MIAMI GARDENS — Miami Dolphins rookie receiver Malik Washington caught a deep bomb from Skylar Thompson during Wednesday's training camp joint practice with the Falcons.

"Just a one-on-one matchup," Washington, a sixth-rounder from Virginia, said after practice. "Skylar has some trust in me on that play. Let it all out there. We just have to finish those plays. Whenever we get those opportunities, we have to make sure we finish."

A short time later, Washington hauled in a long out route from Mike White.

"We've worked it all summer," Washington said. "We've worked it all offseason. Just getting on the same page."

Washington is listed at fifth team on the Dolphins' depth chart. But that can change quickly.

On Wednesday, Tyreek Hill did very limited work and Jaylen Waddle and Braxton Berrios were held out.

This created a big opportunity for Washington, who posted back-to-back strong practices.

"I think you don't change anything," Washington said. "I think you have to approach every single day like it's a big-time opportunity to come and prove yourself…you've got to come ready to earn a job."

Malik Washington of Miami Dolphins makes training camp push

Washington slipped to the sixth round because he's 5-foot-8.

Even Berrios (5-foot-9), Waddle (5-foot-10) and Hill (5-foot-10) are taller.

"I think me, Braxton and Tyreek are probably the same exact size," Malik said with a smile.

At Virginia, Washington was fast, slippery and broke tackles.

With the Dolphins, he's been trying to learn the offense and adjust to NFL life.

"One of the more difficult things in the National Football League is that of a rookie NFL wide receiver," coach Mike McDaniel said. "The game is very different in terms of timings, particularly with us, and the details with which you do your jobs. I mean, huddling and all the motioning. What Malik has done really well is find how to be a professional very quickly.

"So he's operating as a pro in terms of how he's studying, his ownership of the playbook, and how reliable he is with assignments for his teammates. And then there's learning tools, each and every practice. What I'm really happy about with Malik is that he is getting better with those mistakes, and I'm expecting mistakes, but he improves mistakes, which is the key for rookies."

Washington gave thanks to Berrios and River Cracraft for helping him adjust to the league.

He's just trying to get better every day.

"I think there's a ton of nuances within this offense that you've got to be able to grasp," Washington said. "And not only grasp the nuances in the offense, you've got to know the defense and how that plays a factor. You've got to know the timing. There's all different sorts of things within this offense that you've got to be keyed into. I think it's pretty hard."

Is Malik Washington really shorter than Tyreek Hill and Braxton Berrios?

Miami's top receivers are Hill, Waddle, Berrios, Odell Beckham Jr. (once he's healthy) and Cracraft.

If the Dolphins keep a sixth receiver it's likely to be Washington, Erik Ezukanma or Braylon Sanders.

That would seem to make Friday night's Dolphins vs. Falcons preseaon opener huge for Washington.

But Washington isn't overhyping the moment.

"It's just another game," Washington said. "I think it's one of those where you can't work it up to be something huge and big. You gotta go out there and play your game. It's football, it's what I've been doing since I was 6 years old, man. So I gotta go out there on Friday night and I got to give it everything I got."

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Joe Schad is a journalist covering the Miami Dolphins and the NFL at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on Instagram and on X @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miami Dolphins training camp breakout for rookie WR Mailk Washington