Dolphins vs. Cincinnati Snap Counts ... And What They Mean
The Miami Dolphins and Cincinnati Bengals put on a good show in each team's preseason finale, and the game represented a good opportunity for several young players to get extended action.
As we examine the snap counts from the Dolphins' 29-26 victory at Paul Brown Stadium, thanks to quarterback Reid Sinnett's late touchdown pass to tight end Chris Myarick, what immediately jumps out is the stat line for 2020 first-round pick Noah Igbinoghene.
The 30th overall selection in that 2020 draft played all 71 defensive snaps for the Dolphins, and that actually shouldn't come as a shocker because Igbinoghene clearly is someone who needs the reps.
There's too much to work with when it comes to Igbinoghene to suggest he's in danger of not making the 53-man roster, but it's clearly he needs more development so any practice reps or game reps he can get are valuable.
And it certainly was encouraging that his last play featured a fourth-down pass breakup when he had great coverage downfield against wide receiver Scotty Washington.
Here's what else stood out from the snap counts:
-- There were five other players who played every snap on offense or defense: Sinnett, rookie tackle Larnel Coleman, rookie guard Robert Jones, safety Nate Holley and cornerback Jamal Perry.
The intriguing one here obviously is Perry because he's played 27 games with seven starts for the Dolphins since arriving in 2019, so it's not like he's an unproven youngster. The extensive playing time certainly could lead one to believe his roster spot was uncertain heading into that preseason finale.
-- Wide receiver Preston Williams got 14 snaps in his first game action since he sustained that bad foot injury in the victory at Arizona last November, and the idea no doubt was to get him back into the flow of the game heading into the regular season.
-- Guard Solomon Kindley was the only offensive lineman projected to start the regular season opener to see action, and he played the first 17 snaps on offense alongside left tackle Adam Pankey. It certainly could be perceived as curious that Kindley, and not the other young starting offensive linemen like Austin Jackson, Robert Hunt and Michael Deiter, was put in the game.
-- Durval Queiroz Neto and Greg Little both played the remaining 48 snaps at left guard and left tackle, respectively.
-- Malcolm Perry and Kirk Merritt got most of the playing time at wide receiver, with 61 and 51 snaps, respectively, and it's fair to suggest that both were playing to convince the coaches they should be on the 53-man roster.
-- On defense, the two starters or prominent players who saw action were rookie first-round pick Jaelan Phillips and cornerback Nik Needham. Phillips played 29 snaps on defense, while Needham got 41. The latter one is a bit surprising given that Needham seems to pretty clearly be the third cornerback on the team behind Xavien Howard and Byron Jones.
-- It also was notable to see veteran linebacker Duke Riley get 40 snaps, considering the Dolphins signed him as an unrestricted fee agent just this offseason. That kind of work load suggests his roster spot isn't guaranteed at this time.
-- In all, 39 players on the Dolphins' active roster did not play against Cincinnati, including two quarterbacks, three running backs, six wide receivers, four tight ends, six offensive linemen, five defensive linemen, four linebackers and nine defensive backs.
-- The list of those not playing included WR Mack Hollins because he's on the 53 (book it), new G/C Greg Mancz (because he just joined the team), and the others either were injured or already guaranteed (or close to it) of making the 53-man roster.
