Houston Texans have the right idea with Lamar Miller

Last season, the Miami Dolphins inexplicably gave Lamar Miller under 200 rushing attempts, but it looks like the Houston Texans will not make the same mistake.

After winning the AFC South in 2015, plenty of fanfare surrounds the Houston Texans after their big offseason splashes on the offensive side of the ball. Brock Osweiler, Will Fuller, and Braxton Miller should boost the passing attack big-time, but the centerpiece addition was the free agent signing of Lamar Miller, who has been one of the league’s most efficient rushers over the past three seasons.

The Dolphins coaching staffs under both Joe Philbin and Dan Campbell were dysfunctional, leading Miller to be one of the NFL’s most criminally under-utilized backs. Meanwhile, the Texans have one of the best in the business leading the way in Bill O’Brien, and it looks like Houston will finally give Miller the opportunity to prove that he is a true three-down workhorse in this league.

According to the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson, the Texans will use Miller in the passing game, and they will take advantage of his work as a rusher both in between the tackles and on outside runs.

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It’s refreshing to hear this from the team’s top beat writer, because Miller can do all of those things at a high level for an NFL franchise. This is a player who averaged 5.1 yards per carry on 216 attempts behind an atrocious offensive line in 2014 before averaging 4.5 yards per carry in a solid 2015 season. Miller has been at least an above-average back in each of his four seasons in the league, including his under-appreciated and hard-nosed 2013 season.

Perhaps the Dolphins were wary of giving Miller too many carries, but the currently fresh 25-year-old is no undersized, injury-prone back. The former Miami Hurricanes star hasn’t missed a game in each of the past three seasons, and he is a thick 5’10”, 225 pounds. For comparison’s sake, DeMarco Murray is 6’0″, 217 pounds, and nobody has questioned his durability lately.

Jan 3, 2016; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans head coach Bill O’Brien reacts during the first half against the Jacksonville Jaguars at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /

Basically, the Dolphins were dumb, didn’t understand how valuable Miller was, and seemingly neglected the fact that one of the NFL’s brightest young backs has scored eight rushing touchdowns in back-to-back seasons.

Since Wilson specifically mentioned inside runs, it looks like the Texans are, mercifully, not as aloof to Miller’s strengths. OK, fine, there’s a chance he can’t hold up under a, say, 250 carry workload. But wouldn’t it be a good idea to try and find out? I don’t see what’s the issue with riding a 225-pound, touchdown-scoring, 4.5-5.0 YPC averaging back 250 times?

It’s easy to hate on the Dolphins for not using Miller enough, but they did get a couple of things right. First and most obviously, they were the ones who drafted him. Secondly, they realized that Miller is pretty good at moving the ball through the air.

The Texans drafted one of the best pass-catching backs in the class in Tyler Ervin, who is another explosive weapon to watch for in this offense. However, Miller has established himself as a capable receiving back in this league, which is why Wilson also mentioned his role in the passing game in 2016.

To their credit, Miami steadily increased Miller’s receptions through his career, as they went from 6 to 26 to 38 to 47 in the 2015 season.

That means Miller was tied for tenth in the NFL in receptions among running backs last year, as his 47 catches were matched by noted New York Jets third-down specialist Bilal Powell, who had a career year.

Nov 8, 2015; Orchard Park, NY, USA; Miami Dolphins running back Lamar Miller (26) runs with the ball against the Buffalo Bills during the first half at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports /

Miller is not an explosive weapon with the ball in his hands, nor is he a top route-running back. However, he might be one of the most underrated RBs in the passing game, and that’s something O’Brien and the Texans can use, especially since Miller will be replacing the well-rounded Arian Foster as the team’s three-down back.

Although the Texans should be excited about Ervin’s potential, Miller was signed to be the star of the show. It’s nice to hear that Houston plans on running a large part of their offense through a legitimate star back who signed a four-year, $26 million deal with $14 million in guarantees.

Financially, the Miller signing is worth it for the Texans, and it sounds like they are intent on getting maximum value out of him. By the time his contract runs up, he won’t even be 30, and since his career-high for carries in a single season in Miami was 216, they shouldn’t be excessively worried about him wearing down.

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