Jaylen Wright Steps Up After Achane’s Early Exit

Jaylen Wright Steps Up After Achane’s Early Exit

It’s been a tough start to the season for second-year running back Jaylen Wright. Once thought to be an excellent complement to De’Von Achane, his stock has fallen off significantly due to his inability to find the field during his first two seasons.

During his rookie campaign, Wright saw only 68 carries, gaining 249 yards with a pitiful 3.7 yards per carry average. Before yesterday’s game, he had only accumulated 18 carries and 65 yards for 3.6 YPC. 

Coming into the game, it looked as if his usage would remain limited. With rookie running back Ollie Gordon II emerging as the better second option, offering a chance of pace from the elusive Achane. Achane, for his part, was on his way to another stellar performance, being the primary offensive engine to put the Dolphins up 21-0 early. He had 92 yards on seven carries and a touchdown while adding 13 more on a reception.

Unfortunately, his day would end early with a rib injury. 

Despite scoring a touchdown, Gordon found himself ineffective against the Jets’ 30th-ranked rushing defense. While he did score his third touchdown of the season, he managed only 17 yards on five carries for a 3.4 YPC average. This opened the door for Wright to finally show off what he was capable of if given the opportunity.

Wright had the best day of his professional career, carrying the ball 24 times for 107 yards for an average of 4.5 YPC, and added his first touchdown. 

Wright’s great day was much needed as the passing offense was never really able to find a rhythm after some early success with Tua Tagovailoa posting a statline of 13-21 for 127 yards and a touchdown. This has been a trend this season with Tagovailoa turning in one of the least impressive seasons of his career, to date he’s thrown for 2,407 yards, 18 touchdowns and an eye popping 14 interceptions. Despite his down season, the Dolphins have managed to claw their way back into playoff contention, having won 5 of their last six games and 4 in a row. 

Wright showing up in such a big way could prove important if Miami wants to find itself playing meaningful games down the stretch. It’s unclear if Achane’s rib injury will sideline him for an extended period of time. That is a huge potential loss given the offense’s newfound identity. 

Over the past few months, Miami has become a run-first team in the absence of number one wide receiver Tyreek Hill. Having a reliable option to sub in for Achane will be imperative as the Dolphins look to make it five straight Monday nights in Pittsburgh against the Steelers. Dolphins running backs coach Eric Studesville has done a great job with this group in 2025.

After yesterday’s performance, I have much more confidence in Wright than I did heading into the game. So what do you think? Has Wright finally turned the corner and figured out how to be a productive running back at the NFL level? Let me know in the comments.