There were encouraging signs for the Miami Dolphins offense heading into the regular season opener.
De’Von Achane was back after the best season of his career, the offensive line has been improved with the addition of first-round pick Kadyn Proctor, they added two exciting rookie wide receivers perhaps most importantly, the team had a quarterback with a dual-threat ability,unlike anything the team had seen in the past. During the team’s lone preseason drive, they marched down the field for a touchdown.
Unfortunately, that did not reflect itself against the Las Vegas Raiders as the Dolphins scored only 13 points during the season opener. New quarterback Malik Willis struggled to find a rhythm and Achane did not make a meaningful impact on the game.
That led to Achane calling for Malik Willis to make a change to his game.
Miami Dolphins Running Back De’Von Achane Calls For Malik Willis to Run More
After Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders, De’Von Achane said he told quarterback Malik Willis, “I was telling him, last game he could have used his legs a lot more for real, if you ask me.”
Willis ended with 39 rushing yards in Week 1, which led the team. Additionally, he scored a 14-yard touchdown run, which was Miami’s longest run by a quarterback since the 2001 season.
Despite this, Willis appeared to have more opportunities for rushing yards, but he opted to stay in the pocket and look for something downfield.
Willis’ performance led to The Miami Herald’s Omar Kelly stating that the quarterback’s game needs to stabilize. Kelly wrote: “Willis had moments during Sunday’s loss to the Raiders where a novice evaluator could see why the Dolphins believe he has the tools to become a franchise quarterback. His athleticism and arm talent is top-shelf. But Willis’ play in the second half seemed desperate, as if Willis was looking to close the 14-point scoring game on every throw. Taking a check down isn’t always a bad thing, especially if it keeps drives alive. Willis took ownership for many of the five sacks he took on Sunday.”
Perhaps using his dual-threat ability to extend drives will be a resource that Willis uses against a strong 49ers defense in Week 2.
Miami Dolphins Run Game
Despite leading the team in rushing yards, Willis’ 39 yards were the second-lowest of his career in a game he started. Meanwhile, Achane finished with less than 50 rushing yards, something he did only twice last season.
Head coach Jeff Hafley was among those who believed that the Dolphins needed to do a better job sticking to the run game, as he said, “We’ve played one game. I want to run the football. We have to run the football! That’s all there is to it.”
Regarding the team’s rushing attack, quarterback Malik Willis said, “The running game is important to everything. You start there, [with] the defenses trying to stop the run. That’s where football starts. Play pass comes off of it, and drop back comes up situationally and [then] you want to offset that.”
The team will hope to correct that as they take on the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
Dolphins’ De’Von Achane Calls For Malik Willis Change Before 49ers Game