Miami Dolphins could have advantage with late Sunday preseason finale

The Miami Dolphins will play their final preseason game on Sunday night and because of that later game, they may have an advantage over some of the other NFL teams who play earlier over the weekend.

Teams will play preseason week three over the course of three days starting Friday night and then will make roster cuts ahead of the Tuesday, September 1 deadline. In previous years, those cuts came on Saturday following the preseason finales on Thursday night.

This year teams will have until Tuesday to get their rosters ready for the season but how does this benefit the Dolphins?

For starters, Miami could find themselves in a position to know what players have already been released. Teams are not required to wait until Tuesday and many teams should begin paring down their rosters within 24-48 hours of their final game so we could see cuts begin on Sunday before the Dolphins play their game.

Why is that an advantage? The Dolphins could see a potential roster replacement for one of their fringe players and that would allow them to focus on that fringe player a little more during the game. They could also take advantage of any surprise cuts by making a waiver claim before taking a snap Sunday night. That player wouldn’t be eligible to play but by knowing that they have a claim in the process or a veteran that they can sign off the street, could change how they approach the game on Sunday.

The Dolphins are not going to start many of their first-team players but knowing what is on the market should help the evaluation process during and after the game. Miami isn’t likely going to make any roster moves before Tuesday but other teams very well might and knowing who is available gives the Dolphins a head start in the process especially if they haven’t played yet.

This could also help the Dolphins retain some of their rosters for the practice squad. Teams who release early will still need to wait until all teams have made the moves to get 53 but they won’t know who the Dolphins might release. The Dolphins, in some cases, will know who is out there and that should give them an idea of what players from their roster might draw interest in the waiver process.