Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel worked under San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan for years, so it's not a huge surprise he has a similar philosophy about keeping the pipeline of talent full at the most volatile position in football. Miami has taken a running back in each of the last three drafts, using a Day 3 pick on the position each of the last two years.
In free agency this year, the Dolphins and the Las Vegas Raiders essentially swapped veteran running backs. Raheem Mostert landed with the Raiders after being released by the Dolphins, and after spending last season in Las Vegas Alexander Mattison signed a cheap one-year deal with Miami. Two otherwise milquetoast running back signings have that random tie to add a grain of notoriety.
His overall production was not that good (420 rushing yards, 36 receptions), but Mattison had some relatively productive moments with the Raiders last season (at least 60 total yards in four straight games at one point). The season before that, he led the Minnesota Vikings in rushing. But he also never graduated all the way into a consistent lead back role over five seasons in Minnesota.
Alexander Mattison is already on shaky ground for Dolphins' OTAs
FanSided's Alicia de Artola recently noted how a deep running back depth chart for the Dolphins could push Mattison towards the roster bubble as OTAs get rolling.
"De'Von Achane is clearly the No. 1 back in Miami. He's had more yards in each of his first two seasons than Mattison's career-high."
"Then there's Jaylen Wright, who Raheem Mostert described as "truly something special" despite his limited rookie production. Even if Wright doesn't reach his potential, the Dolphins found a potential sleeper in Ollie Gordon in the sixth round this year."
"In an especially deep RB class, Gordon slipped to Day 3, but let's not forget he was a Unanimous All-American as a sophomore in college with 2,062 yards and 22 touchdowns from scrimmage."
Here's what the Dolphins' running back depth chart projects like right now, with the sixth-round rookie Gordon a threat to make a notable climb up the ranks behind Achane during OTAs, minicamp and eventually training camp.
- De’Von Achane
- Jaylen Wright
- Alexander Mattison
- Ollie Gordon II
- Nate Noel
As de Artola noted, Mattison is a veteran in an otherwise young Dolphins' running back room and that has some intrinsic value that may save him from being cut. But he falls behind the pack in terms of raw upside, and the aforementioned one-year deal is only for the veteran's minimum. With that, the dead money to cut him is his entire cap hit--just shy of $1.2 million, according to Over The Cap.
Mattison's contract with the Dolphins naturally guaranteed him nothing, up to and including a spot on the 53-man roster if things break a certain way. OTAs will be an opportunity to turn the negative tide in a fight for his job, and he has to seize it.