Due to the nature of how NFL offenses and defenses operate, defenses often start faster out of the gate during training camp. Offensive players take time to get their timing down, learn new wrinkles, and generally deal with more complex play calls compared to their defensive counterparts. That was true for the Miami Dolphins over the first two days of camp, but Day 3 saw the offense start to fight back.
According to Dolphins reporter Travis Wingfield, the Dolphins offense made their fair share of plays during Friday's practice. "The Malik Willis to Caleb Douglas connection heated up today," Wingfield noted on X. "It started with a perfectly placed back-shoulder that Douglas adjusted to 25 yards downfield, then rolled in the final five for six. Douglas scored again on a throw to the corner pylon with a one-handed grab over Alex Austin."
Wingfield also mentioned Willis tossing another nice touchdown pass to backup tight end Ben Sims, as well as a designed run that scored in the redzone.
a TE TD for your feed 💥 pic.twitter.com/AeOrNkMqqS
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) July 31, 2026
The run game also had a solid day, with big plays from Jaylen Wright, Ollie Gordon, and Donovan Edwards. It was a sorely needed improvement for the offense compared to reports from Wingfield and others, and it will hopefully mean more back-and-forth war between each side of the ball moving forward.
The Miami Dolphins need the offense to keep challenging the defense at training camp
Head coach Jeff Hafley is a defensive mind, and his focus will understandably be on that side of the ball for the time being. However, he knows as well as anybody that the offense will need to play at a respectable level if Miami is going to be competitive in 2026. It's why he and general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan chose to bring in Willis instead of rolling with Quinn Ewers or a different low-upside QB.
Willis had a bumpy first few practices, and his fellow QBs were reportedly not any better. Finishing the week strong like he did should hopefully give him and the rest of the offense more confidence as they head into open practices on Sunday. Fans will be anxious to see their new QB in action, even if it's only camp.
Caleb Douglas' big day is perhaps the most notable performance of the week, however, as he seems to already be fighting back against the "reach" label that the media was quick to place on him. I am not afraid to admit that I was highly skeptical of the pick myself, but so far he has outperformed expectations. His ability to keep that up could be massive for a group of pass catchers that don't inspire much confidence at the moment.
There is a lot more optimism around the running game than the passing game, and aside from some ball security issues, that part of the offense looks as advertised. Hopefully, we see a friendly battle start to play out between both sides of the ball as camp progresses, and Friday was a good start.
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