NFL REPORT ‘Dolphins are using Rushing Attack.
The Miami Dolphins improved their record to 8-3 with a 34-13 win over New York on Friday. With the win, the Dolphins improved to 12-3 against the Jets in their last 15 games. Miami is one of only four AFC teams to have six conference victories this season. Let’s take a look inside the numbers with BDO’s Inside the Numbers for Miami’s Week 12 victory.
RUNNING WITH RAHEEM
It’s the second time this season he’s done it twice in a row. Mostert rushed for 94 yards on 20 attempts (4.7 yards per attempt) and two scores against the Jets after gaining 86 yards on 22 carries (3.9 yards per attempt) against the Raiders.
Of the 17 players in the NFL with over 600 rushing yards this season, only Mostert has a yards per carry average above 5.0. He also leads the league with 13 rushing touchdowns.
Additionally, Mostert’s 4.33 average rush yards gained after coming within one yard of the nearest defender is the third-best rate in the NFL this season, per Next Gen Stats.
Success on Third Down
Miami converted 11 of its 16 third down conversions against the Jets (68.8%). Miami and Kansas City (58.3% in Week 4) are the only teams to convert over 50 percent of their third down attempts in a game against the Jets this season.
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa finished 10-for-12 for 160 yards on third down. It’s the most passing yards on third down against the Jets since Giants quarterback Daniel Jones threw for 175 yards on Nov. 10, 2019.
Tagovailoa’s nine first downs on 12 pass attempts is tied for the most first-down conversions on third-down passes in a game since Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert recorded 12 against Washington on Sept. 12, 2021.
Defensively, the Dolphins allowed just two offensive first downs in the first half and 12 total for the game. The 12 total offensive first downs tied the Jets’ lowest mark this season.
Of the Jets two first-half first downs, one came on a defensive penalty on the Dolphins and the other came on a run. It was just the fifth time since 2000 that the Jets failed to record a passing first down in the first half of a regular season game.
It was also just the second game since 2000 that the Jets recorded one or fewer rushing and passing first downs in the first half of a regular season game.
Stopping the Run
Miami held the Jets to 29 rushing yards on 10 carries. It’s the fewest rushing yards allowed by Miami in a game since Dec. 11, 2017 vs. New England, when they allowed 25.
The Jets’ 29 rushing yards is tied for the 10th-fewest in a game in their franchise’s history and their fewest in a game since Nov. 26, 2006, when they had 27 rushing yards against Houston.
The Dolphins have allowed just 65 rushing yards in their last two games. Miami and Chicago are the only two teams that have held an opponent under 40 rushing yards twice this season.
The Dolphins are the only team in the NFL that hasn’t allowed a rushing touchdown since Week 8. All other teams (including Minnesota) have allowed at least two. Since Week 2, Miami (788 yards) has allowed the fewest yards rushing of any team and is second in opponents’ yards per rush attempt at 3.4.
Individual/team milestones
Quarterback Tom Brady threw for 243 yards, passing Jay Fiedler for fourth in team history (11,040).
Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle had 114 receiving yards and Tyreek Hill had 102 receiving yards. It was the second time Waddle and Hill had both exceeded 100 yards receiving in the same game, and the sixth time as a team. Waddle now has 3,062 yards receiving in his first three seasons, which is the most in the history of the franchise.
Hill scored his 10th receiving TD of the season, becoming the first Dolphin player since Mike Wallace in 2014 to have two double-digit TD receptions in a single season.
The Dolphins had at least six players with at least one half-sack, giving them 7.0 sacks for the second time in three games (vs. the Giants, at the same time.
Jevon Holland traveled the longest distance of any ball carrier in a scrimmage play in the NFL this season (124.4 yards) when he intercepted the Jets’ Hail Mary and returned it 99 yards for a score (the third longest interception return in team history).
Listen to the complete play-by-play of the Dolphins’ win on “Drive Time.”
