the ability and he's got the want to.
"You get hit in a game, that's what the NFL is. You make plays, you miss plays. It is what it is. And so he'll bounce back and we'll get it rolling from there."
The Dolphins have been clear since draft weekend of their intentions for Johnson to be a pivotal part of their defense. He cross-trained at the outside cornerback and nickel cornerback positions, and coaches said his football intelligence and overall feel for the game have allowed him to play both.
Hafley said he isn't concerned about the highs and lows from the Dolphins' 14 rookies this season -- the "rookie moments" are going to happen. But especially at high-visibility positions such as cornerback, it's important for his staff to remain consistent with its messaging.
"You got to keep coaching them, you got to tell them the truth, and we got to develop these guys," Hafley said. "How you treat the game film should not be indicative of the wins or losses. How you treat the game film is you go play by play regardless of the result, and was the process right? Did they execute? Did they line up right? Was their footwork right? Did they do their job the best that they could? And if they didn't, we got to get them better. And if they did, you show them why and you move on.
"I'm not going to waver and lose confidence and ride this up and down wave; I think having a consistent mindset of growing day by day and play by play is going to be really important for all these guys."
