The Miami Dolphins continued their playoff push on Monday Night Football, going on the road to the Big Easy and defeating the short-handed New Orleans Saints 20-3.
With the win, the Miami Dolphins have completed a historical comeback, going 7-0 in November and December after a 1-7 start to the season. Miami currently stands at 8-7 and currently has the No. 7 seed in the AFC playoff picture.
Recap
The Dolphins were led by the “Tenacious-D” on Monday night. Saints rookie QB Ian Book seemed to have flashbacks playing against the Miami Hurricanes; on his second pass of the game and his career, he would get picked off by Nik Needham, who would return it 28 yards for a “Nik-Six”. It would set the tone of the game, as Miami would never look back after leading 7-0. Along with two interceptions, Miami’s defense would have eight sacks and did not allow the Saints to convert on third downs (0/12). The last eight sack game for the Dolphins was September 30, 2012 against the Arizona Cardinals. Also, it’s back-to-back 5+ sack games for the Dolphins and three straight games with 3+ sacks.
Ian Book, the rookie out of Notre Dame would eventually finish 12/20 with 135 yards and two interceptions.
Tua Tagovailoa, who entered the game with an NFL-best 69.9% completion rate, had another decent game. He connected on 19 of 26 passes (73.1%) for 198 yards, a TD and an interception.
Jaylen Waddle, who returned from COVID-19 protocols after missing last weeks game, recorded 10 receptions for 92 yards and a touchdown. Waddle’s 10 receptions ties Jerry Rice (1985) for the most catches in a MNF game for a rookie. Also, Waddle has 96 catches this season, eclipsing New Orleans’ Michael Thomas for the second-most receptions by a rookie in a single season. Waddle is now five short of Anquan Boldin’s rookie record of 101 catches in 2003.
The Miami Dolphins have now won seven consecutive games for the first time since 1985. Along with winning seven straight games, the Dolphins are the first team in NFL history to have both a seven-game winning streak and a seven-game losing streak in the same season.
Next Up:
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Now, all that stands between the Dolphins and the NFL Playoffs is Ryan Tannehill and Bill Belichick. If Miami beats both the Titans and the Patriots, Tua and the rest of Brian Flores’ squad will be headed to Wild Card Weekend.
Before Miami focuses on the playoffs, the Fins will have to avoid a Tannehill revenge game on Sunday, January 2nd, at 1:00 PM EST.