FOXBOROUGH – The Dolphins can’t stop the run. And that news flash has some people in Southern Florida slightly alarmed.
While Miami beat the Los Angeles Chargers, mostly due to the Tua Tagovailoa/Tyreek Hill show, it was hard to ignore the 234 yards the Dolphins surrendered to the Bolts on the ground.
All Justin Herbert had to do was hand the ball off on Sunday to keep the Chargers in the game. Austin Ekeler (16 carries, 117 yards) and Joshua Kelley (16 carries, 91 yards) took turns making the Dolphins front look silly.
How will that display apply to the Patriots in their showdown with the Dolphins Sunday night?
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The easy answer is to attack the Dolphins weakness. Give Rhamondre Stevenson and Ezekiel Elliott the ball, let them run wild, and hope the offensive line can block better than it did against the Philadelphia Eagles to help make that happen.
The Patriots run game is supposed to be a strength, the launch point of the offense, only Stevenson and Elliott went nowhere against the Eagles. Collectively, they gained just 76 rushing yards on 22 attempts (3.5 yards per carry). That’s woeful by any stretch.
For Mac Jones & Co. to truly thrive, they need to establish an effective run game. It keeps the defense honest, and also sets up play action.
Come Sunday night in prime-time, the Patriots could use a get-well game for the ground attack and the Dolphins sure look like the perfect elixir.
The problem?
Last season, the Fins had the league’s 6th-best run defense. During the offseason, however, they canned defensive coordinator Josh Boyer, and signed Vic Fangio to take over the defense.
Fangio is one of the most respected defensive minds in the game. Bill Belichick voiced high praise for Fangio’s defensive acumen during his press conference on Wednesday, saying he was one of the best defensive coaches in the league.
That’s why it was stunning to see the Dolphins surrender 34 points, and look helpless against the run. Is the front seven, one that features Springfield native Christian Wilkins, who set the single season record (82) for tackles by a defensive tackle, really that bad?
Re-watching the Dolphins-Chargers game, the Fins played quite a bit of nickel defense, with one extra defensive back, and one less linebacker, making it a bit easier to run the football. They also utilized dime coverage with six defensive backs.
The goal, obviously, was to load up in the secondary in hopes of limiting the damage from Herbert. Fangio seemed hellbent on not letting the Chargers quarterback beat them with his arm.
Basically, by using lighter fronts on the early downs, Fangio was daring the Chargers to run the football. While they didn’t totally shut down Herbert and nearly lost the game, the Chargers QB finished with modest numbers (23 of 33 for 228 yards, one TD) by his standards.
So, it’s possible this was strategic. Or their run defense really is that bad.
Belichick did something similar when he was the defensive coordinator for the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXV against the Buffalo Bills. He decided the best way to try and shut down Jim Kelly and the Bills vaunted no huddle K-gun offense was to let them run the football. Kelly (18-for-30, 212 yards) took the bait and kept handing the ball off to Thurman Thomas (15 carries, 135 yards) and it worked to the tune of a 20-19 victory.
Now, Mac Jones isn’t Justin Herbert, and doesn’t have the same kind of arsenal as the Chargers quarterback. So it’ll be interesting to see how Fangio deploys the defense. He might be more inclined to stack the box and force Jones to throw.
In any case, the premise remains.
Whether the Dolphins were playing possum with their run defense isn’t the point. The Patriots still need to get Rhamondre Stevenson and the run game going. They can’t have him rush for 25 yards on 12 carries every week if they plan on winning their share of games.
Without an effective run game, it’s much harder to set up play action. Without a run game, it’s easier to defend a one-dimensional offense. The Patriots certainly don’t want to fall in that category.
Center David Andrews, meanwhile, wasn’t buying into the Dolphins having a porous defensive front. Although watching how they were blown off the ball down by the goal line, with the Chargers running it in without a sweat, you have to wonder.
At the very least, the Patriots have to run the rock and see where it takes them – even if they have another makeshift line this week due to injuries. Andrews stressed the importance of getting the run game back on track, with the line generating space for the backs.
“I think that’s something we can really improve on this week,” Andrews said of the rushing attack during his media session Wednesday. “Miami, I think they have a really good front, so it’s going to be a really big challenge. Christian Wilkins leads the league in tackles every year from the tackle position. He’s a really good run player. They just have a really good front.”
One that allowed a whopping 200-plus yards on the ground to the Chargers. Whether or not the Fins are as bad as they looked Sunday, it behooves the Patriots to jumpstart their run game Sunday night.
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