Chris Perkins: I'd go with rookie Ollie Gordon II as Dolphins' RB2 at this point

Chris Perkins, South Florida Sun Sentinel on Aug 19, 2025

Published in Football

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

You saw the power when the Miami Dolphins played Detroit. That’s important. But you also saw the speed. You saw the hands. Heck, you even saw some special teams smarts on a kickoff return.

But does Dolphins rookie running back Ollie Gordon II, who rushed for 50 yards on 10 carries in last Saturday’s, 24-17, victory over the Lions, provide everything that’s necessary as RB2 behind starting running back De’Von Achane and ahead of second-year running back Jaylen Wright?

It appears to me that he does. Gordon, this year’s sixth-round pick from Oklahoma State, at this point seems better equipped to serve as Achane’s primary backup than Wright, last year’s fourth-round pick out of Tennessee.

Gordon (6 foot 2, 225 pounds) provides more power than Wright (5-10, 208), and moves the Dolphins closer to a solution to the short-yardage woes that have plagued this team. He hits holes faster and more decisively, he has better hands and more special teams value. He also shows a knack for double-digit gains on the ground and in the air.

We’ll get a better look at the battle for the Dolphins’ No. 2 running back this week in Thursday’s joint practice against Jacksonville and Saturday’s third and final preseason game against the Jaguars at Hard Rock Stadium.

Coach Mike McDaniel said nothing has been decided yet.

McDaniel added it’s a multi-faceted search.

“ Finding success in short yardage for us is definitely an asset,” McDaniel said. “But you’re also trying to see, ‘Can I keep guys on the field in certain situations? Can they pick up pass pro (protection)? What are the levels of their game?’ And (you’re) pushing the guys to be dependable and full-tool players.”

With Achane sidelined due to a calf injury, Gordon and Wright, who rushed for three yards on four carries against Detroit, are primed to stage a serious battle for the RB2 position.

Recently-added running backs Aaron Shampklin (32 yards on two carries vs. Detroit) and Mike Boone (13 yards on three carries vs. Detroit) are likely too new to become RB2 any time soon.

By the way, this RB2 battle would be moot if veteran Alexander Mattison wasn’t out for the season due to neck surgery. Mattison, at 6-2 and a bruising 211 pounds, gave the Dolphins everything they needed as a backup to the speedy 5-9, 191-pound Achane, who had 1,499 yards from scrimmage last season.

But Mattison sustained his injury against Chicago in the preseason opener.

So the battle to become the alternative to Achane, and possibly provide the element that makes defenses drop an eighth man into the box and force the single-high safety coverage that opens the deep passing game, likely becomes a two-man race.

And it might not be a close race right now.

Through two preseason games the speedy Wright has 19 yards rushing on 13 carries (1.5 ypc) and one touchdown. He has no receptions and one special teams snap. He has a total of 46 snaps from scrimmage and one on special teams.

Gordon, through two preseason games, has 83 yards on 18 carries (4.6 ypc) and one touchdown. Gordon also has three receptions for 48 yards, including a 20-yarder. Gordon has 50 snaps from scrimmage and nine on special teams.

Gordon had eight special teams snaps against the Lions, including a kickoff return where he smartly fielded the kick with both feet out of bounds, drawing a flag against the Lions that started the Dolphins at their own 40-yard line.

Against Chicago, Gordon rushed for 33 yards on eight carries, including a 21-yard run, and one touchdown. Gordon also had one reception for 19 yards (he totaled 39 receiving yards after gaining 20 yards via a lateral on the game’s final play).

Wright rushed for 16 yards on nine carries and one touchdown against Chicago. His longest gain was seven yards.

Again, this battle isn’t over, not to McDaniel or me. McDaniel still wants to see a number of things.

“I’m always trying to find the tools that we can utilize as a competitive advantage, find what people are good at,” he said. “But I’m also not taking one result and saying, ‘All right, that’s what you are good at.’ So much of it is, ‘All right, you did something good here. Can you apply it here?’ Or, you know, ‘I want to see this from you,’ and seeing how people react to challenges.”

Wright is facing a big challenge right now. We’ll see how he responds. But if I was making the RB2 decision right now, I’d go with Gordon.

____