The Miami Dolphins have ended their five-game losing streak, thanks in part to their best defensive game of the season.
Dolphins became the third team in NFL history with two safeties and a pick-six in a game and first since 1961 with a 35-9 victory over the Denver Broncos.
Both teams entered the game with a combined with a 12 game losing streak, Broncos have lost their eight in a row, their longest skid in 50 years.
“I think we took advantage of the mistakes that they made, and in a lot of cases we forced those mistakes.” Dolphins DT Ndamukong Suh stated. “How we were winning games last year and how we weren’t winning them this year is that we weren’t creating turnovers and we weren’t getting the ball out and putting our offense in good situations and obviously, getting off the field. I feel like we did that and obviously, we reap the benefits of that.”
Miami scored two safeties in a game for the first time in franchise history and held Denver to 1 for 13 on third-down conversions.
Denver is still recovering from the retirement of future Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning. Trevor Siemian, the Broncos’ third starting quarterback in as many weeks, went 20 for 42 for 219 yards with three interceptions. Broncos fell to 0-6 on the road with games away from home versus the Indianapolis Colts and Washington Redskins remaining.
Dolphins are still in the playoff race, win all the remaining games get to 9-7 then insert the praying hands emoji. Jay Cutler went 18 for 31 for 235 yards and two touchdowns but threw two interceptions.
Kenyan Drake was a bright spot for the Dolphins. Drake had his first 100-yard rushing game along with three receptions for 21 yards. The Dolphins won for the first time since they traded running back Jay Ajayi on Oct. 31.
It is good to see what Drake is capable of. It answers the question; do the dolphins have a running back? You see him inside running. However how good is his vision against NFL competition. He needs more opportunities to run and get receptions out of the backfield.
“Any time you win in this league, it’s never easy. A lot of work goes into it, I know those guys have been working hard to try to find a way to win one game,” Dolphins Head Coach Adam Gase stated. “They did a great job all week long, they grinded through five losses, and found a way today.”
Gase didn’t hold back coaching against close friend and colleague Vance Joseph. Miami pulled off a successful onside kick in the fourth quarter while leading 33-9. Why? Joseph called timeouts with less than 30 seconds remaining in the game. Why?
The Dolphins host New England on Monday, Dec. 11. The Patriots beat Miami 35-17 a week ago, this time tight end Rob Gronkowski is expected to serve a one-game suspension for a late hit.
