The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly from the 2026 Dolphins Preseason Loss to Washington

For the first time during the 2026 NFL season, the Miami Dolphins played an actual football game, falling to the Washington Commanders 20-7 on the road. It’s important to understand that this is just the preseason, so any and everything that happened tonight won’t be the end-all, be-all for the Dolphins this upcoming season. That being said, there was certainly some good and some bad on the field in Landover, MD. Let’s take a look at the start of a new era in South Beach.

Brief but Bold Start for the Miami Dolphins Offense

Most of the projected starters were on the field for the Dolphins’ first drive of the game facing the Commanders’ backups, and it showed throughout the entire possession. Only one play for Miami didn’t result in a positive gain, and that was a sideline catch for Caleb Douglas, but his right foot was barely out of bounds. He’d make up for it in a huge way, though. There’s a good chance you’ll see it all over social media and on SportCenter Top 10, making a spectacular one-handed grab over Antonio Hamilton Jr. De’Von Achane carried the rock seven times for 39 yards and a touchdown, while Malik Willis completed four of his five pass attempts for 43 yards and rushed for nine yards. The offensive line looked strong; nobody got particularly close to Willis the entire night, and they opened holes for Achane left and right. Jonah Savaiinaea looked really impressive in his limited time on the field, as well.

Time to Back Up Expectations Behind Willis

It was always going to be a long shot for second-year quarterback Quinn Ewers to find a starting role under center ever since Willis signed with the Dolphins during the offseason, and tonight cemented the former Packer as Miami’s starter in Week One against the Raiders. It was a rough outing for the former Longhorn, completing one pass for 27 yards on eight attempts, including miscommunication with Tutu Atwell and a bad interception with more Commanders in the area than Dolphins. Third-string quarterback Cam Miller was somehow worse than Ewers tonight, tossing two interceptions on three completions for 39 yards. At this point in the process, it’s hard to imagine that general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan will look to find a better backup and get them up to speed before the start of the season. Even with that, there’s absolutely no way you can send either of those guys out for serious snaps if winning is the end goal this season.

Dolphins Rookies Holding Their Own in Maryland

There’s been a lot of talk throughout training camp about these rookies for the Miami Dolphins just by the sheer quantity of them, and we got a really good look at all levels, from starters to backups. Kadyn Proctor, Chris Johnson, Michael Taaffe, and even Kyle Louis got in on the action alongside Douglas with the starters, and all looked good outside of Taaffe getting beaten down the field during the Commanders' first drive of the night. Jacob Rodriguez saw the field on Washington’s second drive to replace Tyrel Dodson for a few drives, and the other Tech rookie was solid as the second-team play-caller for the defense. I wouldn’t say anyone stood out in a good or bad way outside of Douglas with that ridiculous grab, and maybe Proctor with how the offensive line was able to manhandle the Commanders’ backups.

Overall Thoughts

Obviously, this game could have gone a lot better for the Dolphins. The backups looked terrible outside of a few players, and the quarterbacks behind Willis could be the worst depth on the roster. That being said, the way that the starters and most of the rookies played tonight should give a lot of Dolphins fans hope about the season ahead and the future in South Beach. The former Flame looked fantastic in a limited setting, and most rookies were above average facing NFL-level talent for the first time. When you also take into account the massive Dead Cap that Miami currently has, and the lack of talent alongside it, the depth for the 2026 Dolphins was always going to be this bad. If anyone from the starting unit has to take an extended period of time off the field, this team could be so much worse than anyone ever expected. If the core can stay healthy, though, I have a lot more confidence that Miami will not be picking first in next year’s draft.