Dolphins Take Redskins 20-9
MIAMI (CBSMiami/AP) – Reggie, Reggie, Reggie.
Miami Dolphins running back Reggie Bush scored two touchdowns and the Fins twice intercepted Rex Grossman to earn their first home victory in nearly a year by beating the Washington Redskins 20-9 Sunday.
The Dolphins ended a franchise-record streak of seven consecutive losses in Miami since last Nov. 14.
Grossman was a surprise starter, replacing John Beck four weeks after being benched. Grossman threw for 215 yards but was sacked three times and had a passer rating of 58.7, lower than his NFC-worst season figure.
Possessions by Washington reached the Miami 20, 26, 5 and 10-yard lines, but those threats produced only three field goals.
Miami (2-7) won for the second week in a row after starting 0-7. The Redskins (3-6) dropped their fifth consecutive game, the longest losing streak of Mike Shanahan's career as a head coach.
The Redskins haven't held a lead since Oct. 2, when they beat St. Louis.
The Dolphins led 10-6 at halftime, then mounted scoring drives of 70 and 81 yards to seal the win. After blowing fourth-quarter leads in three earlier losses, this time they held on.
The Dolphins were ahead 13-9 when Grossman drove his team 49 yards to a first down at the 10 early in the fourth quarter, but linebacker Karlos Dansby's interception ended the threat. Vontae Davis also had an interception for the Dolphins, who doubled their season total.
After Dansby's takeaway, Miami drove 81 yards and scored the clinching TD on Bush's 18-yard run. He crossed the goal line standing up and heaved the ball into the stands in jubilation.
The Redskins' three scoring drives totaled 48 yards. Washington twice took over deep in Miami territory thanks to an interception and a fumble recovery, but each time settled for a field goal by Graham Gano.
He also missed from 50 and 49 yards.
Washington's injury-plagued offense netted only 61 yards rushing.
Miami's Matt Moore, the AFC offensive player of the week last week, threw an ugly interception and lost a fumble but completed 20 of 29 passes for 209 yards.
The Dolphins, who came into the game last in the NFL in third-down conversions, went 8 for 14 in those situations.
They started the game in the wildcat — the first time they've used the package this season. Running back Daniel Thomas took the snap and pitched to Moore, who threw deep and incomplete to Brandon Marshall.
Miami tried another trick play later in the drive, with Thomas throwing incomplete. More conventional was the final play of the series, a 1-yard touchdown run by Bush.
Kevin Barnes' interception in the first half gave the Redskins the ball at the Miami 5, but three plays lost 3 yards and they kicked a field goal. Washington started at the Miami 24 after Ryan Kerrigan's sack forced a fumble by Moore, and again the Redskins came away with only three points.
Dansby, Jason Taylor and Jared Odrick had the Dolphins' sacks.
(TM and © Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2010 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
