The Miami Dolphins opened their 2026 season like one of the worst teams in the league, dropping their Week 1 matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders 27-13. That was a hapless fight, man, and it just sets the stage for what looks like a rough year for Miami. The NFL actually did the San Francisco 49ers a solid by giving them this team for their Levi’s Stadium opener. After a quick turnaround from Australia, the 49ers need to capitalize big on this one.
Achane’s Struggles and a Vanishing Run Game
Remember how the 2025 Miami Dolphins were all about that run game? De’Von Achane was a beast, finishing fifth in total rushing yards with 1,350 and leading the league with 5.7 yards per attempt. The idea was that with Malik Willis joining the squad, their run game would be even scarier. Well, Week 1 against the Raiders completely blew that up. Miami rushed for a measly 74 yards, which is a whopping 46.2 yards fewer than their 202 per-game average. Achane himself? Just 36 yards on 11 carries, a 3.3 average gain per attempt. He only averaged less than three yards per attempt in two games all last season, and in both those he had 11 or fewer carries. It looks like falling behind 17-3 in the first half totally messed with their plan, forcing them to abandon the run. The key to shutting Achane down is simple: prevent him from getting the ball by getting out to an early lead. That’s what the Raiders did, and the 49ers’ struggling run defense will need to remember that, especially with Willis’s legs to account for.
Willis and Those Brutal Sacks
Alright, let’s talk about Malik Willis. This dude got sacked five times in Week 1! That’s tied for the most allowed in the entire league last week. The thing with mobile quarterbacks is sometimes they hang on too long or take “silly sacks,” and that’s exactly what happened in Willis’s Miami debut. He actually had plenty of time to operate, his average time to throw against the Raiders was 3.47 seconds. That’s tied with Caleb Williams for the second-longest time to throw among starting quarterbacks, and only Jayden Daniels was longer. Yet, Williams was sacked only twice and Daniels just once. Willis had more than 2.5 seconds to throw on a massive 73 percent of his dropbacks, the sixth-highest rate of all quarterbacks. So it’s not like the offensive line was just letting him down every play. The 49ers traditionally struggle against mobile quarterbacks, and this is Raheem Morris’s first shot at one as San Francisco’s defensive coordinator. He’s got to be licking his chops to expose this.
The 49ers just had an exciting Week 1 victory, and there’s no way they can let Miami suck the air out of their early momentum. They’re opening at home, and the Dolphins look like a prime target to get things rolling. Miami needs to protect Willis better and figure out how to get Achane going, or this 2026 season is going to be a long one for them.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Niners Nation.
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