Dolphins Defense Grounds Darnold, Jets For 20-12 Victory
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NEWARK (CBSMiami) – For the first time under head coach Adam Gase, the Miami Dolphins have opened a season with two straight wins.
Heading into a hostile environment against a division rival, the Dolphins (2-0) put together a solid road effort and defeated the New York Jets 20-12 at MetLife Stadium in Newark on Sunday.
After leading 20-0 at halftime, Miami had to hold off a late-game push by the Jets (1-1) to get back into the game.
A 41-yard Jason Myers field goal brought New York to within one score of the Dolphins with 5:56 to go, but that would be the last time the Jets' offense would see the field.
Starting at their own 25, Miami put together a game-sealing drive led by running backs Kenyan Drake and Frank Gore, as well as a couple runs by quarterback Ryan Tannehill.
Tannehill's 8-yard run on third and six from the Jets' 22 allowed the Dolphins to go into victory formation for the final two minutes of the game.
Miami did exactly what was needed to defeat the Jets, scoring two touchdowns off two interceptions and sacking rookie quarterback Sam Darnold three times.
The 21-year-old threw for 334 yards and a touchdown.
On the other side of the field, it wasn't the easiest of afternoons for Tannehill either, which is to be expected against this fast, aggressive Jets defense.
Tannehill completed 17-of-23 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns, good for a quarterback rating of 123.1. He also ran the ball eight times for 44 yards, averaging 5.5 yards per carry.
GOOD RUN GAME
As a team, Miami ran for 135 yards on 31 carries, an average of 4.4 yards per rush.
Kenyan Drake led the way with 11 carries for 53 yards and a touchdown.
While those aren't eye-popping numbers, its an extremely successful afternoon when considering it was against the stingy Jets' defense.
TAKE ME AWAY
T.J. McDonald and Xavien Howard had interceptions for the Dolphins, who now have six through just two games.
Miami was 29th in the NFL in takeaways last season but they already have seven in 2018.
HAACK ATTACK
Miami punter Matt Haack played at a Pro Bowl level on Sunday. He had six punts, each and every one landing inside New York's 20-yard-line.
Actually, three were downed inside the Jets' 10.
EXCLUSIVE COMPANY
Gore, who should absolutely be labeled as a future Hall of Famer, moved into fourth place on the NFL's all-time rushing list, passing Curtis Martin's total of 14,101 yards.
Gore picked up 25 yards, making his new rushing total 14,112 yards.
He now trails third place Barry Sanders by 1,157 yards.
It's worth noting that every player in the NFL's rushing top 10 are in the Hall of Fame except for Gore and Adrian Peterson, both of whom are still active.
Peterson passed Jim Brown to move into tenth place on Sunday.