When the Dolphins start a new week of practice, coach Adam Gase generally has a good idea of the players who will end up inactive the following Sunday.

But in no way is it etched in stone. In fact, players have been been "up" or "down" as coaches and players say, based on their practice performance on offense, defense, or often most importantly, special teams.

"I think guys understand that we want to compete every week," Gase said this week.

Compete every week. It seems so simple and so obvious. But who’s been a healthy scratch in the first two weeks of the season shows the final decisions are not.

Ask Kalen Ballage (inactive weeks 1 and 2). Ask Cordrea Tankersley (inactive week 2). Ask DeVante Parker (inactive week 2).

What Gase has created in Miami is a culture where entitlement does not fly. Regardless of salary. Regardless of draft status. Anyone can be benched. Anyone can be scratched.

"I think it’s healthy to be honest with you," Dolphins associate head coach Darren Rizzi said. "The competition makes everything better."

Miami Dolphins running back Kalen Ballage has a bright future in the NFL. It just hasn’t started yet.

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Rizzi also serves as Miami’s special teams coach. And every week, he and Gase and coordinators Dowell Loggains and Matt Burke are in constant communication about their game-specific strategy and how it may affect who should dress, particularly the last few spots on the active 53.

Ballage, a fourth-round draft choice who may end up starting in the NFL, has sat out the first two weeks. He’s been odd man out because Miami has a strong starting duo of Kenyan Drake and Frank Gore and because running backs Senorise Perry and Brandon Bolden are special teams stalwarts.

Interestingly, Ballage was a core special teamer at Arizona State.

"Certainly, he’s done nothing wrong," Rizzi said this week. "He’s going to get an opportunity here whether it’s this week or moving forward."

Asked about not playing the first two weeks, Ballage had an impressively mature response that would surely please his coaches.

"I don’t think like I’m not playing," Ballage, 22, said. "I act like I’m going to be the starter on Sunday. Period. With that mentality, you can’t go wrong."

Ballage is confident, but he says he’s patient. He believes his turn will come. He’s trying to impress in every practice.

"Just being detailed in everything I do," Ballage said. "Catching the ball. Picking up pass protection. Making the right reads in the run game. Just making sure I’m on, everything. Even though the physical part isn’t 100 percent there."

Tankersley and Parker have a bit more unique situations.

Miami Dolphins Cordrea Tankersley made some game-changing plays a rookie. But last week, he was a healthy scratch.

Charles Trainor Jr./TNS

Last week, Tankersley was scratched in favor of sixth-round draft choice Cornell Armstrong, mostly for special teams reasons.

Tankersley started 11 games last season as a rookie third-round draft choice out of Clemson. He appeared to be a player on the rise. But Tankersley seemed to regress in the spring and the summer and also appeared to lose some confidence in the preseason.

He lost his outside starting job to Bobby McCain. And he fell behind former undrafted free agent Torry McTyer. Tankersley was scratched, despite his draft status and despite expectations.

"It’s a business," Tankersley, 24, said this week. "You have to continue to be who you are and do what got you here. Whether I start or not, I’m always going to go out there and compete. And get better. There is a bright future ahead."

Gase said Tankersley could get another chance soon.

"It’s competition," Gase said. "I think (Tankersley) is making a lot of strides at corner. We just need him to get a little better at special teams, which is something that’s fairly new to him over the last two years."

Perhaps the most eye-opening inactive this season was Parker last week. Parker practiced in his return from a broken finger, and felt he could play. Parker also seemed upset about the decision in the locker room after the game.

This week, Parker said he received an explanation he felt comfortable with. Basically, Gase felt giving Parker more time to heal would be beneficial.

But it is also a fact that Miami’s top four receivers — Kenny Stills, Danny Amendola, Jakeem Grant and Albert Wilson — are off to a strong start, as a unit. Miami also wanted to dress Tanner McEvoy because of his special teams experience.

Parker is expected back this week, but this makes for some tough decisions at the back end of the active 53 against the Raiders on Sunday.

"We want to compete," Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill said. "We want to push each other. You have to play well week-to-week. That’s what it comes down to is guys practicing hard, getting better week in and week out, pushing each other, and we want our best guys on the field."

It’s much better for the Dolphins to have two or three difficult decisions about who to leave inactive each week than the alternative. It means there is decent depth, health and talent. It means most players have no right to feel their spot is guaranteed.

It also means Gase must manage the personalities of talented youngsters like Ballage, Tankersley and Parker.

"We just want to make sure a guy doesn’t feel like he’s out, to where he’s just going to be inactive every week," Gase said. "That’s the hardest thing to do. You just want guys to keep competing because when something does happen and that player needs to be up, we need him ready.

"We need him to improve just like anybody that’s dressing for Sunday. It’s a tough battle because mentally, for a 24-year-old kid trying to keep his mind focused on his job, it’s the first time that you’re probably being told, ‘You’re not going to play this game.’"

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