Josh Rosen focused on trying to improve, not next starting chance

[The Dolphin]

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For a former top 10 draft pick, Josh Rosen has had an incredibly rocky go of it through his first two seasons in the NFL.

But instead of feeling discouraged, Rosen says he’s focused on improving his own game and is enjoying that experience as much as ever.

“Maybe my mindset will change in some point in the future but I’m not really focused as much on winning a job as I am just getting better,” Rosen said, via Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com.

A coaching change in Arizona and a No. 1 overall pick at quarterback by Kyler Murray led to him losing him initial chance with the Arizona Cardinals after just one season. Rosen was then traded to a Miami Dolphins team that was lacking ready-made talent as they were in a rebuilding phase. Rosen started three games but was unable to unseat Ryan Fitzpatrick as a full-time starter.

Now Rosen is likely third on the team’s depth chart after another first-round quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa, comes in as the heir-apparent option for the Dolphins franchise. Losing the job to Fitzpatrick for good last year forced Rosen to reevaluate his approach to the game.

“I did a big reality check and completely turned inwards and see what I could do better. I flicked myself in my head like you’re literally in the room with one of the best minds to ever do it — and that’s Fitz — I basically sat there and tried to swallow as much as I could from him and I took that process into the offseason,” Rosen said. “I’m pretty happy with how I feel behind center at this point — I got a lot of work to do but I think I’ve only scratched the surface with what I can do. The reason I’m sort of positive in this situation is all I can control is my development and I think it’s going in the right direction.”

Whether Rosen gets a chance to start again at any point in Miami remains uncertain. He is still just two years removed from being the tenth overall pick in the NFL Draft and players drafted that highly usually get multiple chances to show if they can figure things out. If that chance comes along, Rosen wants to be prepared to put the best foot forward he can.

“I like competing,” Rosen said. “So I don’t really know when or where — hopefully this year, here — I’ll get a shot to play; but I’m just trying to focus on preparing for that shot as best as I can. That’s within my control and I’m actually pretty satisfied with how I’ve come out and played this training camp. Obviously some holes here and there that I definitely need to improve on, but I really think I’m sort of trending in the right direction. I’m enjoying it more than I ever have actually.”