Miami Dolphins set to begin second phase of their offseason workouts

The Miami Dolphins will continue to work towards the 2015 season with the second phase of their voluntary workouts beginning today on May 4. The offseason workout schedule, which lasts for nine weeks, is broken into three phases. This is mandated by Article 21 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

On April 20, the first phase of the program began. That two-week period consisted of activities strictly limited to strength and conditioning along with physical rehabilitation. We saw numerous pictures come out from the team, where Ndamukong Suh was working alongside his teammates. However, Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald reported that it only lasted for one week and then Suh went back to train on his own. Considering he made an appearance on NBC this morning, he is not expected to be with the team for the start of the second phase, which is happening now.

The second phase is a three week session that includes on-field workouts.This consists of player instruction, drills and team practice. No live contact or team offense vs. team defense drills are permitted. 

The third phase, which begins the week of May 25, will last four weeks. Teams may conduct a total of 10 days of organized team practice activity. No live contact is permitted, but 7-on-7, 9-on-7, and 11-on-11 drills are permitted. For the Dolphins, these offseason team activities (OTA) will be held May 26-27, May 29, June 1-2, June 4, June 8-11.

From June 16-18, there will be a mandatory minicamp for veteran players. As for rookies, each team can hold a rookie football development program for a period of seven weeks. This year, it can begin as early as May 11. During this period, no activities may be held on weekends, with the exception of one post-NFL Draft rookie minicamp, which may be conducted on either the first or second weekend following the draft.. The Dolphins will hold their rookie minicamp beginning Thursday, May 7. 

This story was written by Matthew Cannata. Follow him on Twitter: @PhinManiacs