Thompson Makes Good First Impression on Saturday
Aug 15, 2022 | Football
By: D. Scott Fritchen
One-hundred-and-three days after Skylar Thompson's NFL dreams were realized as the former Kansas State record-setter received his fateful phone call from the Miami Dolphins in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL Draft, the quarterback shined in his debut performance while playing the entirety of his first start during the Dolphins' 26-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday in a preseason game at Raymond James Stadium.
Thompson completed 20 of 28 passes for 218 yards and one touchdown and rushed for 25 yards without committing a single turnover in 45 offensive snaps during his first televised action since guiding K-State to a 42-20 win over LSU in the 2022 TaxAct Texas Bowl on January 4 in the final game of his college career.
The native of Independence, Missouri, was taken with the 247th pick overall – the 26th pick in the seventh round – of the 2022 NFL Draft, which at the time seemed to be a surprise of sorts by some given that the Dolphins already had Tua Tagovailoa and Teddy Bridgewater.
With Tagovailoa and Bridgewater both taking the night off after the clubs scrimmaged earlier in the week, Thompson rose to the occasion — "SKYLAR THOMPSON LOOKS GOOD IN HIS DOLPHINS DEBUT. BUT DOES HE LOOK TOO GOOD?" The Palm Beach Post beamed on Sunday — and he made general manager Chris Grier look like a genius.
"I have to check myself when certain things will happen during a game or practice where I'll feel myself getting impatient with (Thompson) because I've completely forgotten he's a rookie," first-year Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said. "But he is a rookie, and to his credit, we rely on him as a veteran.
"It's a hard thing in this league with a night's sleep to go in as a starter — we were pumped to give him that opportunity."
Thompson started out 4 of 4 passing and completed 10 of his first 12 attempts when he found Lynn Bowden Jr. in the end zone for a 22-yard scoring toss and the Dolphins' first touchdown of the preseason.
Thompson led the Dolphins to 20 unanswered points between the second and third quarters.
"There were a lot of emotions, thoughts, all good (thoughts). I was very excited to get out there and play and just get thrown into the fire. I love being in that type of atmosphere. That's where I feel that I learned the most and really find out the most about myself.
"I wanted to have a lot of fun. I tried not to make the moment too big. At the end of the day, it's football. It's the game I've been playing for a very long time. Go out there with my teammates, my coaches, and go play the game that I love. I just tried to make the game simple and tried to have fun doing it."
The 25-year-old rookie was the first K-State quarterback selected in an NFL Draft since Josh Freeman in 2009. He became the third consecutive quarterback under Chris Klieman to be drafted in the NFL, joining Carson Wentz and Easton Stick, both from North Dakota State.
"Skylar is a great, great young dog," Bowden Jr. said. "(He's) got the heart of a lion in him, and I think (he) can be one of those quarterbacks in the league that can really go ball."
Thompson finished his K-State career ranked top 10 in 15 different game, season, and career statistical categories. He completed 162 of 233 (69.5%) passes for 2,113 yards and 12 touchdowns and four interceptions capped with his Texas Bowl MVP performance in which he went 21 of 28 for 259 yards and three touchdowns against LSU. During his career, he threw for 7,124 yards and 42 touchdowns and 16 interceptions and rushed for 1,087 yards and 26 scores on the ground. He finished his career as the only player in school history with 6,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in a career. His 24 career wins and 40 starts were most by a K-State quarterback since at least 1990.
He showed no timidity behind center in an NFL uniform.
"I thought (Thompson) played well, I thought he played great," tight end Mike Gesicki said. "(He) played tough, made plays and was able to handle some adversity in terms of kind of getting pressured here and there, kind of using his feet and all that kind of stuff. I thought he did a great job, so I'm happy for him.
"He had a great opportunity, and he made the most of it."
The 6-foot-2, 217-pound Thompson had a 106.0 passer rating in his debut with the Dolphins.
"I know he feels like, and we all feel like, he left some plays out there," McDaniel said, "but the biggest thing is we didn't have any turnovers as an offense. I think we had one penalty, so that's something to build on positively and you can't have those types of statistics there, specifically, if you don't have efficient, good quarterback play.
"It was cool to watch — he was pumped. He was very salty, I think, every series because he was mad at himself for whatever happened the previous series and that's a good starting point because he didn't shy away from making plays either after he was frustrated."
Teams must reduce their active roster to 80 players on August 23 and teams must reduce their rosters to 53 players on August 30.
Thompson credits Tagovailoa and Bridgewater for helping him develop within the Dolphins' offense.
"I'm super grateful for Tua and Teddy," Thompson said. "Both of them have been a tremendous help for me, having my back, teaching me things, spreading their wisdom of what they know and what they've experienced to help me grow. I know that's something they don't have to do, but it means a lot to me."
Count wide receiver Mohamed Sanu among Thompson's many supporters as the Dolphins finished their first preseason game.
"(Thompson) was confident," Sanu said. "He knew what he was doing out there. He was sure of himself, and he made some tremendous plays. I was very impressed with Skylar. I loved the way he commanded our offense. He knew how he wanted to approach the game. I had a couple of conversations with him. I just told him, 'Have fun out there. If you're nervous get all of that nervous energy going in the right way.'
"You can see it in his performance. He performed well."
