Dolphins sign running back Raheem Mostert, who thrived with McDaniel with 49ers
The Dolphins running game, among the league’s worst last season, received a second boost in three days on Wednesday when Miami agreed to terms with running back Raheem Mostert.
Mostert, who turns 30 in April, played briefly for six teams (including Miami) before blossoming with the 49ers, working alongside new Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel, who was the 49ers’ run game coordinator from 2017 to 2020 and offensive coordinator last season.
Mostert - who agreed to a one-year deal for $3.125 million - sustained a season-ending knee injury in the 2021 regular-season opener but is expected to be fully healed for the start of the 2022 regular season.
His doctor, Dan Cooper, examined him last week in Dallas and said Mostert is making a full recovery and will be ready to play this season.
“Dr. Cooper said that in six years of doing this procedure on NFL players, this is the best recovery he’s seen and there’s no reason to believe Raheem won’t be fully healthy and ready to go,” Mostert’s agent, Brett Tessler, said.
Mostert’s 5.7 yards-per-carry career average (on 284 carries) would be the highest among active players if he had enough carries to qualify.
He had 29 carries for a franchise postseason record 220 yards in the 49ers’ 2020 NFC Championship Game win against Green Bay. That was the second-most rushing yards in NFL postseason history, behind only Eric Dickerson’s 248 in 1986.
Mostert ran for 521 yards (5.0 per carry) in 2020, then had two carries for 20 yards in the opener last season before sustaining the knee injury.
He also has averaged a robust 10.0 yards per reception in his career, with 36 receptions for 361 yards and three touchdowns.
Mostert, who has 11 career rushing touchdowns, spent a month with the Dolphins early in the 2015 season, returning two kickoffs for 57 yards in his only game appearance before Baltimore poached him when the Dolphins tried to move him to the practice squad.
The Dolphins averaged just 3.5 per carry last season. They’ve now added players who have career averages of 5.7 (Mostert) and Chase Edmonds (4.7).
They’ve also added a guard - Connor Williams - who ranked among the NFL’s top dozen guards in run blocking last season, according to Pro Football Focus.
Besides Mostert and Edmonds, the Dolphins’ other running backs under contract: Myles Gaskin (who began last season as the starter), Salvon Ahmed and 2021 seventh-round Gerrid Doaks.
The Dolphins also have a new fullback to block for them: former Raiders player Alec Ingold, who agreed to terms earlier Wednesday.
The Dolphins showed initial interest in keeping Duke Johnson but haven’t reached a deal with him. Phillip Lindsay and Malcolm Brown also are free agents.
This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 8:44 PM.
