Miami Dolphin Young Offense Offers Promise

Practice doesn’t make perfect but it sure does help. Continued practice and tweaking and coaching has made the Miami Dolphin offense a bit sharper since the season began. Head Coach Jeff Hafley saw promise in his young offense after the New England loss, but his film review also underscored how much cleaner the execution needs to become. Malik Willis made important throws, the rookie receivers competed and Jarett Kingston improved as his first start unfolded.

For Willis, Hafley’s assessment began with the productive stretches.

“I thought there were some drives where the ball came out well. Made really clean decisions. Made some big throws. A touchdown pass. Some third down conversions.”

Those moments did not end the evaluation.

“And then, like any other game, there’s room for improvement,” Hafley said. He described the next steps as “whether it’s throwing the ball, whether it’s with his legs, whether it’s decision making. There’s always some good and there’s always some room to improve.”

One sack captured the shared responsibility. Asked about a first-down play on the second possession, when Willis rolled left and Caleb Douglas and Chris Bell appeared in the same area, Hafley confirmed the route problem.

“The route was not run correctly,” he said. “So you are correct on that.”

But the response when the play broke down mattered, too.

“You have to run, you have to take off, you have to throw it to someone else,” Hafley said. “It’s on everybody.”

The rookie receivers still earned praise.

“They played well and competed against a really good defense and one of the best corners in the NFL,” Hafley said. “The physicality was there again in the run game, like it has been, and that’s important.”

“But you’re right, they got open, and we had opportunities,” he added. “In those two-minute situations, we had a lot of pass plays go up and down the field.”

Hafley included Malik Washington in that assessment.

“Give him a lot of credit for taking that shot and coming back and scoring on that drive.”

“I’m proud of those rookies,” he said. “They’re all sitting there together. I give them a lot of credit. They’re getting better.”

Newcomer, guard Jarrett Kingston also gave Hafley reasons for confidence.

“I thought as he got comfortable, he picked it up and played well. I thought he was physical. His assignments were good,” Hafley said. “I know he had the one false start fairly early in the game. I thought he finished well and played well for his first start.”

Another start was not promised.

“Whether or not he goes again next week, I know that he’ll be ready, and that we’ll be able to count on him,” Hafley said.

The positives need to translate into sustained possessions. As Hafley put it.

“We just couldn’t get going on offense.”

Now it’s back to practice.