Dolphins-Jets 2024 Week 14 Instant Takeaways

The Miami Dolphins survive a massive scare from the New York Jets

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) throws the football against the Miami Dolphins during the second quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

What stood out in the Miami Dolphins Week 14 game against the New York Jets.

We'll start with the inactive list, which featured running back Raheem Mostert (hip) as the only player out because of an injury. Cornerback Kendall Fuller (concussion) and linebacker Anthony Walker Jr. (hamstring) were back in the lineup after missing three games and one game, respectively.

Skylar Thompson servesd as the emergency third quarterback, behind Tua Tagovailoa and Tyler Huntley.

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GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

So clearly nothing is going to come easy for the Dolphins this season.

This was much tougher than expected, but the bottom line is the Dolphins accomplished what they needed to do to keep themselves in the playoff conversation.

And, of course, it figures that Aaron Rodgers would have his first 300-yard passing performance of the season against the Dolphins.

There was more sloppy tackling by the defense, but what was worse were some communication issues.

The running game basically was nonexistent for the Dolphins, and the performance in short-yardage situations was borderline embarrassing.

It was another solid game for Tua Tagovailoa, who continues to be very efficient with the short and intermediate passing, though the big plays still are lacking.

Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle were the focal points of the passing game at the expense of Jonnu Smith, and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Disappointing to see Terron Armstead continue to deal with knee problems, forcing him to leave the game twice, the second time for good.

FIRST QUARTER

-- The Dolphins opened with a flurry, moving 67 yards in just four plays, with some crips short passing from Tagovailoa.

-- Liam Eichenberg struck again in his role of agitator, drawing a third roughness penalty against an opponent, this time Javon Kinlaw. It again came after Eichenberg annoyed an opponent enough to get shoved in the face. Hey, this has become effective for the Dolphins.

-- While the drive ended with a touchdown, it was disappointing that the Dolphins needed four plays plus a DPI to score from the 3-yard line. Ugh.

-- And then the touchdown was dampened a bit when Jason Sanders missed the extra point, his first miss after 175 consecutive conversions.

-- While we're not necessarily big on criticizing the officiating, the third-down DPI against Jalen Ramsey was a bit touchy because it didn't look as though Garrett Wilson would have had a shot at the pass even despite the obvious contact.

-- This wasn't a sack but just as good when Chop Robinson's pressure forced a third-down incompletion with the Jets at the 10-yard line. And Robinson drew a flag on the play to boot.

SECOND QUARTER

-- The Jets, with nothing to lose, showed aggressiveness going for the first down on fourth-and-4 from their 48 down 9-3 and they converted when Garrett Wilson got the inside track on Jalen Ramsey on a quick slant and Rodgers delivered a strike.

-- The 17-yard run by Isaiah Davis to cap the drive was brutal to watch from a defensive standpoint because he was barely touched and the two safeties didn't get involved in the play.

-- The Dolphins failed a third-and-1 when Jonnu Smith let Haason Redick beat him outside to drop De'Von Achane for a 1-yard loss.

-- Tough call on Zach Sieler nullifying Emmanuel Ogbah's third-down sack, though it's tough to complain about it when replays showed him clearly holding guard John Simpson's arm as Ogbah was getting past him. The real shame is that Ogbah likely would have beaten Simpson anyway.

-- Bad defensive breakdown allowed Davante Adams to get wide open downfield for a 34-yard gain after Kader Kohou let him go from the slot but Jevon Holland wasn't there to pick him up.

-- And then another mix-up in coverage led to Adams being wide open on an out route to convert a third-and-6.

-- Great job by Tagovailoa to get three quick completions, including a 15-yarder over the middle to Jaylen Waddle, to set up Jason Sanders' 57-yard field goal right before halftime.

THIRD QUARTER

-- The second half started off on the wrong foot for the Dolphins when Garrett Wilson beat Jalen Ramsey with a double move for a 42-yard completion.

-- On fourth-and-2, Anthony Walker Jr. found himself having to cover Isaiah Davis out of the backfield and couldn't stay close, the result being a 15-yard gain.

-- The Dolphins' first drive of the second half was derailed after a holding penalty on fullback Alec Ingold nullified a long run by De'Von Achane.

-- On a third-and-4, Tagovailoa settled for a dump-off to Odell Beckham Jr. and it gained only 1 yard. That was followed by the somewhat surprising decision by Mike McDaniel to punt on fourth-and-4 from the Jets 48. This simply isn't like him.

-- The Dolphins gave up another long drive after the punt, but at least they forced the Jets to settle for a field goal thanks to a third-down coverage sack.

-- The third quarter ended with an ugly Dolphins possession that featured three straight incompletions, again flashing a spotlight on the Dolphins' lack of a running game.

FOURTH QUARTER

-- The Dolphins got a critical stop on the first drive of the quarter thanks to Kendall Fuller's sure tackle on second down and Zach Sieler coming up with a big sack on third down.

-- The Dolphins finally decided to use Jeff Wilson Jr. on the next drive, something we still can't figure out.

-- The Dolphins yet again failed on a third-and-goal run from the 1-yard, but that became moot with Tagovailoa's touchdown pass to Tyreek Hill and two-oint conversion to Jaylen Waddle.

-- The defense got the stop it needed to give the offense the ball back in a tie score, but the offense failed to score, in large part because of a holding penalty against Robert Jones.

-- Calais Campbell came up with not one but two huge plays on the Jets' final drive, with his penetration leading to a 5-yard loss on a run followed by pressure leading to Sieler's second sack.

-- Massively clutch kickoff return by Malik Washington to let the Dolphins start at their 46 for their must-have drive.

-- What missed extra point? Clutch kicking by Jason Sanders again, his 52-yard field goal tying the score at 26-26.

OVERTIME

-- The Dolphins won the overtime coin toss and that's all they needed to finally put the Jets away.

-- The Dolphins finally got Jonnu Smith involved, including back-to-back tight end screens that picked up 20 and 14 yards.

-- It wasn't long into that drive that it seemed a formality that the Dolphins would score because it was one wide open receiver after another, and Tagovailoa closed things out with a nice throw to Smith in the end zone after having all day in the pocket..