Everyone must improve, but Dolphins’ run-game problem falls mostly in one spot | Opinion
Brian Flores was blaming everyone Monday. The Miami Dolphins lost on Sunday so it was everyone’s fault — the coaching staff, the quarterback who got benched, the run defense, the running game.
Everyone.
And that’s fine, but for the purposes of this space the focus is going to settle on the running game, and specifically on the Dolphins’ talent at running back.
Because so far this season it has not been good enough.
The Dolphins struggled to run the football against the Denver Broncos. That’s something of an understatement because the team rushed for an unremarkable 56 yards on 17 carries. That’s a 3.3-yard-per-carry average.
“We didn’t run it effectively enough,” Flores said. “Again, when we get behind, it’s hard to continue to stick runs in there. But even when the score was 10-10 or 13-10 or we were up, we didn’t run it effectively enough.
“We’ve got to do a better job up front running it, tight ends, receivers, really everyone.”
Yes, coach, everyone.
But it’s your running backs who have the ball in their hands and aren’t making much of anything happen with any consistency.
Because did I mention so far they’re not good enough?
The Dolphins offensive line had a rough day against Denver. Receivers and tight ends have to block better, too. But the fact is the Dolphins haven’t gotten dynamic play from the running back corps so far this entire season.
That problem begins with the personnel department. The Dolphins were in a position to pick a running back late in the first round of the April draft. They could have selected Clyde Edwards-Helaire, D’Andre Swift or Jonathan Taylor.
The Dolphins didn’t go that direction.
The way the Dolphins loaded up at running back was by signing free agent Jordan Howard and trading a fifth-round pick for Matt Breida.
Well, Howard was cut last week after losing his starting job, then losing his job as the team’s short-yardage back, then becoming a healthy inactive multiple games. Howard gained 33 yards on 28 carries for a 1.2-yard per carry average in Miami.
Free agency bust.
Breida came to the Dolphins with a reputation for breaking some big runs and averaging over 5-yard per carry as a change-of-pace runner.
Breida has so far not lived up to his reputation.
He’s averaging a career-low 3.4 yards per carry and has gained all of 132 yards in eight games. He’s on pace for a career low in yards for the season.
No bueno so far.
Those swings and misses forced the Dolphins to rely on some fallback options — Myles Gaskin, Salvon Ahmed, and perhaps eventually DeAndre Washington, who the Dolphins acquired from the Kansas City Chiefs for a sixth-round pick.
All of these guys are try-hard individuals.
All of them have reputations as hard workers and tough guys.
But none scare anyone.
NFL teams worry about facing Derrick Henry, Dalvin Cook, Nick Chubb or perhaps half a dozen other running backs in the league. Nobody loses sleep about facing Miami’s running backs.
No disrespect, but it is simply true.
Before he injured his knee and was placed on injured reserve, Gaskin was doing his best and getting much credit from the Miami coaching staff.
As he was averaging 3.9 yards per carry.
Gaskin is eligible to come off injured reserve this week. It’s unclear if he will do that. But whenever he comes off, he will have to compete to win back his starting job from Ahmed — who is coming off a game in which he gained 43 yards on 12 carries and nobody is pleased with the result.
Ahmed has been something of a workhorse for the Dolphins in Gaskin’s absence, which says something about guys like Breida and Howard. Ahmed’s been good, averaging 4.2 yards per carry.
But we’re dealing with a small sample size. And so far Ahmed has been unable to lift the Dolphins running game to any sort of grand respect.
The Dolphins are 30th in the NFL, averaging 94.4 rushing yards per game.
The Dolphins are tied for last in the NFL in rushing average at 3.6 yards per attempt.
The Dolphins have failed to reach 100 yards rushing as a team in six of their 10 games, including three of the past four.
So a couple of ways this could go:
It’s all on the other guys involved in the running game to fix it...
...Or it’s on these running backs as well as those other guys.
The thing is, the other guys do some things well. Until Sunday’s loss to Denver, the offensive line protected fairly well. And Miami’s tight ends and receivers, who could all be better blockers, have been adequate, you know, catching the football.
What have the Miami running backs done great so far this year?
Miami’s longest run of the season is 29 yards. By receiver Jakeem Grant.
No Miami running back has gotten to 100 rushing yards in the team’s 10 games.
And, look, somebody might break out eventually. The Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals are both bottom five teams defending the run.
But whatever happens the remainder of this season, barring a startling burst of production, the Dolphins must, must, must go running back shopping next offseason.
And this time, rather than shopping at a thrift store, the Dolphins need to raise their sights. Assuming they’re actually serious about improving their running game.
