Dolphins Players Who Deserve More Snaps in Week 2

It wasn't always pretty but the Miami Dolphins kicked off the 2021 season the right way with a 17-16 win over the New England Patriots for the early advantage in the AFC East. 

Any win in the NFL is worth celebrating, but the Dolphins came away from the game with a 1-0 record and plenty to work on to ensure they are 2-0 this time next week. They'll have their home opener against a Buffalo Bills squad that will be motivated after losing their own home opener, 23-16 to the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

The Dolphins were outgained on offense 393 yards to 259. They only ran the ball for 74 yards and were just 4-of-11 on third downs. However, they won the turnover battle and held defensively, giving up just six points in the second half to hold on to a 17-10 halftime lead. 

To continue that momentum and get to 2-0, adjustments will have to be made. That's a given in football. One of those adjustments will come in the form of rotations. Some of those who were limited in their role on Sunday deserve to see more action against the Bills. 

Let's take a look at who is in that category. 

If you look at the production from the Dolphins' stable of backs on Sunday, you would think Myles Gaskin was on the field for nearly every snap. 

The 24-year-old tallied 49 yards on nine carries, five catches on five targets for a grand total of 76 yards against the Patriots defense. By contrast, Malcolm Brown had five carries for 16 yards, and Salvon Ahmed had just three for four yards. In the passing game, Ahmed was targeted three times, catching two of them for 24 yards. 

Per Adam Levitan of Establish the Run, Gaskin ran way more routes than any of the other backs, running 17 routes on 29 snaps, per PFF. So he was either getting the ball or running a route on 27 of his 29 snaps, while Brown ran just one route and had five carries on 16 snaps. 

That makes it fairly easy to know when the Dolphins are planning on including the running back in the play and when they are in there for pass-protection purposes. 

Gaskin was by far the most efficient back on Sunday, yet he only played 54 percent of the snaps. That's a number that has to elevate in Week 2 against a Bills defense that shut down the Steelers' run game. 

There was a lot of talk this offseason about a breakout season for Mike Gesicki. The chemistry he built with Tua Tagovailoa was a point of discussion as well.

There was no evidence of such talk presented in Week 1. After leading the team in receiving touchdowns and finishing second in catches and yards, he was nearly invisible. the 25-year-old finished the game with just 21 snaps, finishing second behind Durham Smythe (38 snaps) among tight ends and barely outplaying rookie Hunter Long (18 snaps), per PFF. 

The lack of Gesicki in the game plan was apparent as he only saw two targets. With Will Fuller V out, that was a real head-scratcher. 

Fuller is set to come back, but Tagovailoa and the passing game would be aided by funneling more targets on more snaps to Gesicki. Defenses have to respect his pass-catching ability and he can work the middle of the field. 

The Penn State product may be able to help Tagovailoa where he struggled, which was in the intermediate passing game. 

According to PFF data, he was 13-of-14 for 113 yards and a touchdown on passes that were nine yards or less. On passes of over 20 yards, he was a respectable 2-of-4 for 66 yards. But on throws of 10-19 yards, he was just 1-of-9 for 23 yards. 

Gesicki has to be more involved in Week 2. 

Andrew Van Ginkel played 71 percent of the defensive snaps on Sunday, making him the most-played linebacker behind Jerome Baker. Overall, that's a good number, but this is more about what he's doing on those snaps. 

The 26-year-old's greatest strength comes in his versatility. He can play a traditional read-and-react role at linebacker, but he's also a proficient pass-rusher and that's the role he should see expanded in Week 2 against the Bills. 

According to PFF, only 14 of Van Ginkel's snaps were spent rushing the passer. Out of those, he generated four pressures. 

While the secondary held up its end of the bargain, the Dolphins' pass rush could have done more to make Mac Jones uncomfortable. The unit had just one sack (on the opening drive) and only Sam Eguavoen had more than one quarterback hit. 

Van Ginkel has proved worthy of being the second-most played linebacker behind Jerome Baker, but the Dolphins would be wise to unleash him as a rusher on more passing downs.