Ajayi listed ahead of Foster on Dolphins' 1st depth chart

Jay Ajayi still appears to be the favorite for an early-down ball-carrier role in Miami.

The second-year running back is listed ahead of newly signed veteran Arian Foster on the Dolphins' first preseason depth chart, according to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald.

Initial projections often prove meaningless by the time Week 1 rolls around, but this is can be taken as yet another early acknowledgement that Ajayi is being given the opportunity to take the lead job and run with it.

While holding off a healthy Foster would be no easy task, the Dolphins have long been praising the veteran's ability in the passing game.

Perhaps Miami intends to have Ajayi take the bulk of carries while Foster stays fresh and enters games predominantly in third-down situations.

Ajayi, a fifth-round pick out of Boise State last year, tallied 187 yards and one touchdown on 49 carries as a rookie.

Foster joined the Dolphins coming off a 2015 campaign in which he suited up for just four games. He hadn't been showing any signs of slowing down the year prior, though, running for 1,246 yards on an impressive average of 4.8 per carry to earn his fourth career Pro Bowl nod.