Dolphins Defeat Jets for First Victory

Has the “Tank for Tua” era finally ended in Miami?

The Miami Dolphins are no longer winless after defeating the New York Jets 26-18 on Sunday. Seconds followings the victory, Dolphins’ Head Coach Brian Flores received a Gatorade bath as celebration filled the atmosphere at Hard Rock Stadium.

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Slow Start

Similar to five other games this season, the Dolphins were unable to score any points in the first quarter. Instead of leading, the Dolphins yet again found themselves trailing the Jets 7-0 with 9:37 left in the first quarter.  The New York Jets were first to score with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Jamison Crowder from Sam Darnold. Despite early troubles, Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Dolphins’ offense kicked it into gear in the second quarter.

Dolphins Dominate Second

To open up the second quarter, the Miami Dolphins scored touchdowns on three straight drives. Fitzpatrick struck first 20 seconds into the second quarter finding Preston Williams up the middle of the field for a touchdown. The Dolphins extended their lead to a touchdown ten minutes later after Fitzpatrick hits DeVante Parker on out route for a 17-yard score.

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With under two minutes left in the quarter, Ryan Fitzpatrick connected with Preston Williams again for a five-yard touchdown to give the Dolphins a 21-7 lead over the Jets. Williams had himself quite a day receiving for Miami finishing the game with five receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown.

Two safeties and many field goals later, the Dolphins ended up defeating the Jets 26-18 to clinch their first win of the season.

Fitzmagic Takeover

Nothing seemed to be going right for the winless Dolphins. Ryan Fitzpatrick finally stepped up and put the team on his back on Sunday. Fitzmagic finished game with three touchdowns and 288 passing yards. He also completed 24/36 of his passes. The three scores brought Fitzpatrick’s season total to eight touchdowns, which ranks 22nd overall in the league.

While Ryan Fitzpatrick may not be the future franchise quarterback for the Dolphins, he was able to get the job done to give Miami the victory. Fitzpatrick commented on the Dolphins’ increase in communication on Sunday:

After struggling with illness all season, Sam Darnold turned in a poor performance for the Jets. Darnold threw for 260 yards and a touchdown on Sunday, while also throwing an interception. Poor quarterback play from New York brings the Jets record down to 1-7 overall on the season.

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Current Draft Order

With major potential franchise quarterback talent entering the 2020 NFL draft, teams are racing to see who will finish the season with the worst record and get the first pick. The winless Dolphins had been the clear front-runner all season for the first pick, but a victory over the Jets no longer cements themselves with the first pick.

As of today, the Cincinnati Bengals have the worst record in the NFL being 0-8 on the season. The Falcons, Redskins, Dolphins, and Jets all are tied with a 1-7 overall record on the season. A race looks to be forming for which NFL team will have the worst season in order to have the brightest future.