MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel has an idea of who will start at quarterback for his team when the Tennessee Titans visit Hard Rock Stadium on Monday night.
For now, he’s keeping it to himself.
Asked about the state of his quarterback carousel, McDaniel said Thursday that it’s “premature for a multitude of reasons” to name a starter, citing competitive advantage as one.
“A lot has gone on the last 48 hours,” McDaniel said. “Instead of wishing something into existence, I’ll let it play out. The quarterbacks that will be participating today will get action and great opportunity, and as the week progresses, I’ll be sure to shout it from the top of a building when we know that.”
With top starter Tua Tagovailoa sidelined for at least several more weeks with a concussion, the Dolphins turned to backup Skylar Thompson for last week’s road game against the Seattle Seahawks.
Thompson went down, too, and his status against Tennessee is in question because of a rib injury. He was limited at practice on Thursday and appeared to be in pain as he jogged on the field.
If he is unable to make his second straight start, that leaves Tim Boyle and newcomer Tyler “Snoop” Huntley as Miami’s options.
McDaniel turned to Boyle when Thompson went down last Sunday, partially because the coach did not want to rush Huntley onto the field after he signed with the team the Tuesday before. However, McDaniel said he is growing “very, very encouraged” with Huntley’s grasp of the offense.
Huntley was praised by his Baltimore Ravens teammates in the past when he took over behind center for an injured Lamar Jackson, and his new teammates in Miami have expressed the same confidence.
“For me, I’ve seen it. I’ve been watching film of him since he got here,” Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill said. “And I’m like, ‘This dude can make every throw. This dude is special with his legs.’ He’s a special talent.”
Said Huntley: “I just hope I continue to build toward their confidence, and I plan to.”
This will be the second straight week the Titans (0-3) go into a game not knowing who the opposing starting quarterback will be. Tennessee didn’t know the status of Jordan Love, the regular starter for the Green Bay Packers, until game day, when he was scratched from the list of available players about 90 minutes before kickoff at Nashville’s Nissan Stadium last Sunday as he continues recovering from a knee injury.
Malik Willis, a former Titans backup traded to Green Bay last month, had the best performance of his pro career to lead the Packers to dominant win.
While McDaniel indicated Thursday that he could name a starter for the Dolphins (1-2) before Monday, the Titans have their suspicions about which one they might face.
“We’ve got to prepare for Snoop,” said Tennessee defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson, who was the Ravens’ secondary coach when Huntley was in Baltimore. “He brings a different element. You know, he can run the ball. They can run some of the option stuff and things, the zone read. So we got to be prepared both ways.”
The Titans enter the matchup having lost 21 of their past 27 games. They have not scored 30 or more points in 38 straight, dating to Jan. 2, 2022 — a 34-3 win over Miami.
Tennessee quarterback Will Levis, a second-year pro whose last win as a starter was against the Dolphins last December, said desperation isn’t the right mindset for a team looking for its first victory.
“You can’t go in thinking, ‘We have to win. We have to win,'” Levis said. “It’s just, ‘We have to execute. We have to execute the game plan.’ There’s no situation that you’re put in really … where it is appropriate to stray from that game plan.”
While the offense has struggled to protect Levis, which has played a part in his five interceptions and three lost fumbles over the first three weeks, the results have been better on the other side of the ball for Tennessee.
The Titans pride themselves on playing stingy defense and have gotten off to a good start under Wilson, but their new coordinator said they missed 15 missed tackles in last week’s loss to the Packers.
Defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons said the team spent Wednesday going over the “paper cut” mistakes that cost them. Tennessee allowed 188 rushing yards and 5.1 per carry. Simmons said “the biggest thing” was that the Titans didn’t tackle well.
“But we know teams (are) not going to come and try to run the ball down the middle of our defense,” he added. “Same things that we saw last week. It’s going to be the same type of plays we see this week, and that’s the perimeter runs. And we just have to do a better job at the perimeter runs, and that’ll fix our defense.”
The instability at quarterback for the Dolphins obviously has a ripple effect for the offense.
Hill, the NFL’s leading receiver in 2023, has seen a big drop in his production so far. He has 13 catches on 23 targets for 194 yards and one touchdown. That’s down from 25 catches on 35 targets for 412 yards and four touchdowns through three weeks last season.
Hill said there are several reasons he hasn’t made as big of an impact yet, including the changes at quarterback, but he expressed optimism in the ability of Miami’s receivers to get separation and make plays just the same.
“We’re still fast, ain’t we?” Hill said. “There’s a lot of things that go into that. … A lot of people see things differently. Tua may see something different than Boyle. Boyle may see something different than Skylar. Snoop may see something different than Tua. It’s all about timing and trust, building that relationship with the quarterback.”
Titans cornerback L’Jarius Sneed knows Hill well from their time making each other better as teammates with the Kansas City Chiefs. They last faced off in the playoffs before the Chiefs traded Sneed to Tennessee this offseason.
Hill posted a social media video of the cornerback sending him off to Cancun after the Dolphins lost, which Sneed thought was funny. Sneed also knows the challenge he’ll face Monday night.
“No key to slowing Tyreek,” Sneed said.