Miami Dolphins rookie running back Jaylen Wright rushed for a career-high 32 yards via nine carries in Monday's disappointing primetime loss to the Tennessee Titans. The fourth-round contributor worked as the primary backup to De’Von Achane. There are plenty of reasons to believe Wright is going to be more involved in Mike McDaniel's offense moving forward.
Veteran ball-carrier Raheem Mostert missed his third consecutive contest with a chest injury. Mostert, who led the league in rushing touchdowns last season with 18, was completely ineffective in Week 1. He played 31 snaps, rushing for nine yards via six carries. It's possible that Wright out-snaps him when he returns from his stint on the sidelines.
The Titans' defense completely shut Achane down. The sophomore running back was limited to 15 yards, 1.5 yards per carry, via 10 carries. Meanwhile, Wright produced Miami’s longest rush of the evening with this explosive 20-yard gain.
VFL Jaylen Wright with a nice run on MNF 👀 pic.twitter.com/K3JQQrDV1g
— TorresOnTennessee (@TorresontheVols) October 1, 2024
Achane will continue serving as Miami's go-to ball carrier, but McDaniel may ponder changes to his usage considering he's yet to rush for 100 yards in a game this season. The Dolphins are currently fielding the league's 24th-ranked rushing offense (97.8/game). That's a far cry from the top-ranked ground attack McDaniel oversaw last season.
Perhaps including Wright with more consistency could help improve the current struggles. As McDaniel looks to continue getting creative with his offense in Tua Tagovailoa’s absence, he's been more flexible with how he utilizes Achane’s game-breaking speed, opting to get him in space more often.
Achane has played 47 total snaps this season as a receiver. That’s nearly 12 snaps per game as a wideout, significantly higher than the 7.5 snaps he averaged in that non-traditional alignment last season. Against the Titans, Achane played a season-high 43.5% of those snaps as a slot receiver.
Wright maximized the available carries created by Achane’s flexibility. The former Tennessee Volunteer led all rookie running backs in missed tackles forced in Week 4 with four, the majority of which occurred on his 20-yard run. Forcing four missed tackles on just nine rushing attempts indicates there are additional production opportunities to be explored.
Wright has been fairly elusive all season long despite playing a deep reserve role. He's averaging 2.38 yards after contact per attempt, creating production for himself behind Miami's struggling offensive line. Wright's 3.3 yards per carry are actually slightly higher than Achane's (3.1).
The Dolphins will, ideally, lean on a run-heavy attack versus the New England Patriots in Week 5. McDaniel has already announced that veteran quarterback Tyler “Snoop” Huntley will be making his second straight start under center. Huntley struggled versus the Titans, completing 14-of-22 passing attempts for 96 yards. Even if Mostert is healthy, Wright should receive more opportunities to impact the game, given the QB situation.
The Dolphins are getting creative in an attempt to jump-start their struggling ground attack. Using Achane in the slot and out in space may provide the offense with an outlet. Wright should see an increased backfield workload as a result.
