The Miami Dolphins’ passing attack led by Tua Tagovailoa and Tyreek Hill gets most of the media’s attention, but head coach Mike McDaniel is gushing about the team’s running back room, saying the quality and depth of the group is “as good as I’ve ever been around.”
Mike McDaniel on Dolphins’ RB room:
“We are very fortunate to have a group of running backs where across the board — it’s really hard to even say top to bottom because we have such great competition … it’s of quality and depth that’s as good as I’ve ever been around.”
— Marcel Louis-Jacques (@Marcel_LJ) June 5, 2024
Led by Raheem Mostert, who is coming off the best statistical season of his NFL career, the contingent includes second-year player De’Von Achane, veteran Jeff Wilson Jr. and rookie Jaylen Wright, who was a fourth-round pick (No. 120 overall) in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Entering what Mostert has called a “make-or-break year,” the team is in the midst of a mandatory minicamp. So, McDaniel and the rest of the coaching staff are developing an idea of how the pieces will fit going into the 2024 NFL season, and the head coach obviously likes what he sees.
“I have spent zero time trying to forecast that room because I respect supreme competition…We will get the best version of each individual in that room because of the way they encourage each other,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel on RB room.
— Omar Kelly (@OmarKelly) June 5, 2024
Last season, Mostert posted his first 1,000-rushing yard season in the NFL and led the league with 18 rushing touchdowns. Achane made a huge splash after he was a third-round pick (No. 84 overall) in the 2023 NFL Draft, including a game of 203 rushing yards and four total touchdowns and another game of 151 rushing yards among his first four outings.
However, injuries derailed the middle part of his season, and he was held in check during the Dolphins’ first-round playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Wilson was able to manage just 41 rushing attempts and 188 rushing yards as he was hampered by injuries that limited him to just 10 regular season appearances. Wright reportedly was a target of the Dallas Cowboys before the Dolphins snagged the speedster after he averaged an impressive 7.4 yards per carry for the University of Tennessee last season.
The passing game also remains a strength with Tagovailoa having led the NFL in passing yards last season and the offseason addition of wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.
With McDaniel calling the shots, the Dolphins offense is expected to remain one of the most innovative in the NFL. A more balanced yet still explosive attack could be the formula that leads to finally winning a playoff game for the first time in more than 20 years.
