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Miami Dolphins Running Backs
By: Matt Morrison (@dynastyjerk)
Hello friends, and welcome to another New Contract Spotlight article. As I am running low on ideas for new contract articles, I will turn my attention to an entire running back room instead of a single running back. I’ve talked about some of these players recently, but now I’m going to give the spotlight to all of the new Dolphins’ running backs. As I bring you all of the new contracts from the room, I’ll hopefully be able to work through who I think will be the primary back for the team.
First, let me give a rundown of the Dolphins team as a whole.
The Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins finished the 2021 season with a 9 – 8 record. They finished third in the AFC East. It was always going to be an uphill battle to overtake the Bills for the division title, but I did think they had a decent chance of coming in second and getting a wild card spot. As it happened, the Dolphins finished one game back of that second place spot.
I don’t want to dwell on the negative. Instead, I want to tell you the most impressive part of Miami’s season. It is the fact that the Dolphins finished the season with eight wins in their final nine games. This is a testament to Brian Flores and how he was able to motivate a team that was previously 1 – 7. I would love to go on a rant about how this is going to lead into a hot start for the upcoming season, but I think it’s a moot point. As almost all of you know, Flores was fired at the end of the 2021 regular season. Many people (including me) were baffled by this move, but it is unfortunately what happened.
So, what else has changed with the organization? Well, the biggest change has to be the addition of Tyreek Hill. In late March, Hill ($18,000,000) was traded from the Chiefs to the Dolphins. This move made me immediately upgrade Tua Tagovailoa ($7,568,859). While I don’t think anyone would say that Tua is a better quarterback than Patrick Mahomes ($45,000,000), he should take a step forward in his third year. If he does, this would provide an adequate source of receptions for Hill. We also know there was a good deal of turnover in the running back department, but I will talk about that in the New Contract Spotlight.
Let’s talk about Jaylen Waddle ($6,771,498) for the moment…I think Waddle’s rookie season is a little underappreciated, and I’m not exactly sure why. Waddle finished as the WR13 in Dynasty Owner despite being a rookie. His underestimation is two-fold. It starts with the fact that there was a better rookie wide receiver in 2021. That player is obviously Ja’Marr Chase ($7,704,910). Chase finished eight spots ahead of Waddle, and he amassed 65.9 more Dynasty Owner fantasy points. This happens every year where one rookie overshadows another, but it really shouldn’t happen like this. Waddle had an outstanding rookie season in his own right. He is also a little overshadowed recently because of the aforementioned Tyreek Hill acquisition. There’s no way to sugarcoat it…I believe that Hill coming to Miami is a negative for Waddle. It’s definitely a positive for the team as a whole, but a negative for Waddle. Hill will command the most targets for the Dolphins, and he will likely receive the majority of the deep air targets. All this being said, I still expect a Top 20 wide receiver finish from Waddle.
New Contract Spotlights
Alright, now let’s talk about the three new running backs for Miami.
Chase Edmonds
Edmonds is my top pick to lead the Dolphins’ backfield. I believe he is the most established running back with the most likely chance to be the workhorse running back. He signed a 2 year – $12,100,000 contract with Miami this off-season. This is worth $6,050,000 per year. Edmonds is a player who I am excited to own as my RB3 or RB4. He will not be able to take you to the promised land as a starting running back all season, but he is a perfect player to keep on your Bench and then use him when your starting running backs get injured or are on a bye. He is the running back I think about when I want depth and insurance. The best part is that he is fairly easy to acquire via trade. I don’t see him costing you much more than a 2023 2nd round rookie draft pick if you are looking for solid running back depth.
Raheem Mostert
Mostert was also signed by the Dolphins this off-season. He signed a 1 year – $2,125,000 contract. This length and amount is understandable when you think about the fact that Mostert is 30 years old. Despite his age, he will be the fastest running back on the team this year and he may be the fastest offensive player on the team. Mostert is one year removed from a season ending knee injury that he sustained in Week 1 of 2021. He has been recovering and rehabbing as any professional player would, and it is reportedly going very well. If Mostert is fully healthy for the entire 2022 season, he will get meaningful touches. He is just too electric of a player not to. That being said, it’s hard for me to predict a full season.
Sony Michel
Michel is the wildcard player for this spotlight. He leaves the World Champion Los Angeles Rams to join the Dolphins. Michel signed a 1 year – $1,750,000 contract. Believe it or not, he is only 27 years old, which is a couple years younger than I assumed. Michel had a very solid season in 2021 as he filled in for the injured Cam Akers ($1,543,258). He nearly racked up 1,000 total yards along with five touchdowns. I don’t expect that level of success in Miami. I think Sony will be used, but will be behind both Edmonds and Mostert if all three players are healthy.
Conclusion
This backfield will be more of a committee than any of us would like to see. That being said, I have Edmonds being the leader. If I had to put a number on it, this is how I see the touches shaking out in 2022…
| Edmonds | 50% |
| Mostert | 30% |
| Michel | 10% |
| Others | 10% |
Again, this prediction hinges on the idea that all three players stay healthy all season. If one or two of them go down for any amount of time, the other(s) could turn into league winning values. I also want to mention that Myles Gaskin ($651,694) is still the incumbent in Miami, but I expect him to get very few meaningful touches.
Thanks for reading. If there is any player that you want me to Spotlight, just message me on Twitter (@dynastyjerk) and let me know. I would appreciate it if you followed @Dynasty_Owner on Twitter as well as subscribed to Dynasty Owner on YouTube. Take care everyone and be safe.
TheJerk