4 offensive philosophies Dolphins HC Mike McDaniel needs to embrace

The Miami Dolphins had a terrific offense last year, putting up a ton of nice stats. However, as the seasons changed, the offense got stopped in its tracks. Changes no question need to be on the way for head coach Mike McDaniel and how he runs things.

We're one preseason game in and you can feel football in the air. The Dolphins took down the Falcons to start things off, and we got to see the boys wearing the rare aqua uniforms do some good things against the NFC South side.

Fans are getting started early with concerns about the offensive line (with good reason), especially after the loss to Kion Smith and the fact that Aaron Brewer already has an injury to his snapping hand. Don't worry folks, Chris Grier and Co. aren't that concerned about things. It was also nice to see the fanbase rally behind young guys like Patrick Paul, Malik Washington, and Jaylen Wright. Maybe, just maybe, the Dolphins found a few gems in this draft.

However, this article is about McDaniel and adding new ideologies, principles, or dogmas to the offense that is loaded with talent. These elements will make the offense less predictable and will keep guys more readily available late in the year. It's just a matter of really implementing them instead of just saying they care about making them a part of the offense.

4. The Dolphins need to run the ball on 3rd-and-short

Too many times last year we saw the Dolphins get to 3rd-and-short in a big spot when they were actually running the ball well, only for them to pass it to no avail. That can't be a thing that happens too much in 2024.

I get that the team is not equipped with a Derrick Henry-type back, but that doesn't mean that Raheem Mostert, De'Von Achane, Jaylen Wright, or Chris Brooks can't get a yard when the defense has a pretty good idea a run is coming.

Do you want to change the culture from being thought of as this soft finesse team? It's safe to say the team does, because the leaders on both sides of the ball can't stop talking about it. Well, how about keeping drives alive late in the year by being physical?

This is something McDaniel has been peppered with from reporters pretty much since he arrived in Miami and he still has leaned on the pass. We get it - he has Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. Getting the ball to them is the smartest way to use this offense. However, when you're on the road in weather that isn't South Beach in high-pressure moments, showing the other team and its crowd that you can and will win the battle in the trenches is so important. It gets your guys even more into the game and it demoralizes the opponent.

Jonnu Smith needs to be involved every game

Yes, Jonnu Smith isn't as dynamic as other players on the offense. Despite those other dynamic players, and the fact that Smith is a more than adequate pass-catcher with elite YAC ability, he needs to be part of the plan every week.

It's up in the air if he will be the clear-cut starter on the first snap against Jacksonville or not. It might still be Durham Smythe, but we know Smith will be out there a good amount to start the season and throughout the fall and winter.

Can you imagine how frustrated defenses will be if McDaniel and Tua Tagovailoa get the ball to Smith early in a game, and keep looking his way only for a big play to Hill or Waddle to be recorded? This is what will happen when you make defenses honor Smith underneath. Also, isn't that one of the reasons why you went and got Smith? To make life even easier for the best players?

The world fans want to live in is one where Smith drags linebackers away from the middle of the field just a little bit and those in-breaking routes that Tagovailoa loves become even more open, especially late in the season. Those routes got plugged up against Buffalo and Kansas City partly because those defenses dared Miami's star signal-caller to go outside the numbers to other players not named Hill and Waddle. Smith has the ability to make defenses not be able to pack the middle.

Incorporating backside throws with Tua Tagovailoa

I haven't forgotten the Titans game. None of us have. When we look back at the 2023 season and we look for the game or moment that the campaign officially got away from the Dolphins, everyone will bring up the Monday night showdown at home against Tennessee. It hurts to think and write about it now.

There were many parts of that game that brought out the Hulk in many of us. The fumbled snap early in the game inside the five yard line, the injury to Tyreek Hill, the lasting injury to Connor Williams that we're still feeling today, the defense giving up back-to-back drives to Will Levis in under 3.5 minutes... the list goes on. Yeah, that game broke many of us.

However, there was one other part that was later brought to light by Chris Simms that had me acting like Joaquin Phoenix seeing that alien walk across the screen in Signs.

Watching that Simms clip is tough, but it's important that we do so. The worst part about it is that either Mike McDaniel didn't see it, nobody upstairs saw it, none of the players noticed, or that no adjustments were made. Tennessee's defense stepped up and made changes when they needed to. Miami didn't.

This isn't to say that all teams play this kind of defense against the Dolphins, but more than the Titans do. Having some schemed plays where Tua is looking to one side of the field, only for him to flip his hips, snap back and throw to a Waddle, River Cracraft, or whoever is on the backside, can result in big gains.

Get De'Von Achane the ball in vertical routes

So far in training camp, one of the consistent themes from the beat writers at practices is the incorporation of De'Von Achane in the passing game. We're not simply talking about swing routes in check downs, but it's being said Achane is lining up like a receiver and going down the field or coming out of the backfield and also going downfield. Thinking about the possibility of seeing more of Achane being lined up as a WR has a lot of people fired up.

We know the kind of playmaker Achane is and we know that he has bulked up a bit heading into his second season. He's ready for more action and it's safe to say he's looking for more ways to help out the passing game. Can you imagine Achane catching the ball in the open field and going off to the races like this?

If Hill and Waddle are on the field, Achane should have a great matchup every time and if Hill or Waddle are going deep, then there's a decent chance Achane will have a one-on-one matchup on the other side of the field. Utilizing that backside idea we previously spoke about and trusting Achane to catch the ball should be huge for this offense in many ways.

It helps the offense produce yards and points, and it also keeps Hill and Waddle from absorbing more hits. We can't take it lightly how crucial it is to have them as close to 100 percent as possible late in the year for this team.