The Miami Dolphins backfield was a mess in 2019. In fact, that is probably an understatement. The team was far and away the least productive franchise on the ground a season ago, with only 1,156 cumulative rushing yards during the 2019 campaign. For the purpose of context, that was 101 yards fewer than the second-worst ground game of the New York Jets (1,257 cumulative rushing yards) and 204 yards fewer than the third-worst Atlanta Falcons (1,361 cumulative rushing yards). Yes, it was that bad.
The Miami Dolphins Backfield Will Be Vastly Improved in 2020
For some reason, Kenyan Drake, the team’s best player at the running back position, was never entrusted with a sizable role and was ultimately traded to the Arizona Cardinals for a conditional sixth-round pick just prior to Week Nine. Drake went on to flourish with his new team and left a gaping hole on the Dolphins depth chart.
That left players like Mark Walton, Patrick Laird, Kalen Ballage, Myles Gaskin, and Samaje Perine to fight for reps. None of them were able to take the reign as the lead back. In fact, when all was said and done, the team’s leading rusher for 2019 was quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick with a mere 243 yards.
At the end of the campaign, it was clear the team needed to improve its running back situation, and there was a lot of speculation that the franchise might spend one of its three first-round selections in the 2020 NFL Draft to address the position. Such a pick ultimately never materialized. In fact, the Dolphins didn’t draft a single running back during the league’s annual selection extravaganza, but instead decided to shore up the rushing attack with veteran options.
A Former Pro Bowler
Prior to draft day, the Dolphins signed free-agent veteran runner Jordan Howard to a two-year, $9.75 million contract. Howard is an underrated, under-appreciate player who rushed for 3,370 yards for the Chicago Bears over the first three seasons of his career. In 2019, he was playing great football for the Philadelphia Eagles before a lingering shoulder issue ended his season prematurely.
Now back to full health and still only 25, Howard looks like a value signing for this franchise. While he has never been an enormous factor in the receiving game, (he has a career-high of 29 receptions) he is actually a little better in that area than the numbers indicate. More importantly, this is a player who was once seen as a future foundation back, rushed for 1,313 yard and made the Pro Bowl as a rookie.
Despite having always been a productive player regardless of the team around him, the perception of Howard has changed drastically. The Dolphins financial investment in him was minimal, and could certainly pay dividends in the immediate future.
An Underrated Talent
The Dolphins other backfield move this off-season was equally impressive but flew even more under the radar. While the front office did not actually draft a running back in 2020, they did manage to leverage some draft capital into upgrading the position. The Dolphins accomplished this by shipping a fifth-rounder to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for Matt Breida.
While this move has not garnered much media hype, it could prove to be a brilliant one. Breida became a forgotten man with the 49ers in 2019 as injuries slowed him down and he took a backseat to Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman most of the time; but make no mistake about it, he is a highly productive football player.
Through three professional seasons Breida has accumulated 381 carries for 1,902 yards and six rushing touchdowns. With a career average of 5.0 yards per carry, it is clear that he has been productive and efficient when given opportunities. In fact, Breida had two 100-rushing yard performances during the 49ers first four games last season in spite of the fact that he never received more than 15 carries in any game all year.
Breida’s problem has always been staying healthy as he has been slowed by a host of injuries over the early portion of his career. Still, by any metric, he has remained one of the more efficient backs in the league and should be locked into a significant role with the Dolphins in 2020.
Production At A Value
With Howard and Breida in the mix, the Dolphins have added two talented runners who could form a quality one-two punch at a reasonable price. The two backs combine for a mere $8,009,000 cap hit this year, which is a figure that seven individual running backs exceed in 2020 (including the aforementioned Kenyan Drake). The Dolphins also avoided sinking valuable draft capital into the position, instead picking Howard up as a value signing and merely flipping a day three selection for Breida.
This enabled the franchise to spend multiple picks to shore up the offensive line, which will not only help provide quality protection for rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa or Fitzpatrick, but will also help bolster the running game, opening lanes for Howard and Breida, in the process.
Breida is in the last season of his contract and Howard only has a season’s worth of guaranteed money on his two-year deal. If this experiment is a success the team has the option to try to lock these men into long-term contracts. If it fails, however, they can easily move on.
Cause for Optimism
Not enough is being said of the way the Dolphins addressed this situation during the off-season and it is clear that they are deserving of more credit. By adding two talented, albeit under-appreciated players, they have formed a tandem that should complement one another stylistically over the course of the coming year.
The franchise is in the midst of a long-term rebuilding plan but there is plenty of reason for optimism about the Miami Dolphins backfield. Without question, it is fair to anticipate a vastly superior ground game from this franchise in 2020, and that is great news for an organization that is clearly on a path to relevance one again.
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