Dolphins CB Fuller facing a familiar foe in Commanders, but how much will the starters play?
Adorned in the signature orange jersey, Kendall Fuller dropped back into coverage.
Fuller’s former Washington Commanders teammate Terry McLaurin drove forward a few steps before breaking down to cut to the outside. McLaurin then slipped — but not before rookie Jayden Daniels rifled a ball toward the sideline. Fuller’s eyes lit up and he snatched the ball out the air as if he was the intended receiver.
As Fuller did his patented, “Flight Marshals” celebration, the Dolphins sideline erupted and players rushed the field. The whistle blew and Thursday’s practice was over, a fitting end after McLaurin caught a touchdown over Fuller during one of the first stretches of 11-on-11.
“It was fun just seeing the guys, competing against them again,” Fuller said Thursday. Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel gifted the orange jersey, bestowed to a player who has performed the best the previous practice, to Fuller.
Fuller’s walk-off interception was a bit poetic considering his decision to sign with the Dolphins after six seasons — including the past four — with the Commanders, who the Dolphins will face 7 p.m. Saturday in their second preseason matchup. For the first time since Super Bowl-winning 2019 season with the Kansas City Chiefs, Fuller is on a team with high aspirations.
“I like the standard that we have here — the standard that we hold one another to,” Fuller said, later adding that championship teams have “great talent and great standards. I think we have great talent, and I think we’re building great standards.”
With the Dolphins off on Friday, the focus will shift to whether the starters will play Saturday. McDaniel, however, would not get into specifics.
“I want some starters to play in the game,” McDaniel said Thursday morning. “Now, to say exactly which individuals those are, specifically with the collection of injuries that you have to manage and not really knowing what takes place today, we’ll make some final assessment on who those players will be tomorrow.”
Even Fuller, who mentioned being “excited to compete against” the Commanders on Saturday, later said he was “unsure how much” he’d actually play.
“At the end of the day, it’s Year 9,” Fuller said.
In the past, McDaniel has played Tua Tagovailoa during the second week of preseason. The franchise quarterback expressed his desire to suit up on Saturday, though injuries across the offensive line — namely center Aaron Brewer and left guard Isaiah Wynn —– could complicate that.
“I hope so,” Tagovailoa said Tuesday. “It’s always good for any of us – whether you’re a vet or you’re new – to get some reps, get back into the pregame routine.”
As Tagovailoa recently said, the decision on availability ultimately lies with McDaniel and team “leaders.”
“I think it’s sort of a mutual thing,” Tagovailoa said. McDaniel “gets with leaders, guys who have established themselves and earned the respect of the locker room. He get with those guys and has a conversation with them and we come up with the idea of ‘yeah, we’re all playing’ or ‘no, not this one.’”
Regardless of the starters’ availability, the Dolphins’ regular-season opener is just over three weeks away. That, more than anything else, is what’s important to players like Robert Jones.
“If I am, I am,” the left guard said Thursday. “If I’m not, I’m not.”
This story was originally published August 15, 2024 at 3:27 PM.
