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The Miami Dolphins started classes this week, as the 2022 offseason program officially opened under new head coach Mike McDaniel’s tenure. In what is a welcoming mix of new coaches, player additions and veteran Dolphins, there seems to be palpable energy that’s developing in Miami Gardens.
Speaking of energy, there’s a player on Miami’s roster entering his fourth season that seems to have an endless power source. Linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel is heading into a contract year, and the former Wisconsin Badger will be looking to build off of a solid second half of last season.
While the first half of the Dolphins 2021 was a brutal stretch, Van Ginkel had just a half-sack in the team’s opening eight games. The production wasn’t for a lack of effort, as Van Ginkel’s motor never seems to turn off. In an age of such expensive energy costs, Van Ginkel seems to have an endless, natural supply.
The lack of sacks very well could’ve been something more to do with play-calling and defensive scheme rather than skill and effort. Through Week 8, Van Ginkel was sent on a blitz an average of 3.6 times per game during Miami’s 1-7 start.
It was mid-season when new play-calling duties and a defensive shift seemed to take place for the Dolphins that Van Ginkel’s role and assignments changed. During the Week 9 game against the Houston Texans, Van Ginkel was asked to blitz 12 times. He recorded a sack that game, which was his first full one of the year.
Just five days later, on Thursday Night Football against the Baltimore Ravens, he was sent a whopping 21 times and recorded another half-sack. Miami shocked Baltimore on national television, and won 22-10, on way to a seven-game win streak. Remarkably, that streak following a seven-game losing streak is the only such occurrence in league history.
In sharp contrast to the first half of 2021, in Weeks 9-to-17, Van Ginkel averaged 9.5 blitzes per game. That’s a staggering difference. It’s no wonder why Van Ginkel finished the year eighth in the league in quarterback knockdowns. Of the seven who finished above him in 2021 in this stat, six were named to the Pro Bowl, and there was a pair of All-Pros in there as well.
The only NFL player who blitzed more than Van Ginkel last season was Tampa Bay Buccaneer, Devin White. Ironically, White was the fifth pick from the same 2019 draft class, the same draft when Van Ginkel was selected in the fifth round.
Van Ginkel and the Dolphins finished the 2021 campaign with a Week 17 victory over the New England Patriots. He recorded a sack, giving him four on the year. The total number doesn’t tell the full story of Van Ginkel’s impact or his overall value.
There were several occurrences where a Van Ginkel play helped others fill their stat-sheets. In fact, it was Van Ginkel’s tipped pass against the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football that helped teammate Nik Needham corral the ball and waltz into the endzone for a “Nik-Six.”
The Dolphins won that game, 20-3. On a fun note, with a pair of half-sacks and three full, Van Ginkel recorded those stats in five games. In those games, Miami went 4-1.
Van Ginkel has a top-notch work ethic and is a student of the game, so expect progress from him in a year where he could very well be a candidate for an in-season contract extension. Don’t sleep on it.
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