The Dolphins’ rushing attack comes alive in win over 49ers and four other takeaways

The Miami Dolphins have not run the ball well as of late.

Since Week 8, the Dolphins had averaged less than 60 rushing yards per game.

That changed Sunday during the Dolphins’ 29-17 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. Led by tailback De’Von Achane, the Dolphins rushing attack put up 166 yards. Achane ran for 120 yards and a touchdown while Raheem Mostert added another 31. Jeff Wilson Jr. and Alec Ingold rushed for 12 and 4 yards, respectively.

“We did a great job running the ball and the offensive line did a great job as well,” Achane said. “We allowed no sacks, so we had a pretty good game today.”

The best part? Achane’s 50-yard touchdown run in the game’s final minutes iced the Niners.

“We were better towards our technique and fundamentals,” offensive tackle Terron Armstead said, later calling Achane’s big run “how you want to finish.”

The Dolphins, as a team, hadn’t rushed for more than 100 yards since their Week 8 loss to the Buffalo Bills. Meanwhile, Sunday gave Achane his first 100-yard game of the 2024 season.

Here are four additional takeaways from Sunday’s victory.

Defense comes up big

Look at the numbers and the Dolphins’ defensive effort doesn’t look all that great.

The unit let up nearly 400 yards of total offense, after all.

That, however, doesn’t tell the full story of Sunday’s game because when it mattered most, the defense buckled down.

“Obviously seeing Chop [Robinson] and Calais [Campbell] get back there a couple times and seeing everyone just kind of work and just kind of click like that to finish the game was awesome,” defensive tackle Zach Sieler said. “You talk about being closers and having that energy, and have that juice at the end of the game and being able to make those adjustments throughout the game.”

Not only did the unit sack Brock Purdy three times, they made sure he felt their presence with six quarterback hits, one of which ended with nickel cornerback Kader Kohou’s interception on the Niners’ potential go-ahead drive. The Dolphins limited San Francisco to just two touchdowns on five red zone attempts as well as allowed only five of a potential 13 conversions on third down.

Receiving production comes in different forms

A wideout didn’t lead the Dolphins in receiving. In fact, a receiver wasn’t even second.

With three catches for 29 yards and a touchdown, Tyreek Hill placed third on the team in terms of receiving.

The Dolphins’ top two pass-catchers? Achane (six catches for 70 yards) and Jonnu Smith, whose six-catch, 60-yard-performance made him the most prolific tight end in Dolphins history.

“I’ve just got a heart of gratitude right now, a heart of thankfulness for this entire organization for believing in me, for my teammates, the entire offense, and just trusting in my ability to say, ‘listen, man, this is a guy that we’ve got to implement on a consistent basis in this offense,’” Smith said after setting the Dolphins franchise record for both yards receiving and receptions. “This is the first time that I’ve been able to really come into my own in my career and it’s Year 8.”

Special teams success

Jason Sander, have yourself a day.

Not only did the kicker become the fastest player in Dolphins franchise history to score 800 points, his five field goals ultimately proved to be the difference-maker as Miami only won by 12.

Sanders, however, was as humble as ever in the locker room.

“Just being able to put your team in a position to win football games is probably up there with one of the best things you can do for this team,” Sanders said.

Issues defending elite tight ends resurfaces

The Dolphins have failed to limit elite tight ends.

Brock Bowers recorded 13 catches for 126 yards receiving. Trey McBride recorded nine catches for 124 yards. And on Sunday, George Kittle recorded eight catches for 106 yards.

Whether you want to blame the linebackers or the safety, this is an issue that has plagued the Dolphins all season. And the road ahead doesn’t get any easier: the Dolphins will face a Cleveland Browns team next week that loves to feature David Njoku.