
Is Jaylen Wright, Ollie Gordon II, or Alexander Mattison the fantasy football RB2 to target and draft for the Miami Dolphins? NFL depth chart analysis for the Miami Dolphins, breaking down Wright, Gordon, and Mattison.
Miami Dolphins running back De'Von Achane firmly established himself as the team’s RB1 in 2024. He set career highs in rush attempts, rushing yards, and saw a big increase in production as a receiver. Achane would finish the 2024 season as the PPR RB5.
Achane's 2024 season has locked him in as an RB1 pick for 2025 fantasy football leagues. While Achane is the team’s lead back, the RB2 job is an entirely different story. Miami cut veteran Raheem Mostert earlier this offseason. That means the RB2 job is wide open. A second year back, Jaylen Wright remained in the mix. However, the team signed veteran Alexander Mattison and drafted rookie Ollie Gordon II in the 2025 NFL Draft. There’s much to dissect here, as Miami’s RB2 is potentially a highly valuable target in fantasy football drafts. Whoever emerges as Miami’s backup could be in line for a significant workload should Achane ever go down with an injury. So, which player will emerge as the Dolphins' RB2? And which player should fantasy gamers target in their drafts?
Make sure you’re following RotoBaller on X and check out RotoBaller.com for all your fantasy football needs. Let’s take a few minutes and examine who exactly is the Miami Dolphins RB2.
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Jaylen Wright 2025 Fantasy Football Outlook
Wright had a disappointing rookie season in 2024. He only carried the football 68 times for 249 yards. Wright averaged a mere 3.66 yards per carry and did not find the endzone as a rookie. Even with Raheem Mostert missing time due to various injuries, Wright had trouble finding consistent playing time.
This was certainly troubling to see, but it doesn’t necessarily mean Wright’s career is finished. He was a popular prospect during the 2024 NFL Draft and still has a lot of talent. Wright did fall to the fourth round of the NFL Draft, but Miami was seen as a perfect landing spot given his strengths. The team also traded up in the NFL Draft to ensure they landed him. This does say something about how the organization initially viewed him.
So while on the surface the additions of Mattison and Gordon don’t look great for Wright, the team clearly saw something in him they liked. Maybe the plan all along was to have him sit and learn behind Mostert as a rookie, then take over the RB2 role in 2025. We’ll have to see if that’s the case, but it’s important to remember that Wright still brings a lot of good to the table and can be a dynamic playmaker in this offense if given a chance.
Jaylen Wright, 82 yard TOUCHDOWN pic.twitter.com/J6EDwX7ppQ
— gmannVOLS (@gmannVOLS) November 4, 2023
Ollie Gordon II 2025 Fantasy Football Outlook
Gordon enjoyed a fine collegiate career at Oklahoma State. As a sophomore in 2023, he led the nation with an absurd 1,732 rushing yards and scored 21 rushing touchdowns as well.
WATCH: Oklahoma St. RB Ollie Gordon (@Ollie_Gordon2) hit a max speed of 19.3 mph on this 42-yard touchdown. #ReelSpeed #GoPokes @JohnWozniak2
🎥: @CFBONFOX pic.twitter.com/Pb99I2V9FB
— Reel Analytics (@RAanalytics) October 18, 2023
2024 was a different story for Gordon. He struggled mightily as a junior and saw his stats regress across the board. Gordon still scored 13 rushing touchdowns, but he failed to eclipse 900 rushing yards. It was a particularly perplexing season for Gordon.
Things get even more complicated when you consider that Oklahoma State’s offensive line was better in 2024 than in 2023. Oklahoma State finished 69th in PFF’s run blocking grade in 2024, compared to 95th in 2023. This means we can’t blame Gordon’s poor 2024 entirely on offensive line issues.
The NFL was apparently scared off by Gordon’s most recent season, and he fell to the sixth round of the NFL Draft. The Dolphins were willing to take a chance on Gordon, but it remains to be seen how he fits into Miami’s running back room.
Gordon is a wildly different back from the ones Mike McDaniel has targeted in the past. He’s not a speed demon but is more of a power back. Gordon could wind up being a perfect complement to Achane. However, there are parts of Gordon’s game that need refinement. He also doesn’t offer the same explosiveness/versatility as a receiver that Achane does.
Still, Gordon could emerge as the team’s RB2. He brings a physical and tough running style that many critics feel Miami’s offense has sorely lacked over the last few years. Perhaps he could even be used in tandem with Achane as a thunder/lightning combination similar to what we’ve seen from the Detroit Lions with David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs.
Gordon has a long way to go, but he didn’t lead the nation in rushing yards as a sophomore by accident. He’s a name to keep an eye on over the summer months.
Alexander Mattison 2025 Fantasy Football Outlook
Mattison signed a one-year deal with the Dolphins following a one-year stint with the Las Vegas Raiders last year. 2024 was another meh season for Mattison. He only had 420 rushing yards on 132 carries and averaged a feeble 3.2 yards per carry. Like most of his career, Mattison’s advanced metrics in 2024 also weren’t good.
Among 46 backs with 100+ carries, Mattison finished:
42nd in rush yards over expected (RYOE) per Next Gen Stats
43rd in rush yards over expected per attempt (RYOE/ATT) per Next Gen Stats
45th in PFF rushing grade
45th in missed tackles forced (MTF)
40th in PFF elusive rating
At this point in his career, we can definitively say that Mattison is a below-average running back. He flamed out after one year as a starter with the Minnesota Vikings after years of backing up Dalvin Cook. We saw more of the same last year with Las Vegas.
Perhaps Miami was looking to add a veteran presence to their backfield when they signed Mattison, but it’s hard to see how he would fit into their running back rotation. He doesn’t offer breakaway speed and is not a tackle-breaking machine. Nor has he ever been a particularly effective rusher at any stage of his career.
After breaking things down, it does feel like Mattison is the back least likely to emerge as the Achane handcuff. However, NFL coaches have an affinity for veteran backs who do all the little things well, even if they don't offer much upside as a rusher. For this reason, Mattison has a chance to emerge as Miami’s RB2. However, given their other options, it wouldn’t be shocking if he’s left off the final roster altogether.
Which Dolphins RB2 Should I Draft For Fantasy Football?
This is a tough call at this point in time. It’s obviously not a good look for Wright that Miami felt the need to add two more backs this offseason. They could be depth signings, but it’s also possible the team has soured a bit on Wright. Mattison has never been a good back. Gordon was a popular prospect following his big 2023 season, but a poor 2024 caused his draft stock to plummet.
For now, despite the concerns, we will give the edge to Wright. He has the experience edge over Gordon and is more familiar with Miami’s offense than Mattison. Monitor this situation over the summer and throughout training camp. Achane did not miss any games in 2024 but did miss multiple games to injury in 2023.
Fantasy gamers should keep a close eye on Miami’s RB2 battle because whoever wins the job will be considered a priority handcuff in all fantasy drafts.
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