LANDOVER, Md. — The Miami Dolphins got their first taste of facing an opponent in the era of new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and coach Jeff Hafley. If we’re keeping a win-loss record in the preseason, the Dolphins lost the joint practice against the Washington Commanders on Wednesday and then lost on the scoreboard, 20-7, in Friday’s exhibition opener. But much like Miami’s upcoming regular season largely won’t be judged by wins and losses, neither should the week in the greater Washington, D.C. area. It was about a young team gaining experience and a coaching staff getting an evaluation on which players they can count on and which ones need more coaching over the next two weeks of the preseason. As the youth on the Dolphins’ roster is learning this preseason, here’s what we learned from the week against the Commanders: Willis leads TD drive We have to temper this by noting the Commanders had 10 defensive starters plus a few other key rotational defensive pieces resting in Friday’s preseason game. It was an entirely reserve unit, combined with rookie linebacker and first-round pick Sonny Styles for Washington. But the Dolphins’ new QB1 got the job done with his lone series and ran the offense for a long touchdown drive. He delivered throws to slot receiver Malik Washington, who could turn out to be his safety valve when he needed a short completion. He got the ball to rookie standout Caleb Douglas. He made plays with his feet. Related Articles
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Definitely a passing grade for Malik Willis in the preseason series, but there’s a caveat: When he faced Commanders starting defenders at Wednesday’s joint practice, it was a struggle. Backup QBs had awful night After the stellar start, it was lackluster the rest of the way for the Dolphins offense. Quinn Ewers and Cam Miller combined to go 4 of 19 for 66 yards with three interceptions. There were bad decisions. There were missed throws. It’s also now been revealed, according to a league source, that Ewers suffered a groin injury during the outing. It wasn’t all on them, though. There were instances where they were pressured, others where pass-catchers either ran the wrong routes or flat-out dropped a pass. Douglas has got the goods You know who wasn’t dropping the ball when he was fighting through pass interference and could only go up with one hand? The rookie third-round pick out of Texas Tech. Douglas kept his strong camp going by, first, making plays in the joint practice and then coming down with the highlight-reel catch with the left hand as his right was tied up. Even better for Hafley, there was still a lot he did wrong to serve as coaching and teaching points. He lost track of where he was on the field, stepping out of bounds as he caught what was Willis’ lone incompletion. He missed a block on a run play. And he didn’t run another route correctly, possibly missing out on a separate explosive play. But he could become a go-to receiver for Willis this season, with this past week being a key one elevating him to that potential. Achane could get short-yardage work De’Von Achane at 5 feet 9, 191 pounds, but even as the diminutive tailback is known for his speed and shiftiness, he could still get short-yardage opportunities over the bigger Jaylen Wright and Ollie Gordon II behind him. Achane punched in the 1-yard touchdown to cap the one scoring drive for the Dolphins on Friday. He got the carry before that from the 2-yard line and ran for 7 yards on an earlier third-and-1 carry. Hafley likes Achane’s lower-body strength and low center of gravity for a smaller back, making him a candidate to take these short-yardage carries come time for the regular season. For one series, Achane took a heavy workload of seven carries in the exhibition. Secondary needs to grow The Dolphins secondary was picked apart by Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels at Wednesday’s joint practice. Wide receivers Terry McLaurin, Treylon Burks and Van Jefferson roamed free downfield, and Daniels delivered the passes. There is necessary context, as cornerbacks Chris Johnson and JuJu Brents and safety Dante Trader Jr. were not practicing. The Dolphins’ inexperienced secondary was down three players to its nickel package. Marco Wilson, who had an interception in the preseason game, Ethan Bonner, A.J. Green III, Alex Austin are all receiving elevated reps while fellow cornerbacks Storm Duck and Darrell Baker Jr. are likely bound to remain on the physically-unable-to-perform list to start the season. Applying pressure The Dolphins, up front, while also stopping the run, applied pressure on Daniels in spurts. Chop Robinson continues to impress. With lower units on the depth chart, Mason Reiger and Cameron Goode had sacks in the preseason exhibition, while Max Llewellyn and David Ojabo combined for another. Defensive end Robert Beal Jr. got his hand up on a ball at the line of scrimmage, as linebacker Jacob Rodriguez pressured the passer. Blocking and physicality The Dolphins’ first-team offensive line kept a clean pocket for Willis. That unit also got a push up front in the run game. The two young guards, Kadyn Proctor and Jonah Savaiinaea, looked good in their first in-game action this season, so that’s a plus. New reserve lineman Caedan Wallace had a nice day in his Dolphins debut after being picked up in a trade with the New England Patriots. Physicality is one of the keys Hafley is trying to instill early on, and it’s working. Injuries stacking up The Dolphins came out of the preseason game without any significant new injuries, but it was learned Wednesday that defensive tackle Zach Sieler will be week to week with an undisclosed ailment. Miami may be best putting the veteran on ice for the regular season. Linebacker Jordyn Brooks sat out the exhibition with a minor injury that surfaced after the joint practice Wednesday, but it shouldn’t keep him out long as it seemed more precautionary for him to rest while other starters played. Johnson was also back for the exhibition after missing practice. But now offensive lineman Jamaree Salyer is done for the season, and Ewers has a new injury. Trader, Brents, wide receiver Kevin Coleman are among others recovering from injuries. Giants up next The Dolphins now have a pair of practices Monday and Tuesday before facing the New York Giants in a joint practice at home Thursday and hosting them at Hard Rock Stadium for preseason Week 2 on Saturday. More key evaluation ahead of the season will take place, as the team looks to correct mistakes from the past week but expand on success found against the first opponent.