Just like that, preseason is over. Greg Gumbel made a comment on the Bengals kicker that rings true in preseason overall, he said it is better to go into the season on a positive note. The Miami Dolphins 29-26 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals is absolutely going out on a positive note. Some of the positive notes coming out of this week are clouded because some of these players will still not make this team.

Starting at Quarterback Reid Sinnett, the offensive positives were apparent in his 22 out of 33 passes for 343 yards and 2 touchdowns. Sinnett played an almost perfect game with one interception on a tipped ball. Running back, Gerrid Doaks played impressively with 56 yards total on his 16 carries. Doaks scored two rushing touchdowns. One of the most impressive plays was his first touchdown punching his way through the line for a three-yard rushing score.

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The two wide receivers that stood out were Kirk Merritt and Malcolm Perry. Although Kai Locksley and Khalil McClain made some plays, Merritt’s and Perry’s efforts were outstanding. The two deep passed that Merritt received were beautiful, one ending in a score. Perry made some nice catches in his four targets racking up 69 yards. The tight-end play was not used much, but it was nice to see Hunter Long out there playing making an 8-yard reception, and the game-winning grab my Chris Myarick.

It was not strange to see Miami switch up the offensive line having Larnel Coleman playing right tackle instead of his normal left tackle or guard position. Adam Pankey played on the left side opposite his right-side familiarity on the other side of the line. Robert Hunt played well as he has all preseason. He struggled throughout the game but played well enough to keep Sinnett on his feet.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Miami Dolphins played well with their backups starting in all positions. Nik Needham played as well as he has been playing all preseason and had 3 solo tackles. There was not much over the top plays by the linebacker corps, but they held their own as a unit. Jaelan Phillips made a few plays and had one quarterback hit. That is what we are looking for out of Phillips this season.  Like the defense, the special teams did not do anything, well, special, but they did hold their own and did their jobs. Jason Sanders went three for three in extra points after, and the Dolphins did make a two-point conversion to seal the win. Michael Palardy did well with three punts for 133 yards landing one inside the twenty-yard line.