Will short yardage downs get sorted out?
This question of getting that short yardage down can open up a whole litany of options and speculations. So lets dive right in.
Not being able to pick up short yardage downs has been a lingering circumstance going all the way back to when the Dolphins last had a fullback. Lousaka Polite had an astonishing ratio for gaining that short yardage first down throughout his tenure on the team. Also there are the trending changes that the league has made moving away from integrating the fullback position.
As good as Lamar Miller was one of the hooks on him was that he suffered in this situation. Also whether he could hold up under a more bell cow like workload. We may see this part play out with him in his new role in Houston. The new running backs Jay Ajayi and Kenyan Drake are about the same size as Miller was although Miller was a few inches shorter and Drake being about 10lbs lighter.
The zone blocking offense has been set in place going back to when coach Joe Philbin has come on board. Some say that the power running game conflicts with this style of play. However there are many examples of fine running games with it going back to Mike Shanahan’s Broncos and even Vince Lombardi’s Packers.
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With the new left tackle of the future somehow finding its way to the Dolphins lap. It could be a good time to try out some scheme tweaking. Or is that even necessary? Looking back at the games when Albert, Pouncey and James started and played healthy, although few and far between.The running game averaged over 140 yards running per game.
So this all might work itself out from just having a good healthy offensive line with depth. This would be the easiest outcome. No need to bring on a fullback or make changes to the same system that has been in place.