Don’t look now but the Dolphins are on a 3-game winning streak and only 2 games behind potential playoff positioning. Anybody want to go streaking?!? Is that crazy or what? Those missed field goals by Jason Sanders in the Raiders, Jaguars, and Falcons games hurt a little bit more now don’t they? As poorly as this team has played all season long, the Dolphins are only 3 missed makeable field goals by their former all pro season kicker from being 7-4 and in 1st place in the AFC East today. I use the word former loosely…he is only one year removed from that honor and now he is as inconsistent as the weather in Kansas.
I know it was the stinking Jets but decisively beating a hated rival in their house always feels a little extra satisfying, so I will not take Sunday’s win for granted. The Dolphins gave the Jaguars their first win of the season across the pond, so I won’t take any win for granted. You don’t take a win for granted, especially when Sunday’s game had the familiar feeling of one that Miami would allow a lesser team hang around and steal defeat from the jaws of victory at the end with a walk off field goal make. It was hard not to feel that way when there was no separation in the score in the third quarter and Jason Sanders missed the 31-yard chip shot. All I could do was face palm, laugh, and pray that somehow we came out victorious on the other side and thankfully we did.
Tua had an amazing opening drive as he marched the offense right down the field for a touchdown while eating up tons of clock. It felt like 30 minutes of real time had elapsed from the kickoff to when the Jets offense finally got their turn. The play calling and misdirection was smooth on that call as Miami kept outflanking the young Jets defense and taking advantage of their rookie corners. However, after that opening drive the Jets defense adjusted and started getting pressure and movement via their defensive line at the line of scrimmage and that caused some frustrating struggles for the Miami offense for a large portion of the meaty middle of the game.
This game was another step in Tua’s growth as he grew in the game and started balling in the 2nd half. He targeted 8 different receivers on the day and found Waddle, Gesicki, and Gaskin for most of the receptions. The play and throw of the game was when Tua dropped back to pass and Jesse Davis the right tackle was beaten immediately. The pocket was squeezed but due to Tua’s diminutive size he was able to find space by stepping up to the left while still keeping his eyes down field and delivered a strike to Mack Hollins for a 65 yard touchdown. What was more impressive was that the ball was thrown 50 yards in the air from the Dolphins’ 30 to the opposite 20 with perfect placement. Tua also uncorked a ridiculously accurate pass to Waddle on the sideline for a key 3rd down conversion. Both of those passes required arm strength and had a high degree of difficulty in the accuracy department. Tua was up to the challenge and hit the target with the pace and power required to get the win.
The Dolphins defense also did their thing getting after Flacco all game by mixing up blitz coverages. Flacco did a pretty decent job of getting the ball out quick but ultimately wasn’t able to put together enough scoring drives to make a huge impact. Dolphins rookies Jaelan Phillips and Jevon Holland both had really productive games as well. They seem to be developing nicely and this aggressive scheme seems to suit them better than dripping Phillips and Holland back in coverage all of the time like we were doing earlier in the season. Those rooks like to cause chaos and get after the quarterback or get into the backfield to create tackles for loss that got the Jets off schedule very often throughout the game. The Dolphins have a tough task next week as they get set to take on Cam Newton after his reunion with the Carolina Panthers. If the Dolphins can pull off the win things will get really interesting heading into the stretch run of the season. One game at a time though! One game at a time.
