NFL Miami Dolphins

Miami Dolphins Must Address the Running Back Position In 2015 NFL Draft

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By @CouchGuyFB

Miami Dolphins, 2015 Draft

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In 2014, the Miami Dolphins started out running the ball as well as anybody in the league, but the meat grinder that is the NFL season quickly managed to sideline Knowshon Moreno and hobble top running back Lamar Miller. Damien Williams performed well for an undrafted free agent, but it remains unclear whether he will be the long-term, No. 2 punch behind Miller assuming that the team parts ways with Moreno this offseason. This leaves the Dolphins wondering just what to do with the running back position, even though, when on the field, Miller averaged 5.1 yards per carry. The answer is simple: go after some of the excellent talent in the upcoming draft.

Georgia’s Todd Gurley and Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon both figure to go on Day 1, with neither projected to make it past the middle of the first round. Current conventional wisdom around the league trends away from drafting a running back in the first round unless you are in desperate need of a “factor back,” and with the kind of offense that the Dolphins run, it would be reckless to target one of the top two guys on the board when there are so many other glaring holes on the roster.

While the Day 2 and 3 talent isn’t up to the level of Gurley or Gordon, there is still an amazing amount of value in the early to middle rounds. Miami’s own Duke Johnson could go anywhere on Day 2 depending on his offseason workouts, but he isn’t the only potential gem out there. Nebraska’s Ameer Abdullah, Indiana’s Tevin Coleman, Alabama’s T.J. Yeldon and South Carolina’s Mike Davis figure to join Johnson in the second or third rounds and all could immediately take substantial roles for the Dolphins.

The talent doesn’t stop there, however, as the Day 3 talent is strong as well. SEC rushers Josh Robinson of Mississippi State, Cameron Artis-Payne of Auburn and Kenny Hilliard of LSU are mid-to-late-round prospects and have the potential to become starters at the professional level.

While running back may not be the team’s most pressing need, if the Dolphins expect to turn the corner in 2015 and make the playoffs, the change must come on the heels of the running game. Throughout the season, Miami inexplicably abandoned the run at times, and the team’s inability to run the ball late in games cost the Dolphins a number of close contests. Any one of the running backs mentioned above would certainly find a home in Miami and could be the difference in games against the defensively stacked AFC East. Bill Belichick, Rex Ryan and Todd Bowles are all defensive masterminds, and without a consistent running game, Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill will once again be facing defenses that have their ears pinned back and Miami will once again fail to make the playoffs.

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