Miami Dolphins preseason MVP is safety Minkah Fitzpatrick

Through three preseason games, Miami Dolphins’ safety/corner/linebacker Minkah Fitzpatrick has shined. He is the MVP, so far.

Players don’t get enough press when they do well. It’s actually a nasty habit where all media outlets shine the light on a player only when they fail at something. There is more press appeal, but how about players that agree and trust their coaches even when they are playing the wrong position, like Minkah Fitzpatrick.

First, let me clear the air. When the Miami Dolphins selected Minkah Fitzpatrick with the 11th overall pick in the 2018 draft, I labeled the pick as a mystery and a bust. Drafting a player from Alabama who played in the secondary has never really worked out well in the NFL. The wise decision, at the time, would be to draft Derwin James (Safety from Florida State). However, Adam Gase, Head Coach of the Dolphins, has ties with Nick Saban and drafted a player that the Saban referred to as his son on the field.

To be honest, the Dolphins fan pay little to no value on anything Nick Saban says.

Minkah was drafted as a Free Safety and was added to a crowded backfield. The Dolphins already had Reshad Jones and TJ McDonald who have a heavy cap price tag associated with them. Gase thought he could use Bobby McCain on the boundary opposite Xavien Howard and ask Minkah to place the slot corner. That was the goal at least until the lights come on. McCain struggled on the boundary which caused a shift back to the slot and the Dolphins had a new starting boundary corner in Minkah. Then injuries occurred last year and Minkah started at almost every single secondary position without so much of a word to the media about playing out of position. Rather his response was doing what was best for the team, even though Matt Burke (Defensive Coordinator at the time) had no idea how to build, use or even call a basic defense.

Minkah’s first year in the NFL allowed him to showcase what his raw talent could bring to the Miami Dolphins. However, with a change in coaching staff and more importantly, defensive schema, he had to start all over. This past off-season, the Miami Dolphins completed a roster purge. Not since the days of Bill Parcells, have the Dolphins literally cleaned house. The downside in all of this, the purge didn’t impact the safety position, mainly due to the reason that Reshad Jones’s contract makes him untradable (30+-year-old player, coming off two straight shoulder surgeries) meaning Minkah couldn’t be considered a starter at this natural position.

Then the unthinkable happens., Coach Brian Flores first order of business, to move Bobby McCain to Free Safety? Why would a slot corner move to Free Safety, when there is a player on the roster more suited to play that position? Coach Flores is a defensive-minded coach. He has learned from Bill Belichick for 15 years – that type of knowledge and experience is not something that can be learned. Which makes this move more puzzling to understand. Add in the fact that Minkah didn’t say anything to the press, and was then shifted to Strong Safety, boundary cornerback and slot corner (as Reshad Jones missed all of the training camp) his versatility was once again on display for a team searching for leadership.

The one thing we do know about Minkah is the kid is a beast. Watch the Jacksonville game again and you see a special talent on the field. Creating havoc across the middle of the field and shadowing his opponent flawlessly. Unlike other diva players in the league, Minkah doesn’t use the media to voice his frustration, he lets his play on the field dictate his expression. For a team searching for an identity, the Dolphins have found one thing already before the lights have come on, their MVP.