Miami Dolphins have an atrocious running game

In case you didn’t know by what you see on television, the Miami Dolphins rushing attack is atrocious. Horrible. Non-existent. Last week offensive coordinator Bill Lazor admitted to abandoning the run too soon but honestly, how could you not when the offensive line can’t block?

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Last season Lamar Miller rushed for over 1,000 yards on the season and this year he will be lucky if he passes 500. He is averaging 10 rushes per game. That’s 30 total carries on the season. There are runners in the NFL that average 30 touches per game. He has a total of 105 yards. Not average, total. That is a single game total for all three running backs the Dolphins have faced this season. It’s ugly.

Compounding the rushing issue is the back-up runners. Jonas Gray made his Dolphins debut on Sunday and rushed nine times for 49 yards. Damien Williams has rushed five times for 22 yards and Jarvis Landry has 19 yards on three carries.

Ryan Tannehill? Seven times he has run the ball and has an appalling 22 yards. This from a quarterback who excelled at the read option last season.

Can someone explain what is going on?

It obviously starts with the offensive line and the lack of talent at both guard positions and the injury to Branden Albert has made running the ball almost impossible. The guard issues are putting a strain on Ja’Wuan James and Mike Pouncey who have to try and compensate for the lack of talent at the guard positions.

There have been only a handful of rushing lanes for the running backs but the Dolphins have found some success when rushing in the 2nd half. It seems that the Dolphins are better running the ball than they are at passing the ball but the stats simply don’t add up. It’s a visual observance only.

The Dolphins as a team have rushed for only 218 yards. Only four teams in the entire NFL have run for less. It’s not acceptable and the Dolphins can’t win with those numbers.

The Denver Broncos are 31st in the league rushing but they make their living on the arm of Peyton Manning. That won’t hold up all season. Their 3-0 start could just as easily be 0-3.

The Dolphins are finding issues on both sides of the ball and in all facets of the game and frankly it needs to change. The Dolphins can ill afford to continue this week to week. Defenses, fearing nothing of the Dolphins rushing attack are blitzing Tannehill every play whether it be first, second, or third down. Tannehill isn’t going to survive without a run game to take some of that pressure off.

Once again, it starts with coaching and the coaches are indeed getting away from the running game far too often.