The Miami Dolphins not only showed the world who they were in their thrilling 36-34 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 1, but they also told us who they think they are.
It was time for Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel and his staff to finally reveal their cards, and based on the Week 1 snap counts, it turns out there were a couple of wild cards in the deck.
Miami Dolphins Snap Counts vs. Los Angeles Chargers
Quarterbacks
- Tua Tagovailoa: 67/67 (100%)
Tagovailoa entered Sunday’s game with great expectations.
He left as an MVP candidate after roasting the Chargers for 466 yards and three touchdowns on 28 of 45 attempts for three touchdowns — the last coming with less than two minutes remaining to put Miami ahead for good.
Tua did throw an interception and lose a fumble, but on balance, he was as good as any quarterback in football in Week 1.
TUA TEARDROP TO TYREEK
Fun finish on the way 🍿
📺 CBS & @paramountplus pic.twitter.com/AZ4pNr7EQA— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) September 10, 2023
Wide Receivers
- Tyreek Hill: 44/67 (66%)
- Jaylen Waddle: 43/67 (64%)
- Braxton Berrios: 35/67 (52%)
- River Cracraft: 27/67 (40%)
- Erik Ezukanma: 19/67 (28%)
Lost in the deserved hoopla surrounding Hill’s 215-yard, two-touchdown explosion was just how balanced the Dolphins’ playing time was at this position.
Hill and Waddle actually came in well below their usage rate from a year ago. Perhaps it was a function of health (Waddle has been dealing with an oblique injury) and fatigue (Hill cramps up almost every time he puts on cleats).
But it also is a reflection of just how much McDaniel trusts the other three. Berrios, Cracraft, and Ezukanma combined for eight touches Sunday, several coming in critical moments.
Running Backs
- Raheem Mostert: 49/67 (73%)
- Alec Ingold: 30/67 (45%)
- Salvon Ahmed: 19/67 (28%)
McDaniel trusts his veterans. As for the rookies? They’ll need to earn that trust.
With Jeff Wilson out at least three more weeks, expect Mostert and Ahmed to get the bulk of the touches — at least until Chris Brooks (who was active against Los Angeles) and De’Von Achane (who was not) show enough high-level consistency to earn playing time.
If there was any disappointment at all with how the Dolphins’ offense performed Sunday, it involved the team’s 3.5 yards-per-carry average.
Tight Ends
- Durham Smythe: 67/67 (100%)
- Tyler Kroft: 2/67 (3%)
Smythe isn’t just the Dolphins’ top tight end. He’s, for all intents and purposes, their only tight end.
With Mike Gesicki now in New England, Smythe was targeted a career-high seven times, catching three balls for 44 yards.
Offensive Line
- Kendall Lamm: 67/67 (100%)
- Austin Jackson: 67/67 (100%)
- Robert Hunt: 67/67 (100%)
- Connor Williams: 67/67 (100%)
- Isaiah Wynn: 66/67 (99%)
- Liam Eichenberg: 1/67 (1%)
The collective freakout on Twitter when Eichenberg replaced Wynn in the lineup was something to behold.
But no, this wasn’t some too-cute-by-half rotation by McDaniel. Wynn, for whatever reason, needed a play off and then returned to the field and finished the game.
Great job on aggregate by a group that allowed just two quarterback hits and zero sacks in 50 dropbacks.
Defensive Line
- Christian Wilkins: 68/81 (84%)
- Zach Sieler: 65/81 (80%)
- Raekwon Davis: 46/81 (57%)
- Emmanuel Ogbah: 18/81 (22%)
- Brandon Pili: 9/81 (11%)
There will be many hours spent in the coming days identifying and addressing what went wrong with the Dolphins’ pass defense in Week 1. But on first viewing, it appears the biggest issue was the Chargers just mauled the Dolphins in the trenches.
And they did it against the Dolphins’ best players. Wilkins and Sieler barely came off the field. It was interesting to see Ogbah in such a limited role.
Linebackers
- Jerome Baker: 81/81 (100%)
- Jaelan Phillips: 73/81 (90%)
- Bradley Chubb: 71/81 (88%)
- Andrew Van Ginkel: 51/81 (63%)
- David Long: 17/81 (21%)
- Duke Riley: 1/81 (1%)
Another surprise: How little the Dolphins used Long. He was supposed to be the enforcer in the middle, but he had just one tackle and no impact plays in 17 snaps.
Chubb’s next quarterback hit will be his first of 2023.
Secondary
- Jevon Holland: 81/81 (100%)
- DeShon Elliott: 81/81 (100%)
- Kader Kohou: 79/81 (98%)
- Xavien Howard: 79/81 (98%)
- Eli Apple: 60/81 (74%)
- Justin Bethel: 9/81 (11%)
- Brandon Jones: 2/81 (2%)
For all the talk from Vic Fangio about playing everybody in Week 1, he basically kept with his five-man unit the entire game (with Bethel, who had half of Miami’s game-ending sack, as the lone exception).
MORE: Where Do the Dolphins Land in PFN’s Power Rankings?
What’s striking is that Jones has gone from an every-down player to a special-teamer. Could that change the further away he gets from his ACL surgery? Sure. But for now, Elliott is clearly ahead.
Former #Canes DE Jaelan Phillips with the game-winning sack on the road!
Dolphins 36, Chargers 34pic.twitter.com/8xWf86pXnG
— Geo Milian (@GeoMilian) September 11, 2023