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The Miami Dolphins’ rushing attack entered Week 15 of the 2020 NFL season desperately looking for an infusion of energy to help kickstart some consistency on the ground. It’s been that way all season long (and all of 2019 too, if we’re keeping score at home). And in Miami’s final home game of the 2020 regular season, the Dolphins found exactly that. Spurred on by an admirable effort from the Dolphins’ offensive line, running backs Salvon Ahmed and Matt Breida combined to rush for over 200 of Miami’s whopping 250 yards rushing against the New England Patriots; turning Bill Belichick’s proud defense to mush in the process.
But with two games left to play this season, Miami now has another fascinating subplot to watch unfold: how does the running back room shake out for the rest of the season and, just as importantly, can anyone show the Dolphins enough to sell themselves as a long-term answer?
Breida, who was an essential piece of the puzzle against the Patriots, is an expiring contract and his long-term outlook doesn’t seem promising when factoring in just how sparingly he’s been used since Miami traded for him back in April. The move made sense at the time as the Dolphins came up empty handed on drafting a viable running back in April’s draft — but it is clear that Breida’s running style and vision don’t mesh with a Dolphins rushing attack that is much more prone to attacking between the tackles.
The star of Sunday’s 22-12 victory over New England has more of a compelling case.
Salvon Ahmed rushed 23 times for 122 yards and one score, averaging 5.3 yards per carry. And behind an offensive line that hasn’t had consistent success making room for anyone, Ahmed seems to be making the most of his carries. Jordan Howard averaged 1.2 yards per carry behind this line before being cut. Current starter Myles Gaskin is averaging 3.9 yards per carry on 121 carries this season. Breida, after a big day (12 for 86) checks in this season with a 4.3 yards per carry average (it was 3.6 through the first fourteen weeks, though).
Ahmed has now rushed this season 63 times and accounted for 288 rushing yards. He’s the Dolphins’ first 100-yard rusher since December of 2018. And he’s clearly got a feel for running behind this group.
Is he a long-term or short-term answer?
In the short-term, Myles Gaskin will likely be back this week from the reserve/COVID-19 list after missing the last two weeks; but the argument can be made that Ahmed, who backed up Gaskin at the University of Washington, is a more dynamic running and should get the carries instead. Such a decision for the Dolphins would allow them to cast Gaskin into the role currently filled by Patrick Laird as the third-down back and get Miami’s best pass-catching and pass blocking combination on the field on the “money downs”. Don’t be surprised if Ahmed turns this backfield into a timeshare, at a minimum.
As far as the long-term outlook, Ahmed is a fine player. He’s the latest example of why many teams don’t invest highly in running backs — he was an undrafted free agent who was cut by the 49ers earlier this season. These types of success stories spring up seemingly each year. It is hard to envision Miami passing on the opportunity to upgrade the position for a “unicorn” athlete, such as Alabama’s Najee Harris this upcoming offseason. At the end of the day, Ahmed is around 200 pounds and while he runs tough, Miami’s aspirations will likely demand a bigger, more powerful, more physically gifted athlete at the position.
But that doesn’t mean Salvon Ahmed can’t be a long-term piece of the puzzle. It just means he may not be the answer at running back. But he was on Sunday against the Patriots; so let’s see where he goes from here.