Give Gordon The Ball More Please

Give Gordon The Ball More Please

Thursday Night, the Miami Dolphins, to my surprise, gave the Buffalo Bills a good, competitive game. 

I liked how they started the game after a big kickoff return; they went downfield and committed to the running game, and especially involved rookie running back Ollie Gordon.

They gave him the ball in a short yardage situation for a first down and got a tough touchdown run from the two-yard line.

He got the ball 4 times on that drive. The rest of the game he got the ball only 5 times running. He helped spark the game-tying drive in the 3rd quarter, in which he got a first down on a 3rd and short, but turned it into a 16-yard gain, dragging a couple of defenders.  

Mike McDaniel has an issue with not sticking to the running game and giving the ball to players who are having success running it. Amazingly, he was the running game coordinator with the San Francisco 49ers before he became head coach. He falls in love with the passing game and doesn’t get away from it when he should, even when teams have caught up to his offense.

Teams are putting a lot of attention on Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle because of their speed, but they also know that McDaniel won’t commit to the running game.  

I know the Dolphins have De’Von Achane, and he’s a threat to take it the distance every time he touches the ball, but the Dolphins can use him as a wide receiver, getting him lined up with a linebacker, or they can use him in motion on end rounds with Gordon in the backfield. The problem is they don’t do it.

Achane isn’t a big back and can’t carry the rock 15-20 times a game. That’s where Gordon comes into play. He should carry the 15-20 times a game especially when the team is trying to milk the clock late in the game like they could have done in the 4th quarter the other night instead of throwing it and getting a turnover. The Dolphins had 3 minutes left in regulation and 1st down at the 21.

They should have run the ball with Gordon, milk the clock, and try to take time off. Plus, he was having success running it, so maybe there could have been less time if they scored and possibly went for two at the end of the game. It was another example of McDaniel being too pass-happy in critical spots. 

McDaniel should take a page out of former head coach Adam Gase’s book. In 2016, Gase’s first season, he came to the Dolphins as an offensive guru especially in the passing game, but after the Dolphins started 1-4 Gase made a change. He got rid of a couple of linemen and committed to running the ball more with running back Jay Ajayi. He used the running game to control the ball and set up his passing game, which helped turn around the Dolphins season.