Miami off and running as Ajayi opens up offense
Unfortunately for the 49ers, Dolphins rookie head coach Adam Gase figured something out about his offense last month:
Specifically, Miami is quite good when it hands off to Jay Ajayi, a 2015 fifth-round pick who had 31 carries in his first four games.
Ajayi has since averaged 23 carries and 136 yards during Miami’s five-game winning streak.
Gase’s bad-coaching correction is a bad omen for the 49ers (1-9), who will visit Miami on Sunday in danger of becoming the only team in the franchise’s 70-year history to lose 10 straight games.
A near-constant during the losing streak, of course, has been a woeful run defense that should have Ajayi salivating.
The 49ers are on pace to allow 2,872 rushing yards, which would be the most in the NFL since 1981.
No team in NFL history has allowed at least 2,872 rushing yards and 5.0 yards per attempt, according to ProFootballReference.com.
After last week’s loss to the Patriots, in which the 49ers allowed their eighth 100-yard rusher in nine games, head coach Chip Kelly’s comments about his offensive personnel deficiencies received plenty of attention.
Prior to Bowman’s injury, Bellore had played 40 defensive snaps in his six-year career.
The 49ers’ defense, which is on pace to allow the second-most yards in NFL history, has also improved in its last two games.
“I think a lot of guys have grown the past few weeks,” defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil said.
Ajayi ran out of obscurity during Miami’s win streak by joining O.J. Simpson, Earl Campbell and Ricky Williams as the only players in NFL history to have 200 rushing yards in consecutive games.
During the winning streak, Tannehill has the NFL’s fourth-highest completion percentage (67.8), six touchdowns, one interception and a 99.3 passer rating.
The Dolphins had gone 52 straight possessions without a turnover, a streak that dated to Week 5, before QB Ryan Tannehill threw an interception in the third quarter of last week’s win at Los Angeles.
Since becoming a starter in 2015, 49ers RB Carlos Hyde has averaged fewer than four yards per carry in 10 of 15 games.