Dolphins Run Past Patriots
The Miami Dolphins were missing most of their key players for the passing game, so they went to the ground against the New England Patriots at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday.
Tua Tagovailoa scored two rushing touchdowns and rookie Salvon Ahmed rushed for 122 yards and a score and the Dolphins defeated New England 22-12 to keep pace in the AFC playoff race.
The victory improved the Dolphins record to 9-5 and, more importantly, allowed them to keep control of their postseason fate with two games remaining.
The Dolphins clinched the 31st winning record in team history and their first since 2016.
“It’s always good to win," head coach Brian Flores said. "That’s why these guys put all the blood, sweat, and tears in. That’s why they prepare so hard and practice so hard and lift the weights, and not so much for me, but for this team and these players and what they put into, the effort they put into trying to go out there and execute. I’m just happy for these guys. We’re just going to take this one game at a time and continue to prepare the right way, continue to try to improve every day.
"But honestly, for the Dolphins fans, I’m very … I think we got great fans, people who are lifers, man. They love this team, so it’s happy to, I mean, … I’m happy to bring some joy into their – or we’re happy, I should say – to bring some joy to these, to our fans because they deserve it.”
The loss eliminated the Patriots (6-8) from playoff contention, keeping them out of the postseason for the first time since 2008.
Tagovailoa scored the game-winning touchdown on a 3-yard scramble early in the fourth quarter and added an insurance score with a 1-yard sneak with 3:17 remaining. Ahmed scored on a 1-yard run on the opening drive of the second half.
“Yeah, well, I tried to do everything I could to get in the end zone," Tagovailoa said. "I've just got to work a little bit more on some other dance moves I got going. (laughter)”
The Dolphins played the game without their top four receiving leaders, including tight end Mike Gesicki, and wide receivers DeVante Parker and Jakeem Grant. They all missed the game because of injuries sustained in the 33-27 loss against the Kansas Chiefs a week earlier, and wide receiver Preston Williams has been on injured reserve for over a month.
Rushing leader Myles Gaskin also missed the game because he remains on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, but Ahmed returned after missing three games with a shoulder injury and produced the first 100-yard rushing performance by a Dolphins player this season.
Behind Ahmed and 86 yards by Matt Breida, the Dolphins rushed for 250 yards, easily topping their season high of 138 yards.
"I just went out there and tried to do my best, and they were able to go out there and make things work, and I just followed behind them," Ahmed said. "The O-line was doing great things and the receivers were blocking downfield and so it was fun to be a part of that.”
The defense welcomed back linebackers Kyle Van Noy and Elandon Roberts after a one-game absence and held the Patriots to four field goals by Nick Folk.
The Dolphins defeated New England in Miami in December for the seventh time in eight games.
Tagovailoa passed for a modest 145 yards, though he completed 20 of 26 passes. He did have one interception, which came at the end of a drive that had covered 95 yards.
The pick, which came when Tagovailoa was hit as he released the ball, was recorded by cornerback J.C. Jackson, who moved within one of the NFL lead held by Dolphins corner Xavien Howard with his eighth pick.
The Dolphins trailed 6-0 before they took the second-half kickoff and marched 72 yards on nine plays, eight of them runs.
"I think going into the third quarter, we wanted to start better than we did in the first half," Tagovailoa said. "I think the first half we did pretty well, but the decision I made down there in the red area kind of put us back a little bit and kind of kept the Patriots in the game. And that whole first half, I was drowning. That was my fault because we had points there and I tried to force that. So third quarter and fourth quarter, second half, we just wanted to come out and take what the defense gave us, and then you guys saw what the O-line and the running backs were doing.”
After New England regained the lead, the Dolphins then went 90 yards on 14 plays and scored when Tagovailoa avoided oncoming blitzer J.C. Jackson and found his way to the end zone.
The Dolphins responded to another Folk field goal with an 11-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that featured eight runs, including a 24-yard pick-up by Matt Breida.
The Dolphins were shut out in the first half thanks to the Jackson interception and a missed 52-yard field goal attempt by Jason Sanders, who had missed one kick before missing one each of the past two games.
Emmanuel Ogbah clinched the victory when he sacked Cam Newton on fourth down after the two-minute “
"They threw a lot at us and they had their backs against the wall," defensive tackle Christian Wilkins said. "This was an elimination game for them. So it’s big that we were able to keep them out of the end zone, get some stops, made some much-needed plays at times. So that was good. It was good to see that out of the defense.”
