The Dolphins’ conundrum with Jaylen Wright. And coach dishes on young cornerbacks
One “enviable” problem for the Dolphins, as the saying goes, is having multiple backs who deserve carries.
The conundrum is how to split those rushing attempts among Raheem Mostert, De’Von Achane and Jaylen Wright.
Wright has played the least of the three but has the highest per-carry average, at 5.1 on 34 rushing attempts.
That’s well above the per-carry averages of Achane (3.7 yards on 71 carries) and Mostert, who missed three games due to injury this season but has averaged 3.9 yards on 36 carries – well below his 5.1 career average.
Has Wright earned more playing time?
“All the backs this year are showing we have a very deep room and they all have the ability to help us,” offensive coordinator Frank Smith said Thursday. “Yeah, he’s done a great job, working at all the little things he’s had to do. All the backs allow us to play the game with the versatility we want.”
Is not playing a lot tough on Wright after being a featured back in college at Tennessee?
“I’m not going to say it’s tough or easy,” Wright said. “I understand there are experienced guys in front of me you have done it at a high level.”
Wright ranks seventh in the league in average yards after contact per carry, at 3.62. Mostert is at 2.86 and Achane at 2.27.
Wright’s mentality? “Never let the first guy take you down,” he said. “Hit the seam 100 miles per hour.”
THIS AND THAT
▪ Dolphins secondary coach Brian Duker said he’s excited to see cornerback Cam Smith, who came off injured reserve this week.
With Kader Kohou (neck) and Storm Duck (ankle) dealing with injuries, Smith could get playing time Sunday.
Defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver said Smith could potentially play in the slot; other options for that position are boundary cornerback Jalen Ramsey, Siran Neal and safety Jevon Holland.
“The whole time Cam was injured, he was keeping engaged mentally,” Duker said. “Tool wise, he’s a long, twitchy corner. You appreciate that about him.”
Duker explained why the Dolphins are bullish on their first- and second-year cornerbacks: Smith, Ethan Bonner and rookies Duck and practice squad player Isaiah Johnson:
“We have a bunch of young guys we are really confident in. I like long, fast corners; [Duck] fits that. For a rookie, his approach and professionalism has been very good; he has not been a mistake repeater.
“Ethan has established himself as an NFL player. Not playing as much as he wants [but] we would be happy to play him. That opportunity will come. Isaiah Johnson has the ability to play deep balls and take deep balls away.
“He’s really good at the line of scrimmage with his length. He knows the defense and is very smart; you could put him at defensive end” and he would know the system.
Duck has played 104 defensive snaps this season and Bonner has played only 4. Johnson hasn’t been elevated for a game. Smith, who played 20 defensive snaps as a rookie, spent the first six games of the season on injured reserve after an August hamstring injury.
Here’s my Thursday piece with lots of nuggets from the team’s coordinators.
Here’s my Thursday piece with injury updates on Jevon Holland, Tua Tagovailoa, Tyreek Hill and others, and a look at new Dolphins quarterback C.J. Beathard.
This story was originally published October 24, 2024 at 5:57 PM.
