New York Jets Eliminated from Playoff Hunt With Overtime Loss to Dolphins

The New York Jets were officially eliminated from playoff contention after a dramatic overtime loss to the Miami Dolphins.

Dec 8, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; New York Jets wide receiver Davante Adams (17) is stopped by Miami Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks (20), safety Jordan Poyer (21), and safety Jevon Holland (8) afte running with the football during the second quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The New York Jets hadn’t won a game in Miami since 2014.

The Miami Dolphins made sure they would have to wait another year.

Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s touchdown pass to Jonnu Smith on the first drive of overtime led the Dolphins past the Jets, 32-26, in overtime on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium.

The loss eliminated the Jets (3-10) from playoff contention and kept the Dolphins (6-7) alive in the AFC Wild Card playoff picture.

The drive was like a dagger to the Jets. The Dolphins got the ball first and Smith, who hadn’t caught a pass in regulation, caught three on the game-winning drive, including the touchdown.

The end of regulation saw the Jets and Dolphins trade field goals.

Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers got them in position to let Andres Carlson kick his fourth field goal of the game, a 42-yarder, to give the Jets a 26-23 lead with less than a minute left. Carlson was kicking in just his third game for New York.

Miami, in dire need of a win to keep its wild card chances alive, received great field position courtesy of a Malik Washington kickoff return. Then, Tagovailoa moved the Dolphins into position for a 52-yard field goal by Jason Sanders to tie the game and send it to overtime.  

Rodgers threw for 339 yards, his first 300-yard passing game since Week 14 of the 2021 season. In fact, the Jets offense looked as good as it has looked in weeks, even without running back Breece Hall, who was out with a knee injury.

In his place, rookies Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis shared the load at running back, with both making an impact. Davis ended up scoring his first rushing touchdown, part of a 40-yard afternoon. He also caught three passes for 27 yards. Allen, meanwhile, rushed for 43 yards and caught four passes for 38 yards.

Wide receivers Garrett Wilson and Davante Adams had massive games, as the Jets had to put the game in Rodgers’ hands. Wilson had seven receptions for 114 yards. Adams had nine catches for 109 yards and a touchdown, which gave the Jets the lead in the third quarter, 20-15, followed by a Carlson field goal to push the lead to eight points.

Defensively, the Jets were without cornerback Sauce Gardner due to a hamstring injury and were also down another cornerback, Quan’tez Stiggers, due to an illness. Though it didn’t impact the expected starting lineup, the Jets moved linebacker C.J. Mosely to injured reserve on Saturday.

Early, Miami drove right down the field on its first drive of the game and took advantage of several Jets penalties to take an early lead on a 2-yard touchdown run by De'Von Achane.

From there, the Jets defense held the Dolphins without a touchdown, limiting them to three Jason Sanders field goals before Miami tied the game with 9:04 left  in the game.

Tagovailoa connected with wide receiver Tyreek Hill for a 4-yard touchdown pass and then hit Jaylen Waddle for a 2-point conversion to tie the game at 23-23.  

Tagovailoa threw for 331 yards and two touchdowns. Hill caught 10 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown. Achane rushed for 24 yards and a touchdown.