Cornerback, wide receiver battle royales and an emerging diamond in the rough headline five storylines to watch as Dolphins face Lions in second preseason game
Five major storylines to watch for as the Dolphins set to square off with the Lions on Saturday.
The Miami Dolphins and Detroit Lions are fresh off two days of joint practices together, and both teams now have a day to themselves before one final scrap this summer. The Lions are set to host Miami for the second week of the preseason on Saturday, which has the look and feel of a critical opportunity for the bottom half of Miami’s roster. Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel seemed to infer that the starters would have the day off on Saturday when speaking prior to Thursday’s joint practice.
“As of right now, I’m not planning on playing the ones in the game. This practice does participate in the overall final assessment that I’ll make with the coaching staff tomorrow, but as of right now, went into this practice planning for the ones not to play,” said McDaniel.
Miami’s first team units weren’t perfect by any means against Detroit — but all accounts had them executing at a much, much higher level than on Wednesday. It’s hard to envision Thursday’s practice tempting McDaniel to give the ones more work.
So, who does that leave set to seize big opportunities against Detroit? Here are five major storylines to watch in Miami’s second preseason contest this Saturday against the Lions.
The cornerback battle will be telling in more ways than one
The plan is for “the ones not to play.” What about at a position where we don’t have any ones yet? Does Storm Duck, a 2024 undrafted free agent, who the team likes, get the day off? That would be pretty telling. So, too, will be how much work each name gets. There are some names that appear to be on the rise based on this past week or so of action.
Those names include Ethan Bonner and Jason Marshall Jr.
Bonner had the pass deflection that led to Miami’s interception of Tyson Bagent last week, and Marshall Jr. is an athletic, big corner who has physicality to play in press. What does the pecking order look like? Veteran Jack Jones had a tough showing against Amon-Ra St. Brown on Wednesday, getting scorched early and often on an island. But Mike McDaniel did come clean on Thursday — they willingly let those situations happen.
“I got to learn so much about the cornerback unit because it challenged a lot of guys to do semi-uncomfortable things against super good receivers in one-on-ones. First and foremost, people actually trying what we’re doing in one-on-ones against – I mean (Amon-Ra) St. Brown is about as good as they get. Him in particular. So you learn, OK, what type of boldness that person has, or are they just going to rely on stuff that’s worked before?”
— Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel
How big of a run does rookie RB Ollie Gordon II get amid a thin room and new faces?
Alexander Mattison is done; he suffered a season-ending neck injury in Chicago. Miami added two more veterans this week in Mike Boone and Aaron Shampklin. But both have been here for a hot second, and Miami obviously won’t give De’Von Achane a big run. How much work does Jaylen Wright get? Does the team think the work is more valuable than the reps? That leaves Ollie Gordon II as the bridge. He’s the best power option now on the roster — do they let him get big work, too?
This is more of a player management storyline than a “make the roster” question.
What kind of growth do we see from Quinn Ewers & who does he get to play with?
Ewers had an up-and-down performance on film against the Bears. The stat line was ugly, but that was compounded by Ewers’ own issues and the errors of those he played with alike. Will we get an evaluation opportunity for Ewers throwing to some of the second-string pass catchers against Detroit?
Amid the ball security issues and consistent accuracy problems, Ewers appeared to show a better grasp of the timing elements of some of Miami’s in-breakers against the Bears compared to Zach Wilson. That’s not a huge surprise given how similar the Texas offense was to Miami, but it’s just one piece of the puzzle.
Will Miami keep these units segregated, or can Ewers get some action throwing to guys fighting for bottom-of-the-53-man-roster spots as compared to those fighting for an eventual practice-squad opportunity? Speaking of…
The Tahj Washington, Dee Eskridge, Erik Ezukanma battle royale is on
Miami should consider four wide receivers as locks — Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, Malik Washington, and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine.
Do the Dolphins carry five? Does someone force them to carry six? Surely seven won’t make it. Ezukanma is a former mid-round draft choice who has shown life this summer, and he’s got a different body type than everyone not named Westbrook-Ikhine. He’s a capable blocker but unrefined as a receiver at this stage of his career. Eskridge seems to make a splashy play every few days in training camp and has return abilities on his resume, which always tips the scales in bottom-of-the-roster battles.
But Washington is the most electric and had the best weekend against Chicago, showcasing dynamic short-area quickness. Expect these guys to get a lot of run, and the Dolphins are surely hoping for some clarity.
Is Derrick McLendon for real?
The Dolphins’ pass rush unit is headlined by Bradley Chubb, Jaelan Phillips, and Chop Robinson. One of last year’s emergent developmental players, Quinton Bell, appears to have the fourth spot locked down. Anything beyond that? Your guess is as good as mine right now.
The most invested player is Mohamed Kamara, who was a fifth-round pick in 2024. However, he has been in concussion protocol this past week and missed the entire trip. The most experienced player is Cam Goode, a former seventh-round draft choice with a special teams pedigree.
The most splashy player is McLendon, who played with his hair on fire against Chicago last weekend. He was twitchy, bendy, disruptive, and showcased good chops as a pass rusher. That could potentially complement Bell quite well, who is more of an early down option. McLendon should get plenty of playing time on Saturday. If he’s undeniable again, the Dolphins could swing the favor his way as the fifth EDGE.
Miami Dolphins News
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