Kalen Ballage could be the Miami Dolphins RB who is the odd man out
Our second series in the “Odd Man Out Report”, we look at Miami Dolphins Kalen Ballage to see if he can earn a roster spot this upcoming season.
The Miami Dolphins had the worst rushing attack in the entire National Football League last season. It was so dreadful that their starting quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick led the team in rushing yards. Kalen Ballage was a fourth-round pick in the 2018 draft under the previous Dolphins regimen, which could lead to him being the odd man out this season.
Let’s rewind to Dec 16th, 2018, the Miami Dolphins were taking on the Minnesota Vikings. The Dolphins got the ball at the beginning of the 2nd half and the first play of the game was a lead Half-Back plunge, where Kalen Ballage took the ball from the 20-yard line and ran 75 yards to the house. It was supposed to be Kalen coming out party to the NFL. The hype was there, that run against the Vikings was one of the fastest recorded plays in that NFL season. Could the Dolphins answer for a long term running back finally be solved?
Fast forward to 2020, and Kalen Ballage is in serious doubt of holding onto a roster spot, let alone his starting position. When Coach Flores took over, he didn’t resign Frank Gore, as he signed with the Buffalo Bills at the time, and then made an in-season trade where Kenyan Drake was traded to the Arizona Cardinals for a 5th round pick. Basically, there wasn’t anyone on the roster that Ballage had to worry about taking his position. The only other player that showed a glimpse of hope was Mark Walton, a former Miami Hurricane, but he couldn’t stay out of trouble, which led to his second arrest, as he wrote his own ticket for his dismal off the team.
Even with the lack of competition, Ballage led the league in the worst yards per carry average for running backs at 1.8, which was 0.1 off the worst recorded in league history. Yes, an argument can be made that the Miami Dolphins offensive line was horrible, but Fitzpatrick and Walton ran with the same lines and produced better numbers than Ballage.
With all that in mind, the Dolphins tried to make a trade for Todd Gurley this offseason, but the price was too high. In Free agency, they shied away from Melvin Gordon and went with Jordan Howard, whose credentials already move Ballage off the starting position.
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There was a lot of talk surrounding the Dolphins and adding a marque running back in the draft, however, the way the players went off the board, the Dolphins decided to trade away a pick to obtain a player than use it on a running back. Matt Breida is now a Miami Dolphin and it cost them a 5th round pick, thereby moving Ballage to 3rd string right now.
Breida and Howard form a thunder and lightning combination that the Dolphins haven’t had for a while. We can’t compare this to Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, as those two running backs were just Thunder. Additionally, the Dolphins like what they have seen from Patrick Laird and Myles Gaskin, two former draft picks from 2019 class, which could place Ballage further down the depth chart.
Cap wise, there is little to no relief if the Dolphins cut or even keep Ballage. The only relief would be a moral one if Ballage doesn’t fit with the Dolphins, allow him the opportunity to move on now, so that he can speak with teams and learn their culture and playbook.
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Is it too late to give up on a 4th round selection from a previous regimen? That is the overall question that needs to be answered by Chris Grier and Coach Flores. To be honest, the Dolphins invested heavily on their offensive line this past offseason and there is no harm to anyone to see how Ballage can perform in camp and present an opportunity for growth. On paper Ballage looks to be 5th on the depth chart, let’s see if he can use that speed that got him drafted to move up the board, or he will be the odd man out come week 1.