Dolphins dominate in primetime, claim 31-13 victory over Jaguars
Welcome back to the win column to the Miami Dolphins! The Dolphins entered Thursday Night Football as a desperate football team, sitting at 0-2 after two one score losses to AFC East divisional rivals. Exiting tonight’s contest, the Dolphins are now 1-2 courtesy of a 31-13 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars — a performance that was highlighted by the Dolphins sprinting out to early leads thanks to three consecutive touchdown drives to start the game.
That scoring efficiency was the best start to a game for the Miami Dolphins in nearly a decade: Miami last opened a game with three consecutive touchdowns back in 2011 against the Buffalo Bills.
The contest opened with 10 consecutive completions for quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, who offered the Dolphins his most efficient start of the season. Fitzpatrick was not only efficient, he was lethal in the early portions of the game before the Dolphins transitioned into cruise control as they eased their way into the win column — Fitzpatrick laced several throws into tight coverage in the red zone to provide scores to WR Preston Williams and TE Mike Gesicki.
But Fitzpatrick wasn’t the only star of Miami’s victory over Jacksonville. The Dolphins defense suddenly found their teeth — charging into the Jaguars’ offensive backfield for four sacks but also providing tenacious coverage. Cornerback Xavien Howard logged the team’s first interception of the year thanks to a late pick inside the 10-yard line, ending Jacksonville’s hopes of climbing back into the game late. The Dolphins were willing in the second half to let the Jaguars take easy completions in coverage — their defensive efforts were greatly boosted by Miami mixing in more zone coverage in Week 3 to keep Gardner Minshew guessing on offense.
Miami ended the night with an 18-point victory, their first 10+ point win since 2017. Miami owned more first downs, a better 3rd-down percentage, nearly twice as many rushing yards (138 versus 72), fewer penalties and a 2-0 advantage in the turnover margin. It was a complete win — and a necessary victory for the Dolphins to reclaim control of their 2020 season.
From here, Miami will look to take advantage of an extended break before their Week 4 contest against the Seattle Seahawks. If Miami can get healthy in the secondary and continue their efficient play on offense, perhaps the team can give Seattle a run for their money and make a push for a return to .500. But for now, Miami will relish in a total team effort before looking to correct some sloppy tackling in their Week 3 victory. And shortly after that, it will be on to Seattle and Week 4.
