Five Biggest Storylines for the Dolphins-Jets Matchup ... How They Played Out
The Miami Dolphins made it three victories in a row when they defeated the New York Jets, 24-17, at MetLife Stadium on Sunday.
We identified the five biggest storylines heading into the matchup, so now it's time to revisit them to see how they played out.
1. Tua Back in Charge
BEFORE THE GAME: After serving as a backup the past two games and coming off the bench in the Thursday night victory against the Baltimore Ravens, Tua Tagovailoa will be back as the starting quarterback against the Jets. Ironically, this will be Tua's first start against the Jets after he came off the bench for the game at Hard Rock Stadium last year and missed the rematch in New York because of a thumb injury.
IN THE GAME: It was a highly efficient performance by Tua, who completed 27 of 33 passes with two touchdowns, the 65-yarder to Mack Hollins in the third quarter and the game-winning 5-yard throw to Myles Gaskin in the fourth. As has been the case pretty much every game, pretty much all of the passes were short, but Tagovailoa was accurate on those and he came up with some nifty throws at times, most notably an 8-yard completion to Jaylen Waddle on a third-and-7 on the game-winning touchdown drive.
2. Can Offense Come Up Big?
BEFORE THE GAME: The Dolphins offense has been sporadic throughout the 2021 season, but if ever there was a favorable matchup, this is it. The Jets have been historically bad on defense over the past four months, giving up an average of 44 points and 473 yards in their past four games. The Dolphins have yet to score 30 points in any game this season, and this sure looks like the game to do it.
IN THE GAME: While the offense did enough to win the game, it certainly wasn't an explosion considering the Dolphins scored 24 points. They racked up 388 total yards, which represented the third-highest total of the season behind the games against Atlanta and Jacksonville and they scored on both of their goal-to-go situations, which were positives. But a breakout game for the offense? Not really.
3. That Flacco Fellow
BEFORE THE GAME: When the season began, this looked like an intriguing matchup of two young QBs between Tua and 2021 second overall pick Zach Wilson, but instead the Dolphins defense will face one of the oldest quarterbacks in the NFL in Joe Flacco. It truly was a curious choice by first-year Jets head coach Robert Saleh to go with Flacco over Mike White or Josh Johnson considering how much Flacco struggled (and looked flustered while doing it) when the Dolphins shut out the Jets at Hard Rock Stadium last season.
IN THE GAME: The first obvious observation here is that Flacco certainly performed better than he did in the game last season and he seemed to validate Saleh's decision to go with him. Flacco threw two touchdown passes and was sacked twice, including the key play when Brandon Jones drilled him from behind on a second-and-goal to force a fumble the Dolphins recovered. Maybe the best thing we can say for Flacco is he gave the Jets a chance to win the game.
4. O-line Under Observation
BEFORE THE GAME: Yes, we have to mention the offensive line each and every week because it's unfortunately been an issue almost each and every week. As mentioned above, the Jets have really struggled on defense, though the offensive line still will have to make sure to block talented lineman Quinnen Williams.
IN THE GAME: If we're going to give praise to Tua for his performance — and he certainly deserves it — then the offensive line absolutely needs to be mentioned positively as well. Tua was not sacked in the game, though there should have been one of those in the fourth quarter if not for a really weak defensive holding call against the Jets, though that sack would have been on Tua for holding the ball too long. There was sporadic pressure on the quarterback, but the pass protection generally was good, and there were some nice holes opened up in the running game, particularly up the middle.
5. Catching Up With Carter
BEFORE THE GAME: Even though the focus has been on Wilson since the start of the season, the Jets' best offensive rookie this year has been running back Michael Carter. The former North Carolina standout leads the team in rushing yardage and is tied for first in receptions. He's also somebody with whom the Dolphins coaching staff is very familiar, having coached him at the Senior Bowl this past January. “He’s a good back," head coach Brian Flores said Friday. "He’s a good young back, good vision, downhill runner. But he can also make you miss in space. He’s good out of the backfield. He’s done a nice job for them. They’re doing a good job getting him the ball and highlighting his skillset. We liked him at the Senior Bowl. I think he’s smart, he’s tough. You could see some of the professionalism just in that week, that he would do the things necessary to give himself a chance to have success, and clearly that’s happened.” One thing about Carter: He was a fourth-round pick this year, but he's not to be confused with Jets rookie fifth-round pick Michael Carter, a cornerback out of Duke who has played all nine games with three starts.
IN THE GAME: Before he had to leave the game with an apparent ankle or knee injury early in the third quarter, Carter was giving the Jets enough of a threat in the running game to keep the Dolphins defense honest. Carter showed off his burst on his 39-yard run to set up New York's first touchdown and it's pretty clear he's got something as an NFL running back.
