Dolphins coaches dish on who must improve against run, Achane, Wilson goal line, more
Notes and quotes from Thursday’s availability with five Dolphins assistant coaches heading into Sunday’s game at Houston (1 p.m., CBS):
▪ Biggest concern Sunday? The Dolphins’ ability to stop Texans running back Joe Mixon would rank high on any list.
Though the Dolphins are tied for 10th in yards allowed per carry, that doesn’t tell the whole story. Miami is worse against the run than a year ago; the Dolphins are permitting 4.3 per carry, after yielding just 3.8 in 2023.
In their past three games, they allowed 86 yards on the ground and 4.0 per carry against New England; 114 and 4.6 against Green Bay; and 83 and 4.0 against the Jets, who exclusively used two third day rookie draft picks on all their carries (Braelon Allen, Isaiah Davis).
Mixon, the former Bengals standout, ranks 11th in the league in rushing yards (887) and is 20th in yards per carry (4.3).
Asked what position group specifically must improve against the run, defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver gave a candid answer:
“Giving up some of our bigger runs, a lot of them have been on the perimeter, jet sweeps, [when] you’re expecting second level edges to show up,” he said. “In the low red area, some of those through the middle have been in the interior of our defense. Some of our backup interior nose tackles need to play better in those situations.”
The team’s backup nose tackle is Neil Farrell, who replaced Brandon Pili on the roster a month ago. Benito Jones, who has started 11 games at nose tackle, has been uneven in his performance; against the run specifically, Pro Football Focus rates him 69th of 114 interior defensive linemen.
When Weaver refers to second level edges, that would encompass the outside linebackers, a group that includes Emmanuel Ogbah, Chop Robinson, Tyus Bowser (before his injury in the New England game) and to an extent, Quinton Bell.
Against the run specifically, PFF ranks Ogbah 35th best among 116 qualifying edge players. Bowser is 78th and Robinson 82nd.
Weaver said he’s hopeful Bowser will return this season; he’s eligible to come off injured reserve with two games remaining.
The team’s two starting inside linebackers, Jordyn Brooks and Anthony Walker Jr., are rated seventh and 34th against the run (among 84 qualifiers) by PFF.
“Jordyn has really been consistent for us the entire season,” Weaver said. “He’s starting to play with a little bit of a chip.”
The problem certainly isn’t Calais Campbell and Zach Sieler, who are ranked second and 11th best against the run, among all interior defenders, by PFF.
The message against Mixon?
“Put your big boy pads on,” Weaver said. “We will lower the strike zone and make sure you get population on the ball.”
▪ The Dolphins will decide after Friday’s practice whether to activate Bradley Chubb and Cameron Goode off the physically unable to perform list before the Houston game. They’ve practiced five times, on a limited basis, in the past week-and-a-half after sustaining major knee injuries late last season. Thursday marked the ninth day of each player’s 21-day practice window.
With regard to Chubb, what can be expected from a Pro Bowl caliber player who hasn’t played in nearly a year?
“I don’t know that answer in terms of what to expect,” Weaver said.
How has he looked at practice?
“He doesn’t look out of place,” Weaver said. “It’s [a question of] confidence [in the knee]. When doctors and medical people say he’s ready, he’ll be out on the field. Cam falls into that same category. When they do hit the field, I know they’re going to contribute.”
▪ Campbell’s snap counts had dropped in the past month before he played 43 defensive snaps (63 percent) against the Jets.
“Calais will be out there as much as necessary to get the W,” Weaver said when asked if his snap count allocation has changed. “If you try to take him off in critical situations, he ain’t coming off.”
Campbell played at least 60 percent of the Dolphins’ defensive snaps in four of their first eight games, played between 47 and 57 percent in the next four, before topping 60 percent against the Jets.
▪ The Dolphins have converted just 11 of 22 attempts when they have rushed the ball on 3rd and 1 or 4th and 1.
So why do they keep using 5-9, 188-pound DeVon Achane between the tackles on those runs instead of 6-0, 205-pound Jeff Wilson Jr.?
Offensive coordinator Frank Smith said Achane had success in short yardage at times in the past and downplayed Achane’s size as a concern in those situations.
“Your ability as a running back there’s feel, there’s timing, there’s space, ability to take space,” Smith said when asked to explain why the Dolphins believe Achane is the best choice in those situations. “I think that’s the most important thing… We know we need to be better.”
Asked if a case could be made to use Wilson in those situations, running backs coach Eric Studesville said: “Any of the backs have to be a potential option. All of them have demonstrated they can be physical. Raheem [Mostert] has had a number of physical runs since he’s been here.”
Mostert missed the Jets game with a hip injury but told CBS he expects to play Sunday in Houston.
▪ Rookie Malik Washington’s critical 45-yard late fourth quarter kickoff return, which helped set up the game-tying field goal against the Jets, offered evidence of Washington’s potential as a returner. While he lacks track-type speed, he’s fast enough.
“He’s physical, smart, reads the ball well in the air,” special teams coordinator Danny Crossman said.
Washington ran over the Jets kicker Anders Carlson on that return, and Crossman noted Carlson “didn’t buy” Washington’s fake, so Washington simply barrelled through him.
This story was originally published December 12, 2024 at 12:52 PM.
