Dolphins-Buccaneers Instant Takeaways

Rookie Malik Washington shines, and Skylar Thompson is the more productive QB in the preseason finale.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Skylar Thompson (19) throws the ball against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second quarter during preseason at Raymond James Stadium. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

What stood out during the Miami Dolphins 24-14 loss against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in their preseason finale at Raymond James Stadium on Friday night:

Maybe the first thing that comes to mind is that, thank goodness, the preseason is over. One reason for that is the bad luck the Dolphins had with injuries over the past three weeks, with wide receiver Anthony Schwartz and defensive tackle Brandon Pili the latest to go down with what looked like potentially serious injuries.

The standouts for the Dolphins in this game clearly had to start with rookie WR Malik Washington, who had two very good returns and a 40-yard run on an end-around.

QB Skylar Thompson may have clinched the battle for the No. 2 job after entering the second quarter and promptly leading the Dolphins on a touchdown drive when he completed all five pass attempts.

THE FIRST HALF

• We'll start with the list of "inactives" — in quotation marks because there's no official list in the preseason — and it included, not surprisingly, almost every front-line player. The only repeat starters from the preseason game against Washington were guards Robert Jones and Lester Cotton.

• Among those not playing were QB Tua Tagovailoa, WR Tyreek Hill, and every other starter. Also not playing were WR Erik Ezukanma and rookie DB Patrick McMorris, both spotted wearing a boot before the game due to injuries sustained in the joint practice Wednesday.

THE STARTING DEFENSIVE LINEUP

• The Dolphins started on defense, and the lineup included Chop Robinson, Ethan Bonner, Siran Neal at cornerback and Channing Tindall at linebacker.

• That defense of backups offered little resistance to starting the game against a Tampa Bay offense using its starters, resulting in a seven-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a touchdown.

• Defensive tackle Brandon Pili started but had a tough time on that drive, running past the back on a 5-yard run and later getting wiped out on a 17-yard screen pass.

• Neal was on the wrong end of a 33-yard completion from Baker Mayfield to rookie Jalen McMillan, though the coverage on the play wasn't terrible. Kudos must go to Mayfield for a great pass and McMillan for a nice high-point catch.

WHITE GETS FIRST SHOT AT QB

• For the first time this preseason, Mike White got the call before Skylar Thompson, and things started off promisingly with an easy, quick completion to Malik Washington for a 7-yard gain.

• It would be the first of many good plays for Washington, who easily was Miami's star of the first half.

• That first drive ended with another third-and-1 failure when Jeff Wilson was dropped for a 1-yard loss on the run after center Jack Driscoll was driven back into the backfield by mammoth defensive tackle Vita Vea.

• The second drive reached Tampa Bay territory, but Dominican rookie Bayron Matos easily was beaten around the edge by rookie Chris Braswell for a sack.

• On another drive, it was the same kind of finish when Miami went for it on fourth-and-8 from its 48. This time, rookie Patrick Paul was pushed back by his defender, who got his hand on White's arm as he was throwing the ball to force an incompletion — this came after a touchdown on a fumble return was overturned by official review.

• The biggest offensive play came from Washington on a 40-yard run on an end-around when he showed tremendous vision in the open field.

• Washington also used that great vision on two extended returns, a 28-yard punt return and a 45-yard kickoff return.

• Outside of Washington's end-around, the Dolphins couldn't run the ball. Wilson was thrown for a 4-yard loss on the second drive after Robert Jones was beaten cleanly at the line.

• Defensively, the most noticeable player was linebacker Channing Tindall, who seemed like he was involved in every other tackle. Some of them unfortunately came 5-6 yards downfield, though he did have a QB pressure to force an incompletion. He also had a nice open-field tackle on an end-around to limit the gain to 2 yards.

• The other defensive player who had a good first half was safety Elijah Campbell.

• Rookie free agent Storm Duck, who's come on very strong lately, was beaten for a touchdown pass to Ryan Miller that made it 17-0 late in the second quarter.

• Skylar Thompson took over at quarterback to finish the first half and put together a good drive, though it featured yet another injury at wide receiver when Anthony Schwartz stayed down holding a knee after catching a 17-yard pass.

• The run blocking continues to struggle, but Thompson had a lot of success with short passing and capped the drive with a 20-yard touchdown pass to rookie free agent tight end Hayden Rucci to make it 17-7.

• Tampa Bay's final drive of the half was marred by Brandon Pili walking off the field very gingerly with an apparent knee injury.

• Safety Mark Perry was again a factor in defense, with a nice pass breakup on third down.

• The Dolphins' last drive of the half ended when Jody Fortson Jr., fighting for a roster spot, dropped a low pass while standing alone near the sideline.

THE SECOND HALF

• The Dolphins got the ball first, but this drive symbolized what a preseason finale is all about with four, count 'em four, offensive penalties. There was a holding on Rucci, a holding on Fortson, a delay charged on Thompson, and finally, a false start on Patrick Paul. Yikes!

• The drive did feature a beautiful throw from Thompson to Mike Harley, Jr. for a 14-yard completion near the sideline.

• When the Dolphins went on defense for the first time in the half, Perry had another good play with tight coverage on a third-down incompletion.

• The next Dolphins drive ended with a touchdown, and it was about Jaylen Wright again showing off his explosiveness and Thompson delivering key plays.

• Wright had a 23-yard catch on a swing pass when the Bucs forgot to cover him.

• Thompson, meanwhile, threw a bullet to Kyric McGowan while rolling out for the 1-yard touchdown to cap the drive.

• Running back Anthony McFarland, signed this week, showed some hard running on the drive.

• The third quarter ended with a 22-yard completion by Tampa Bay QB Kyle Trask to tight end Tanner Knue against Tindall in coverage.

• Tampa Bay answered the Dolphins' touchdown with a TD of their own, which came on fourth down when Knue used a pick to beat Isaiah Johnson in the corner of the end zone despite good coverage. That came after Johnson made a stop on a run on second down and broke up a pass on third down.

• Tindall did have a tackle for loss on the drive.

• Thompson continued his great night on his next drive with a great 25-yard completion to Mike Harley Jr. while rolling to his right.

• Rookie corner Jason Maitre had blanket coverage against Ryan Miller on a third-down incompletion to force a late Tampa Bay punt.

• Thompson's otherwise great night ended up sour when he tried to force a pass on third-and-10 and was picked off by linebacker Antonio Grier.

• The Dolphins didn't get the ball back again after the pick and lost 24-14, ending the preseason with a 2-1 record.

Now that the preliminaries are over, it's on to the regular season. The moves to reduce the 53-player limit will be announced on Tuesday.