Dolphins Running Back Showing All The "Wright" Moves

Jaylen Wright had a sensational debut. According to one veteran, Wright is leaps and bounds ahead of where he was during his rookie season.

Aug 9, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Miami Dolphins running back Jaylen Wright (25) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons in the second quarter during preseason at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports / Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

Friday night was Jaylen Wright's coming-out party. The rookie running back invited a stadium full of people to help him celebrate at Hard Rock Stadium and put on a show for them.

"I feel like I'm explosive. I'm not somebody that's going to dance around in a hole. If I see a cut, I'm going to hit it with full speed," Wright said. "If I get in the open field, I mean, it's over with. I don't feel like nobody's catching me. I mean, I could also lower my shoulder. I have power with me. Elusive. I feel like I got a mix of a lot of running styles."

Wright had 10 rushing attempts against Atlanta, but he made them count to the tune of 55 yards. He gives Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel another speedy weapon out of his backfield.

"It was what I'd hoped to see, which was there was both — it was his first outing — but what I wanted to do was see a confident runner that found confidence after something that he didn't like, okay? That's the big thing in this league. Everything doesn't go well all the time," McDaniel said after the game. "He had a couple of things he didn't necessarily love: a cut, a slip. I mean, even mid-play, I think he dribbled a screen pass, then still found some resilience. It was a good first outing for him because he got a little bit of everything, and he finished strong."

The Dolphins traded a third-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft to the Philadelphia Eagles to acquire the pick to draft Wright in the recent draft. NFL officials should have invalidated the transaction if they had known that McDaniel was trading for even more speed. Giving McDaniel more speed to work with is just unconscionable.

The only mistake the rookie made Friday night was throwing the ball deep into the stands after scoring his first NFL touchdown in the second quarter,

"It was excitement, man. That's something I always wanted to do. So I just threw it. But I regret it now," Wright said. "They tried to [retrieve the ball]. I think I threw it kind of, like, high. I think they tried to find it, but it was probably over with."

When he scores his first regular-season touchdown, Wright will carry it to the sidelines to keep it as a souvenir.

If Friday night was any indication, there should be many more moments to savor in Wright's future.

Dolphins second-year running back De'Von Achane, who had a breakout rookie year in 2023, said Wright is much further along in his game than Achane was at the same time last year,

That could only mean one thing: trouble for opposing defenses. Achane ran for 800 yards last season, splitting time with Raheem Mostert. He also missed several games with an injury.

Achane ran a 10.14 100M dash in college. American Noah Lyles just won the gold medal with a 9.79; Achane is what you would call fast.

Wright might even be faster.

"I told him he's doing better than I was last year as far as camp-wise, picking up stuff pretty fast," Achane said of Wright. "He's learning, and he's a quick learner. See me last year, it was kind of hard for me during this part of camp. It got easier for me as I got to the season, but I've already told him, 'Man, you're a quick learner.'

"Last year I was struggling, I was stressing coming to practice, just not knowing. So I feel like he [Wright] knows what he's doing, so he can go in there and he can play, and feel like he's in college still. He can go in there and play fast."

For comparison purposes, Achane had 10 carries for 25 yards in the 2023 preseason opener, also against Atlanta, before he proceeded to set an NFL record with his rushing average of 7.8 yards per carry.

Wright credits Achane and other veterans with helping him with his playbook and teaching him the nuances of being a threat in the NFL.

"Those guys in the room. They really helped me a lot, like Raheem [Mostert] and even Jeff Wilson and De'Von. De'Von was in the same position last year, so he gives me a lot of tips on how to go about the business," Wright said. "He's been through it. I mean, he just looks out for me, also my coach [Eric Studesville]. He's on me, but it's out of love. He wants the best for me. I appreciate that."