Dolphins final preseason game took a strange turn that could have shifted roster math — but Miami should feel lucky to have avoided the worst
A unique injury in the first quarter of Miami’s preseason finale proved very disruptive. But it is a long-term issue?
The Miami Dolphins‘ preseason finale against the Jacksonville Jaguars brought some awkward opportunities — the kind that usually catch your eye when they come around. Like when a punter has to attempt a field goal and a third-string quarterback has to be his holder. Or when a team opts to go for two after their touchdowns.
That’s where Miami found itself in its final preseason contest against Jacksonville amid some sort of issue with kicker Jason Sanders, who was reported to head back into the locker room with a trainer during the first quarter.
The roster cuts looming this week are hard enough, but if you were to stack a kicker injury on top of that, the domino effect could be costly for someone else trying to make the team. Mike McDaniel gave everyone an update after Miami’s 14-6 victory against Jacksonville. It seems the worst has been avoided.
Dolphins spend 2025 preseason finale without kicker Jason Sanders, but appear to have dodged a bullet
“It was something that (Sanders) doesn’t appear concerned for Week 1. He was telling me that he was going to kick extra points, and I was like we need the 2-point conversion work. We’ll see when he comes in, but he wasn’t overly concerned for Week 1.”
— Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel on kicker Jason Sanders
Whatever Sanders ended up needing attention for on Saturday night against the Jaguars created some wonky situations for McDaniel, but it does not appear like it will throw the Dolphins’ special teams unit for a loop to start the season. It’s reassuring to know that Miami had the ability to use Sanders on extra points if they needed him. However, they chose to take the opportunity to collect more work on game situations (two-point conversions) instead.
With that in mind, Sanders’ recovery from this issue still needs to happen in time for Week 1, or else the Dolphins could still be compromised in this phase of the game. So it is still something to watch out for in the weeks ahead.
At the least, Miami can rest easy knowing it doesn’t appear to need to have an urgent kicking competition or otherwise potentially cut someone else off the roster to make room for a second kicker upon the initial cutdown window next week, before practice squads are established. Instead, it serves as a footnote in a preseason win that had a little bit of everything for Miami — that’s a much more fun alternative than Sanders ailing severely.
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