The Dolphins rushing defense was ranked in the top 10 earlier in the season. This was mostly because we were facing the worst rushing teams (based off rush yards per attempt). In the 1st 11 games we only faced 3 teams that averaged over 4 yards per carry. These 3 teams all ran well against us (KC,GB and Jags). The other 8 teams that averaged 4 or less yards per carry were pretty much held in check by us. So we built our standing by playing poor running teams.
These things tend to average out of the course of the season. In our case we had it easy early on and now it gets much harder. 5 of the last 6 opponents we face have a rushing average of over 4 per game.
Here are the rushing defense stats for the season
These things tend to average out of the course of the season. In our case we had it easy early on and now it gets much harder. 5 of the last 6 opponents we face have a rushing average of over 4 per game.
Here are the rushing defense stats for the season
| Opponent | Rushing Yards | Opp Ave | Opp Rank |
| New England Patriots | 89 | 4 | 22 |
| Buffalo Bills | 113 | 3.8 | 24 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 174 | 4.6 | 6 |
| Oakland Raiders | 53 | 3.7 | 27 |
| Green Bay Packers | 121 | 4.2 | 14 |
| Chicago Bears | 52 | 4 | 20 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 176 | 4.3 | 11 |
| San Diego Chargers | 50 | 3.4 | 30 |
| Detroit Lions | 63 | 3.3 | 31 |
| Buffalo Bills | 54 | 3.8 | 24 |
| Denver Broncos | 201 | 4.1 | 18 |
| New York Jets | 277 | 4.8 | 2 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 4.6 | 7 | |
| New England Patriots | 4 | 22 | |
| Minnestota Vikings | 4.5 | 8 | |
| New York Jets | 4.8 | 2 |