The Miami Dolphins offense has been one of the most prolific groups in the NFL over the past two seasons. Some of that has been due to the innovative and ever-changing system head coach Mike McDaniel has brought to the team. A lot of it has been because of the massive influx of talent that has occurred under McDaniel’s watch, with the likes of Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, and Raheem Mostert flourishing under the young head coach.
And at the helm of it all has been quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Tagovailoa has been somewhat maligned over his career, for his slow start during the Brian Flores regime, or for his seeming lack of health, or for his perceived lack of deep-passing ability. But, no matter the criticism, Tua has been able to lead the offense to some impressive results, including leading the league in passing yards last season.
And yet, it’s none of those players that 33rd Team NFL analyst Dan Pizzuta has identified as a “longshot” favorite to take home Offensive Player of the Year. Perhaps that’s because those names are too obvious to fall into the category of “longshot”. But more likely, it’s because of the situation running back De’Von Achane finds himself in under the McDaniels offense.
Achane may not see a ton of carries, sitting behind Mostert on the Dolphins’ depth chart, but he showed last season he doesn’t need many touches to make a profound impact. Achane averaged an incredible 7.8 yards per carry last season, and had an impressive 22 carries of 10 yards are more, a number that was good for 19th in the league. All that despite having just over 100 carries on the season with 103.
Achane’s 800 rushing yards on the season shows that even in limited action, he’s a threat from anywhere on the field. If he can stay healthy this season – Achane missed six games his rookie year – he should see more carries even with being second in the pecking order. But that’s only half of where Achane may be able to contribute in the Dolphins offense.
Miami has a pretty alarming lack of healthy bodies in the wide receiver corps to start the season. They’re going into the year with only five wide receivers on the active roster, and even those five aren’t all completely healthy. Miami could be looking for receiving contributions from non-receivers, and that’s another area where Achane can have an impact.
He’s been working on his receiving skill in year two, and he has the makeup of a player who can not only catch balls out of the backfield in the flat, but who can line up outside in the slot and run routes for the team. If Achane develops and sees his usage increase, he may be able to have a Christian McCaffrey-like impact on the offense. If that’s the case, he should make a strong case for Offensive Player of the Year, says Pizzuta.