The Miami Dolphins suddenly have a very interesting dilemma on their hands. Entering the 2020 offseason, Miami’s run game was underwhelming and the team was sorely lacking in quality ball carriers. There is no greater evidence of Miami’s struggles offensively to run the ball than to look towards Ryan Fitzpatrick’s status as the team’s leading rusher in 2019 — despite not starting three games this past season.
And yet now Miami finds themselves in a different dilemma. The team added RB Jordan Howard in free agency and then promptly traded a 5th-round 2020 NFL Draft selection to secure veteran RB Matt Breida from the San Francisco 49ers. With this dynamic 1-2 punch in the backfield, the Dolphins now have a different problem on their hands.
Trying to find the right balance between these two backs.
The good news is Breida’s workload history makes this a pretty straightforward proposition. In 43 career games, Breida have never carried the football 20+ times. His career high for touches in a game is 22 — 17 carries and 5 receptions in a 2018 win over the Seattle Seahawks. It is the only time in his career he’s exceeded 20 touches.
Meanwhile Howard has carried the ball as a runner 20+ times on fourteen occasions over 57 career contests. His density and physical running style lend better to a more high-volume workload, especially in a Dolphins offense that is going to be predicated on physically challenging tacklers and running downhill into the box. Look for Howard to command the touches, he’s been a player that gets better later into games from time to time and he’s also been a player who has proven to shoulder a significant load on the ground.
Breida, on the other hand, can and should serve as the perfect change of pace back — the lightning to Howard’s thunder who will be looking to make the most out of his presumed 8-12 touches a game in 2020 for the Dolphins.