You know when you just have it out for a certain player? You can’t seem to like them no matter what they do on Sunday, simply because you’re not a believer. Let me say that Lamar Miller was not one of those players. While in Miami, I clamored for them to give him more touches, as he was one of the most efficient running backs in the league. Looking back, it appears the doubters were right.

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Lack of Efficiency

While with the Dolphins, Miller averaged 4.59 yards per carry, which was among the best in the league from 2012-2015. Joining the Texans was supposed to be an upgrade for his fantasy prospects, yet he dipped down to 4.00 yards per carry, right in between Latavius Murray and Frank Gore, not quite the company you want to be. Not that yards per carry is the end-all-be-all, but when you’re supposed to be the playmaker that Miller was brought in to be, this doesn’t bode well.

Despite touching the ball 299 times in 2016, Miller finished as the No. 17 running back in standard leagues, much lower than his No. 6 finish in 2015 when he touched the ball just 241 times, and his No. 9 finish in 2014 when he touched the ball 254 times. The Texans offensive line wasn’t quite up to par, or healthy to begin 2016, but they wound up being ranked the No. 22 run-blocking unit, while Miller’s offensive line in Miami ranked dead last in 2015, according to PFF’s offensive line rankings.

Instead of being the efficient running back that we all came to love, Miller became a volume-dependent option in 2016, where he scored just one touchdown in games where he didn’t see at least 21 carries. Think about that for a second, because it’s rare that a running back sees 20 carries in today’s NFL. Not that Miller was much of a touchdown scorer to begin with, as he’d scored just 19 rushing touchdowns over his first four seasons, but getting the sixth-most carries should lead to more touchdowns than the five he scored in 2016. In fact, he and Gore were the only running backs with more than 214 carries not to score at least six rushing touchdowns.

Competition for Carries

We now have to wonder if that massive volume goes away with the Texans selecting D’Onta Foreman in the third-round of the NFL Draft. It’s clear they weren’t happy with backup Alfred Blue and his 3.65 yards per carry over the last three years with the team, so bringing in Foreman can potentially be for the clear-cut backup role, though I don’t suspect that to be the case with a team that is a playoff contender right now. Running back is a luxury in today’s NFL and they just spent $14 million on Miller just one year ago, yet they decided to spent Day 2 equity on Foreman. Needless to say, he is going to have a role right away.

2017 Outlook

So the question remains, can Miller get back on track in 2017? There are still questions surrounding their quarterback situation, as it appears Bill Obrien wants Tom Savage to start the season under center. There was just one game last year where Miller played alongside Savage, and in that game, he totaled just 63 yards on 22 carries against the Jaguars, though he did score. The insertion of Deshaun Watson at some point should help him see a little more space, as mobile quarterbacks tend to help the run game. So in short, the quarterback concerns have not gone away, as many had hoped when the team was rumored to be interested in Tony Romo.

It’s very possible that Miller operates better when he’s fresh and when his carries are limited. It’s also very possible that the Dolphins knew this, too, as he averaged 5.26 yards per carry and scored 13 touchdowns when seeing in between 10-15 carries with them, compared to just four touchdowns on 219 carries in games with more than 16 carries. Looking at this from a non-fantasy standpoint, Miller splitting time with Foreman wouldn’t be a bad way to test that theory for the Texans, and they may have to admit they made a mistake trying to turn him into something that he isn’t. It’s better for them to do this than continue to trot out Miller, his mediocre 4.00 yards per carry, and lack of goal-line presence.

Some consider this a downside for Miller, but you really shouldn’t, because we’ve seen him finish inside the top-10 at his position twice when he wasn’t in a workhorse role. I’m not going to bet on that happening again, though, as Foreman might just be better. With that sort of risk built-in, his price tag seems a bit high as the 2.09 pick in early ADP, in front of guys like Leonard Fournette who don’t have any concern for competition. If drafting today, I’d feel comfortable drafting Miller as my RB2 with upside, but wouldn’t want to be relying on him as my RB1 with all the question marks.

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Mike Tagliere is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeTagliereNFL.