Dolphins' running game primed to break out 

October, 28, 2010
10/28/10
12:32
PM ET
Every week I seem to rank Miami Dolphins running backs Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams a bit too high, in retrospect. I typically rank Brown as a fantasy starter or close to it, and Williams appears in the 30s, and every week that they don't come through, I have the nerve to wonder why I keep doing it. So what did I do this week? Brown is my No. 21 running back and Williams is 33, meaning that I again expect statistics from this duo that they just haven't been able to produce so far. Part of this is due to an annoying lack of other options at this suddenly scarce fantasy position, but should we expect changes in their statistics?

Conventional wisdom would blame the attention that offseason acquisition Brandon Marshall gets for Miami's below-average running game, but I'm not buying it. It's not like Chad Henne and the Dolphins are lighting things up through the air, either, ranking 17th in passing yards and tied with the Oakland Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers for 22nd in the league with just eight touchdown passes. Marshall is 24th in ESPN standard scoring among wide receivers, behind Braylon Edwards and tied with Roy E. Williams. The fact is the Dolphins, second-worst in the AFC in points per game, are struggling all around, in red zone efficiency as well as just getting to the red zone, but I think part of the reason is the difficult schedule, and the fact they're not giving their running backs enough opportunities.


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Eric Karabell | email

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Eric Karabell
Eric Karabell

Eric Karabell is an ESPN.com senior writer. He has worked at ESPN since 1997 and covered fantasy sports for ESPN since 2001, specializing in baseball and football. Eric appears several times per week on SportsCenter, NFL Live and other ESPN shows, contributes to ESPN Radio and ESPN The Magazine and is the host of the Baseball Today Podcast. He has been honored twice as fantasy sports writer of the year by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association, his blog was named best fantasy baseball series for 2007 and he was inducted into the inaugural FSWA Hall of Fame class in 2010.

Eric grew up in the Philadelphia suburbs, and accordingly, favors Philly teams first, his fantasy teams second. He previously served as ESPN.com's lead NBA editor, and is a former Washington Post and Philadelphia Inquirer sports writer. Eric is also the author of "The Best Philadelphia Sports Arguments," published by Source Books and available in bookstores and online.

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