One-hundred-and-three days after Skylar Thompson's NFL dreams were realized as the former Kansas State record-setter received his fateful phone call from the Miami Dolphins in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL Draft, the quarterback shined in his debut performance while playing the entirety of his first start during the Dolphins' 26-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday in a preseason game at Raymond James Stadium.
Thompson completed 20 of 28 passes for 218 yards and one touchdown and rushed for 25 yards without committing a single turnover in 45 offensive snaps during his first televised action since guiding K-State to a 42-20 win over LSU in the 2022 TaxAct Texas Bowl on January 4 in the final game of his college career.
The native of Independence, Missouri, was taken with the 247th pick overall – the 26th pick in the seventh round – of the 2022 NFL Draft, which at the time seemed to be a surprise of sorts by some given that the Dolphins already had Tua Tagovailoa and Teddy Bridgewater.
With Tagovailoa and Bridgewater both taking the night off after the clubs scrimmaged earlier in the week, Thompson rose to the occasion — "SKYLAR THOMPSON LOOKS GOOD IN HIS DOLPHINS DEBUT. BUT DOES HE LOOK TOO GOOD?" The Palm Beach Post beamed on Sunday — and he made general manager Chris Grier look like a genius.
"I have to check myself when certain things will happen during a game or practice where I'll feel myself getting impatient with (Thompson) because I've completely forgotten he's a rookie," first-year Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said. "But he is a rookie, and to his credit, we rely on him as a veteran.
"It's a hard thing in this league with a night's sleep to go in as a starter — we were pumped to give him that opportunity."
Thompson started out 4 of 4 passing and completed 10 of his first 12 attempts when he found Lynn Bowden Jr. in the end zone for a 22-yard scoring toss and the Dolphins' first touchdown of the preseason.
Thompson led the Dolphins to 20 unanswered points between the second and third quarters.
"There were a lot of emotions, thoughts, all good (thoughts). I was very excited to get out there and play and just get thrown into the fire. I love being in that type of atmosphere. That's where I feel that I learned the most and really find out the most about myself.
"I wanted to have a lot of fun. I tried not to make the moment too big. At the end of the day, it's football. It's the game I've been playing for a very long time. Go out there with my teammates, my coaches, and go play the game that I love. I just tried to make the game simple and tried to have fun doing it."
The 25-year-old rookie was the first K-State quarterback selected in an NFL Draft since Josh Freeman in 2009. He became the third consecutive quarterback under Chris Klieman to be drafted in the NFL, joining Carson Wentz and Easton Stick, both from North Dakota State.
"Skylar is a great, great young dog," Bowden Jr. said. "(He's) got the heart of a lion in him, and I think (he) can be one of those quarterbacks in the league that can really go ball."
Thompson finished his K-State career ranked top 10 in 15 different game, season, and career statistical categories. He completed 162 of 233 (69.5%) passes for 2,113 yards and 12 touchdowns and four interceptions capped with his Texas Bowl MVP performance in which he went 21 of 28 for 259 yards and three touchdowns against LSU. During his career, he threw for 7,124 yards and 42 touchdowns and 16 interceptions and rushed for 1,087 yards and 26 scores on the ground. He finished his career as the only player in school history with 6,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in a career. His 24 career wins and 40 starts were most by a K-State quarterback since at least 1990.
He showed no timidity behind center in an NFL uniform.
"I thought (Thompson) played well, I thought he played great," tight end Mike Gesicki said. "(He) played tough, made plays and was able to handle some adversity in terms of kind of getting pressured here and there, kind of using his feet and all that kind of stuff. I thought he did a great job, so I'm happy for him.
"He had a great opportunity, and he made the most of it."
The 6-foot-2, 217-pound Thompson had a 106.0 passer rating in his debut with the Dolphins.
"I know he feels like, and we all feel like, he left some plays out there," McDaniel said, "but the biggest thing is we didn't have any turnovers as an offense. I think we had one penalty, so that's something to build on positively and you can't have those types of statistics there, specifically, if you don't have efficient, good quarterback play.
"It was cool to watch — he was pumped. He was very salty, I think, every series because he was mad at himself for whatever happened the previous series and that's a good starting point because he didn't shy away from making plays either after he was frustrated."
Teams must reduce their active roster to 80 players on August 23 and teams must reduce their rosters to 53 players on August 30.
Thompson credits Tagovailoa and Bridgewater for helping him develop within the Dolphins' offense.
"I'm super grateful for Tua and Teddy," Thompson said. "Both of them have been a tremendous help for me, having my back, teaching me things, spreading their wisdom of what they know and what they've experienced to help me grow. I know that's something they don't have to do, but it means a lot to me."
Count wide receiver Mohamed Sanu among Thompson's many supporters as the Dolphins finished their first preseason game.
"(Thompson) was confident," Sanu said. "He knew what he was doing out there. He was sure of himself, and he made some tremendous plays. I was very impressed with Skylar. I loved the way he commanded our offense. He knew how he wanted to approach the game. I had a couple of conversations with him. I just told him, 'Have fun out there. If you're nervous get all of that nervous energy going in the right way.'
"You can see it in his performance. He performed well."
Players Mentioned
QB
/ FootballK-State FB | Welcome back Collin Klein
Monday, December 08
K-State FB | Head Coach Collin Klein Radio Interview
Friday, December 05
K-State FB | Head Coach Collin Klein Official Introductory Event
Friday, December 05
K-State FB | Thank You Coach Klieman
Wednesday, December 03
