Kelly: Dolphins focused on toughening up in short yardage situations | Opinion

It was as if a personal challenge had been laid out, and Alec Ingold wanted his name written down as the solution.

Media member last week: “My issue is third-and-short conversions.....”

Before the question was even asked, the Miami Dolphins’ Pro Bowl fullback stepped up to address it as if the question were a blitzing linebacker who needed to be leveled.

“Yeah, it’s my issue too, man,” Ingold responded with a chuckle. “It’s my issue too!”

Despite everything the Dolphins excelled at in 2023 offensively while in possession of the NFL’s best offense, there was one issue that stuck out like a sore thumb, and it was Miami’s struggles converting in short-yardage situations.

The Dolphins had converted only 5 of 11 tries on third-and-1 and fourth-and-1 last season, and Miami’s struggles with short-yardage were even more troublesome if we started adding yardage to it. And factoring in that head coach Mike McDaniel is the most aggressive coach when it comes to going for it on fourth down, the problem seemingly got compounded.

That’s why Ingold took last season’s struggles personally. After all, fullbacks are a nearly extinct position in the NFL, but the one thing teams should be able to count on them doing is converting in short yardage, being reliable like Lousaka Polite was during his early tenure in Miami, which got him dubbed “Mr. Automatic,” because of the frequency he converted on short-yardage runs.

“It doesn’t have to be the third-and-1 in the middle of the third quarter to say, ‘OK, now let’s go get it.’ That’s a mind-set that builds throughout the game,” Ingold said last week. “I think that’s something we’re all working toward, especially myself. Yeah, let’s inspire the play callers. Let’s inspire the guys so that when we’re running the ball, we don’t have to look anywhere else. We don’t have to do anything fancy.”

Fortunately for the Dolphins, the work the team put into those situations produced some success in Miami’s 20-17 fourth-quarter come-from-behind victory against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Dolphins were a perfect 3 for 3 on third-and-1 situations on Sunday, and many of those drives assisted Miami’s come-from-behind efforts.

One was a converted 1-yard drive for a touchdown by second-year tailback De’Von Achane, which featured Liam Eichenberg, the team’s controversial starting right guard, burrowing open the running lane by moving the Jaguars’ defensive lineman.

The other two were on carries from Ingold, who lobbied all offseason to encourage Miami’s coaches to trust him in those situations with a fullback dive.

When asked about the short-yardage success, McDaniel joked that Miami’s now “the best in the league in short yardage,” which should silence the talk of last year’s struggles.

“When you find success in places that you put emphasis on, that’s rewarding,” McDaniel added. “The guys are very aware, as well as the coaching staff, the whole team’s very aware of the places that we’ve fallen short at because we don’t run from it, we try to focus on it in the offseason. For out the gate, Game 1, to find some success; it’s always awesome.”

According to Ingold, fixing the issue wasn’t about drawing up a special plays, or finding a way to trick the opponent.

It came down to owning the mind-set that Miami’s going to be the bully, and not get bullied. It’s a mind shift the entire team has been working toward.

“It felt great. We had a few of those opportunities that just pop up in the flow of the game, and to keep the offense on the field was awesome,” Ingold said. “As a fullback, I didn’t really have to do much, right? The right side of the offensive line just kind of rode that wave. Man, and the hole was there, and we just made it work, So, I’m glad we could keep the offense on the field.”