Andrew Van Ginkel steps up in place of injured Jaelan Phillips
By Gaston Rubio
Week 13 is in the books for the Miami Dolphins. Miami took care of business, defeating the Washington Commanders 45-15. Tua Tagovailoa and the Miami offense punted just once in their first 6 possessions of the first half to set the tone. However, much has been written about the loss of Jaelan Phillips and how the Miami defense would respond. Enter Andrew Van Ginkel.
Andrew Van Ginkel saw plenty of time in the OLB position during Jaelan Phillips’ initial absence. Phillips missed 3 of Miami’s first 6 games to start the season, so this wasn’t Van Ginkel’s first time playing in place of Jaelan Phillips.
During Jaelan’s initial three-week absence, Van Ginkel’s graded out at 83% for total defense, 70% for tackling, 80% for pass rush and 77% when dropping into coverage. During this time Van Ginkel also had 9 tackles and 4 sacks. Clearly showing that Van Ginkel is more than capable of filling in for Jaelan Phillips.
Entering the Washington game, Andrew Van Ginkel is the number 9 rated edge defender according to Pro Football Focus. Putting him in the top 10 with players such as Micah Parsons, T.J. Watt, and Nick Bosa.
Miami’s defense came out stout against Washington’s offense. It was Van Ginkel who led the charge as he recorded 5 tackles, 2 pass deflections and an interception returned for a touchdown. Van Ginkel’s interception came on the first play after Miami’s first punt.
Miami’s offense stalled on their third possession of the game, going 3 and out.Van Ginkel gave a soft rush on Washington’s first play after the punt and intercepted Sam Howell.Returning the interception 33 yards for a Miami score.
The Dolphins would go on to allow only 15 points the rest of the way.Miami improves to 9-3 and will now get ready for Monday Night Football versus the Tennessee Titans.