The Dolphins will have their second preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons this coming Saturday. The current betting line on this game -5 in favor of the Miami Dolphins. Miami will get their first chance in a long to play in front of the Dolphins Faithful, as this will be their first game at Hard rock Stadium since before the COVID 19 Pandemic. Before the game on Saturday, The Dolphins and Falcons will be holding joint practices on August 18 and 19, which will help both teams see different players and schemes during training camp. This will also give the Dolphins Insight into what they might see during their upcoming preseason game. This article will be previewing the Dolphins game against the Atlanta Falcons.
The Dolphins
The Dolphins will be looking to clean up some of their low spots during their first preseason game against the Bears. A major issue the Dolphins had was executing drives. There were a few times during the Bears game where the Dolphins offense stalled on their opponents side of the field. Such as Tagovailoa throwing that interception in the red-zone or the dolphins just not being able to convert first downs. This results them having to kick field goals, which will not win games in the NFL. The Dolphins also need to find a way to get their first round draft pick Jaylen Waddle open during this game to give him a few reps at wide receiver. He was not targeted once in the game against the Falcons.
Another aspect that the Dolphins need to work on is their defensive line. Especially when it comes to rushing the passer. They did not seem to put a lot of pressure on Andy Dalton or Justin Fields. Hopefully they can find ways to get to the quarterback and get a couple sacks during this second preseason game. The running game was decent vs the Bears. A lot of good plays by Salvon Ahmed and it should be expected that he gets a lot of reps in this game too. It would be good to see a little more out of Myles Gaskin. He had four carries for 19 yards. It would be good for the Dolphins to give him more reps, so he can fully prepare for the regular season.
The Atlanta Falcons
The Dolphins will be facing a pretty decent team in the Falcons. They feature Matt Ryan who is an NFL veteran. He will be looking to test this Dolphins defense for the time he is out on the field. The Dolphins defense needs to be on top of their game, especially the secondary. Ryan won’t make many mistakes at the helm, so the Dolphins first team defense needs to capitalize on his mistakes when he makes them. Atlanta also has former Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron, who has been in the league as a backup for a few years now. He has proven himself to be a capable NFL quarterback and should not be taken lightly.
It will also be interesting to see how Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts does against an NFL veteran in Eric Rowe. If Pitts can get open and prove himself against Rowe then that could be some insight on how good Pitts will be in the NFL. The Falcons also have other receivers such a Calvin Ridley and Russel Gage who did not start against the Titans. It is possible that these two could get reps but don’t count on it, as they have already proven themselves worthy in the regular season. This game will be interesting to watch and we will see what comes out of it come Saturday afternoon.
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