Miami Dolphins Averaging Five Yard Per Carry

The Miami Dolphins are entering their bye week averaging over five yards per carry. That is a feat that has not been done since 1971 when Larry Csonka, Jim Kiick, and Mercury Morris rushed for a season average of over five yards per carry. It’s a tall and daunting task for a Dolphins unit that was expected to be the Achilles heel of the offense.

Knowshon Moreno led the team early in week one but went down in week two. Lamar Miller stepped into the role and has delivered on his attempt to continue with Moreno started. Even Daniel Thomas has joined the fun averaging over seven yards per carry. The question is can this team keep it up?

There is no question that the Dolphins running backs are playing harder than they have in the past but the real credit here goes to the five unknown faces that started along the offensive line. Daryn Colledge, Shelley Smith, Ja’Wuan James, Samson Satele, and Branden Albert? The five of them have been outstanding most of the season despite having never worked together as a group. It’s a testament to the Dolphins offensive line coach John Benton.

Benton was added to the team after last seasons offensive line coach Jim Turner was released following the Ted Wells report. Benton thus far is proving to be one of the best offensive line coaches the Dolphins have had in recent history. Benton was credited with making the Houston Texans line one of the best in the league but was deemed replaceable after coaching changes were made in Houston. He is one of the Dolphins better finds.

If, and it is a big IF, Miami can continue on this pace it will mark a historic return for the teams running game who is currently only tenths from from being more effective than the average yards per passing completion.

When the Dolphins get back from their bye week they will face the leagues worst run defense in the Green Bay Packers. While Green Bay may be last the New York Jets are ranked number one and the Bills are ranked number two. The Dolphins still have three games against each of those two teams. The Dolphins also have games against the 6th ranked Lions and the 9th ranked San Diego Chargers but they also face the 20th ranked Chicago Bears, 23rd ranked Patriots, and the 25th ranked Jacksonville Jaguars.

The season has a good mix of upper slotted teams and lower ranked defenses and should provide the Dolphins a chance to continue their success running the ball. Play calling from Bill Lazor will be key and mixing up his options with the running backs will help the team continue to post an average of over five. In the overall scheme of things it’s not all that important without success on the scoreboard but for now it’s something that the runners and the blockers can take some pride in…and pride has a tendency to breed a desire to preserve that pride and that can lead to more success and hopefully more wins.