This Commanders vs Dolphins Preseason Recap starts with a final score of 20-7 for the good guys, but it might all be overshadowed by an injury to their quarterback.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With Jayden Daniels held out, Marcus Mariota got the start under center. His night barely lasted a quarter. Mariota left after just two pass attempts, appearing to injure his right knee. He came up limp on a simple handoff, and it seemed to be labeled a no-contact injury. Even though he got nailed on the very play before, on his throw to Dyami Brown..<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He was seen heading to the locker room for further evaluation, and the severity of the injury wasn’t immediately clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rookie Sam Hartman came in earlier than expected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Miami struck first. Running back De’Von Achane capped a 7-play, 91-yard opening drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, putting the Dolphins up 7-0 before Washington’s offense found any rhythm. Hartman drove them down the field enough, to let Jake Moody doink one off the uprights from 29 yards. It made it through and the Commanders cut the lead to 7-3, but it wasn’t exactly confidence-inspiring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Regardless, Washington basically took control from there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Undrafted rookie Robert Henry Jr. provided one of the night’s biggest offensive plays, capping a 7-play, 68-yard drive with a 22-yard touchdown to give Washington the lead 10-7 and they would never look back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kaytron Allen capped off a 65-yard drive a couple of minutes later, punching one in from the 1-yard line. Tough red zone yards, and goal line power, are definitely something the Commanders are really looking to him to potentially provide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That gave the Commanders a 17-7 lead at half time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Washington had 112 yards rushing already, and had converted a healthy 5 of 8 3rd downs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With Washington’s projected starters mostly on the sideline, the backups made their case defensively. Linebacker Ale Kaho and defensive back Malik Spencer each intercepted a pass, helping shut down Miami’s offense over the final three quarters. They didn’t cede a single point to set up a 20-7 final.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second half saw just one scoring play – a 41-yard field goal from Drew Stevens. It wasn’t special, but every field goal kicked this preseason could potentially affect who wins the race ultimately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Stevens by a hair in preseason game one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Washington led Miami in virtually every category. Receiving yards were 160 to 109 for the Commanders, and receiving yards were 174 to 117 – also for Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They had more than 100 yards more offense. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
They had more first downs, a better 3rd down conversion rate, and led the possession battle by more than 10 minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They also had fewer turnovers, and less penalty yardage against.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The only thing set in stone about the Commanders receiver room is that Terry McLaurin and Stefon Diggs are at the top of it. Neither of them dressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ten different Commanders players caught passes, with Jaylin Lane’s 3 being the highest total. Six different guys caught a single pass (Brown, Van Jefferson, Treylon Burks, Kaytron Allen, Antonio Williams, and Ben Sinnott). Colson Yankoff, Jacoby Jones, and Jaden Bradley all had two. Luke McCaffrey was targeted twice but didn’t make a catch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Robert Henry Jr.<\/strong> – is in tough with the running back room Washington has, but he absolutely made the most of his opportunities on Friday night. He crushed it, carrying 12 times for 75 yards and a touchdown. He made a couple of great blocks too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kaytron Allen<\/strong> – is vying for that same RB rook, but may have hte leg up by virtue of th fact that they spent a draft pick on him. He was the workhorse of the night, logging 23 carries for 85 yards. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Athan Kaliakmanis<\/strong> – The rookie quarterback looked steady. He didn’t make any flashy plays, but there’s no doubt that he made some people question Sam Hartman’s future with the franchise. He led all quarterbacks on the evening, with 87 yards. He didn’t have any touchdowns, but he didn’t throw any picks either. He was sacked twice. Solid for his first NFL appearance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Kaliakmanis will be called AK for the rest of the season. For brevity’s sake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Colson Yankof<\/strong>f – made a couple of great blocks and caught two balls too. He looked poised to step up a little in his first action of the season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Antonio Hamilton Sr.<\/strong> – was a human wrecking ball on special teams, and made a couple of big plays at cornerback too. Five tackles – 4 solo. If it’s special teams he’s playing for, he absolutely killed it.<\/p>\n\n\n\nOn Defense<\/h3>\n\n\n\n