The Miami Dolphins held 40 players out against the Atlanta Falcons last week, including the entire starting lineup. It won’t be the same story in the Dolphins’ second preseason game, which is set for Saturday night against the Washington Commanders.
“I want some starters to play in the game,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said in a press conference Thursday. “Now, to say exactly which individuals those are, specifically with the collection of injuries that you have to manage and not really knowing what takes place today, we will make some final assessments on who those players are going to be, as a staff tomorrow.”
The translation, it seems, is that all of the Dolphins’ fully healthy players will see the field Saturday. That presumably means that players who have recently missed practice, like Jaelan Phillips, Jordan Poyer, and Terron Armstead, won’t make their preseason debuts.
But players like Tua Tagovailoa, Tyreek Hill, and Jaylen Waddle should be back in action.
“It’s always good for any of us, whether you’re a vet or whether you’re new, to get some reps, get back into the pregame routine, get back into the feel of what it feels like to prepare getting ready for a game, all of that,” Tagovailoa told reporters Tuesday. “Get in to game-like situations, getting hit – hopefully not, but you never know when you’re out there and sort of the mental gymnastics of that when you prepare for a game.”
The Commanders were likely have their starters on the field too. Only 11 players on the Washington roster didn’t play in the team’s preseason opener last week against the New York Jets.
Jayden Daniels, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, finished his debut with 45 passing yards on only three attempts. In a joint practice against the Dolphins on Thursday, the rookie passer carved up a banged up Miami secondary, reportedly recording five consecutive touchdown passes in red-zone reps.
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