Five winners and two losers from Friday night’s Dolphins victory over the Falcons

The first of three Miami Dolphins preseason contests is in the books and several players did well during the team’s opening game of the exhibition season. Did they earn a roster spot? Maybe not yet, but they are definitely trending upward after Miami posted a 20-13 victory.

More than five players stood out against the Falcons, but we’ve decided to show these guys below some love. The list doesn’t include Jaylen Wright, but we should bring up the fact that he was impressive in his debut, posting his first NFL TD. With that said, these five players also deserve their flowers:

Winner: Tanner Conner – Conner played his best football since joining the Dolphins as a pro. Yes, it is preseason, but he was blocking well and was able to work the field and get open. He made the most of his opportunities and looked to put a little space between himself and Jody Fortson.

Winner: Ethan Bonner – Bonner is having one of the best camps of any player, and he showed fans that the hype is real. Bonner consistently made plays and was able to break his coverage to make tackles or hold up the ball carrier. Bonner may not have outright won a roster spot, but he is going to make it very hard for the Dolphins to cut him.

Winner: Storm Duck and Patrick McMorris – McMorris was drafted in the seventh round and no one expects him to make a big impact on the roster, but he made plays when he was in the game and that is all you can ask of a young guy trying to make a football team. As for Duck, the undrafted rookie was all over the field and made plays. He remains a bit of a longshot to make the roster, but his showing vs. Atlanta was a clear indication that he is going to fight for a spot.

Winner: Patrick Paul – It’s hard to look at Paul and find a reason to be remotely critical. Paul played almost the entire game, and he did very well. Using the strength in his legs, Paul was able to push defenders around, and when they were faster than him, his long arms helped keep them at bay. Paul gained a lot of experience in this one and he will get more reps in the final two preseason games while the Dolphins keep Terron Armstead off the field.

Loser: Willie Snead – Snead didn’t impress anyone, and what makes it worse is that announcer Kim Bokamper mentioned that he has struggled with catching passes in practice. That isn’t something you would expect from a veteran wideout. Snead is far from a lock to make the roster and didn’t do himself any favors in his first Miami appearance.

Loser: Mike White – White came in against the deeper Atlanta Falcons roster and did nothing to show he deserved the backup job behind Tua Tagovailoa. Skylar Thompson didn’t have a great game either, but White’s game was worse. The Dolphins may need to look outside of the team to find an answer. Neither QB looked like a player fans will have confidence in should Tagovailoa go down.