Achane Punches In Preseason TD as Willis Runs Efficient Dolphins Debut

One series. That's all the Dolphins needed from their starters to put up a 7-0 lead on the Commanders, and it told you exactly how Miami plans to use its two freshly paid pieces. The offense drove 93 yards on 14 plays, with De'Von Achane finishing it off on a 1-yard plunge.

Malik Willis, working with the first team, went 4-of-5 for 43 yards before handing the night off. Achane did the heavy lifting on the ground, racking up 39 yards on seven carries. Not a bad opening statement from a backfield Miami just committed real money to: Willis signed a three-year, $67.5 million deal in free agency, and Achane landed a four-year, $64 million extension.

The efficiency isn't the headline for fantasy managers — the usage is. Achane got the goal-line carry, and in a preseason cameo where every touch is deliberate, that matters. Miami is signaling that the short-yardage work runs through him, which is the exact concern that dinged his ceiling in years past.

Achane closed 2025 as our RB5, piling up 323 PPR points across 16 games on the back of 1,350 rushing yards, eight rushing scores and a monster 67-catch, 488-yard, four-touchdown receiving line. That dual-threat profile is why he sits at overall #14 in our current rankings. The one nitpick: his last five games of 2025 ran 2.6 fantasy points below his season average, so the finish wasn't quite the start.

Willis is the bigger unknown. He logged just four games in 2025 — 422 pass yards, three touchdowns, no picks, plus 123 rushing yards and two more scores for 51 PPR points — so we don't have a full-season sample. He remains unranked, and a tidy 43-yard series against vanilla defenses doesn't change that. What it does change is the floor of the Miami offense: a competent, mobile quarterback keeps defenses honest and keeps Achane's lanes open.

The move here is straightforward. If an Achane manager in your league is spooked by that late-2025 dip or the new-quarterback uncertainty, this is your window to buy low before draft season inflates him back to a top-five back. The goal-line role plus the receiving volume is a rare combination, and the contract confirms Miami sees him as the engine.

As for Willis, keep him on the watch list rather than the bench. He's a streaming dart at best until we see a full-team scheme in the regular season, but a mobile passer running a fast Dolphins offense is worth monitoring in superflex formats.