Mostert Miffed About Diminished Role in Last Season with Dolphins

Former Miami Dolphins RB Raheem Mostert called 2024 the worst season of his NFL career

Miami Dolphins running back Raheem Mostert (31) runs with the football against San Francisco 49ers safety Malik Mustapha (6) and safety Talanoa Hufanga (29) during the second quarter at Hard Rock Stadium last December. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The 2024 NFL season did not go how former Miami Dolphins running back Raheem Mostert thought it would.

Mostert signed a one-year deal worth 2.1 million with the Las Vegas Raiders this offseason after he was released by the Dolphins, but on a recent episode of The Dive Bar Podcast, the former Dolphins running back shared some thoughts on his and the team’s underwhelming 2024 season.

“Last year, for me as a player, was probably the lowest point in my career,” Mostert said. “I had two games where I was supposed to be a key contributor to the offense, and I didn’t get a single handoff. I don’t know why, and I still don’t know why. I don’t even have answers, and I don’t think I’ll ever get those answers.”

It’s not hard to see why Mostert was so disappointed with his 2024 season. Just one year after he set the single-season franchise records for rushing touchdowns (18) and overall touchdowns (21) and eclipsed 1,000 yards rushing for the first time in his career, Mostert didn’t see the field as much.

He finished the 2023 season with just 278 rushing yards and two touchdowns, averaging just 3.3 yards per attempt.

Mostert’s 85 total carriers were the fewest (in a healthy season) since he became a consistent contributor with the 49ers in 2019, and it started to take a toll on him.

“When that’s being stripped away from you in a fashion that you don’t really understand, you don’t really see what’s going on,” Mostert said. “That kinda deviates your mindset. It deviates from whatever you got going on, and it takes a toll on you mentally.

“You’re like, ‘dude, what the hell? I’ve been battling all year trying to put on, but all of a sudden, I’m not getting an opportunity to.’ It’s being stripped away from me for no reason — I have no answers. That’s the most frustrating thing for the player that I’ve become playing this game since I was seven.”

MOSTERT PROBLEMS IN 2024

While it’s no surprise, or even a bad thing, that a player is upset by a lack of playing time, there are some explanations for why Mostert struggled to get touches down the stretch.

He suffered a chest injury in Week 1 against the Jaguars, which knocked him out until Week 5 against the New England Patriots. When he did return, Mostert had key turnovers against the Colts in Week 7 and the Bills in Week 9.

Following that Week 9 game, Mostert received more than six carries just once, in a Week 16 matchup against the 49ers. In that game, Mostert had just 31 yards on eight carriers and two catches for 15 yards.

Players have been benched for less than the key turnovers Mostert committed, but it seems like the lack of communication from Miami’s coaching staff got under Mostert’s skin the most.

“I just hate that it went from the year that I had (2023) to the down year (2024),” Mostert said. “Some of the times, I wasn’t being put in a position to at least try to help. That was one thing that really irked my nerves last year just because of the type of player that I am. I want to be out there on the field regardless of win, lose, or draw. That’s always been my mantra.”

Obviously, this is only one side of the story, but if you take Mostert’s claims at face value, it’s hard to argue with him being “irked” for not getting an explanation for his lack of playing time.

This is especially true because Mostert wasn’t expecting to dominate the team’s running back carries in the first place. Mostert indicated on The Dive Bar Podcast that he was excited to share the backfield with De’Von Achane and Jaylen Wright.

WHAT ABOUT JAYLEN WRIGHT?

Like Mostert, Wright is another player who had an argument to receive more playing time last season.

The Dolphins traded a future third-round pick to select Wright in the fourth round of last year’s draft but only gave him 68 carries last season, 36 of which came in September and October.

“I wish I had answers. I don’t have any answers for him or me,” Mostert said about Wright’s lack of playing time. “You would think it would be a nice little combo — a three-headed monster with fresh legs. I thought that was the vision we were going with, but obviously, that wasn’t something that they were drawing up, which was so unfortunate… It was tragic.”

Mostert is right in saying the Dolphins’ run game was “tragic,” especially considering how bad it was down the stretch. Following their Week 9 win against the Rams, the Dolphins eclipsed 100 yards rushing twice (Week 16 and 18).

That shouldn’t happen to a team with Achane, Wright and Mostert in the backfield. However, it’s also fair to point out that the Dolphins were better off giving Achane and Wright the lion’s share of carries anyway.

Mostert was given a contract extension last offseason, but the deal was structured to give him a raise in the form of a signing bonus and ensure he was an easy cut candidate after the season.

Regardless of how Mostert performed in 2024, the writing was on the wall for him to be off the team in 2025. Achane and Wright are two young players on whom the Dolphins spent considerable draft capital.

Ultimately, Mostert’s comments aren’t surprising. He had a tough year in 2024, and understandably, a lack of explanation for playing time would upset a player of his caliber.

The question isn’t whether it makes sense that Mostert didn’t get more carries down the stretch. Instead, it’s whether the Dolphins take Mostert’s advice about diversifying the workload between their talented running backs.

Because whatever was said or wasn’t said between Mostert and the coaching staff, he is correct about that.