Down 9 starters, Dolphins blank Jets in dominant performance to improve to 10-4

With nine starters out, including wide receiver Tyreek Hill, and less than a week removed from an epic collapse against the Tennessee Titans at home, things could have easily gotten worse for the Dolphins on Sunday.

But Miami is out to prove this December will be different.

A dominant defensive performance led by outside linebacker Bradley Chubb’s three sacks and wide receiver Jaylen Waddle’s clutch receiving effort in Hill’s absence, the Dolphins blanked the New York Jets 30-0 at Hard Rock Stadium.

The victory was the Dolphins’ first shutout since Oct. 18, 2020, which also came against the Jets at home.

“I think something like that that happened on Monday could have went both ways,” said quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who completed 21 of 24 passes for 224 yards and one touchdown.

“It could have went really good for us, could have been something really good or could have been something really bad. We could have felt sorry for ourselves, we could have felt bad that we lost, and we could have come out here and possibly done the same thing. But I think the mindset that everyone has in the building [is] to just be able to let that go, move on, and realize what we have ahead and the opportunity that we have to do something really, really special this year.”

The Dolphins (10-4) now face a decisive stretch during their final three games as they host the Dallas Cowboys next Sunday before traveling to Baltimore to play the Ravens and finish at home against the Buffalo Bills. Miami, which remains two games ahead of Buffalo in the AFC East, can clinch a playoff berth with a win against Dallas on Christmas Eve. The Dolphins can clinch the division with wins against the Ravens and Cowboys or by defeating the Bills in the regular-season finale.

This made Sunday’s win paramount against the struggling Jets (5-9) as the Dolphins need this December to go much better than it did last year when they lost four games during a five-game losing streak that put them on a path to a road playoff loss against the Bills.

The Dolphins secured their first 10-win season under coach Mike McDaniel and only their third in their past 15 seasons. Miami is 10-4 for the first time since 2000.

Hill was ruled out before the game with an ankle injury he sustained in the Dolphins’ 28-27 loss to the Titans, during which Miami let a 14-point lead slip away in the final three minutes. He was one of several key contributors to be sidelined, but the Dolphins never allowed the Jets a chance to pull off something similar after taking a comfortable 24-0 lead by halftime.

“It was a gut punch last week,” McDaniel said. “To go into a game and have so many question marks and for no one to bat an eye and just go out and play football without the anxiety induced from what happened last week takes a special group.”

The Dolphins’ defense recorded a season-high four takeaways, and its six sacks were the third most in a game this season. Miami had more sacks (5) than yards allowed (4) at halftime. It was the fewest total yards allowed in the first half of a game since Denver held the Raiders to minus-12 yards on Dec. 13, 2015. It was also the second time since 2000 that the Dolphins recorded five sacks in the first half of a game.

The Jets didn’t cross the 50-yard line until their second drive of the third quarter. But that march ended when a deep throw by quarterback Trevor Siemian, taking over for injured starter Zach Wilson, was intercepted by safety Brandon Jones, who finished with two interceptions as the Dolphins forced four turnovers overall.

With defensive backs Xavien Howard and Jevon Holland sidelined once again, cornerback Jalen Ramsey also shut down the Jets’ top receiver, Garrett Wilson, holding him without a catch in the first half. Wilson finished with only three catches for 29 yards on four targets.

“I was just doing what I normally do,” Ramsey said. “I found out ‘X’ [Howard] wasn’t playing an hour before the game and told me to follow Garrett. Usually he’s like 33 percent of the offense and still only got one target. I didn’t do much today. I just did what I normally do.”

Waddle eased any concerns of the Dolphins’ offense struggling without its most explosive playmaker as it did at times in the loss to Tennessee. Waddle caught eight passes for a season-high 142 yards. His 60-yard touchdown catch with 7:42 left in the second quarter was his longest reception of the season.

Running back Raheem Mostert (44 total yards) ran for two more touchdowns, setting a pair of team records in the process. Mostert brought his season total for overall touchdowns to 20, breaking a tie with former receiver Mark Clayton set in 1984. His 18 rushing touchdowns surpassed the previous record set by Ricky Williams in 2002.

“We shouldn’t change who we are as an offense because one guy is out,” Tagovailoa said. “We’ve got a lot of other guys that we trust, that we believed in, to keep on the team, and that’s what happened out there. It’s just the trust that we have in each other, and we just go out there, play what we see and play fast. As we prepared, that’s sort of the mentality that we had going into this game.

Tagovailoa on Sunday called the Dolphins’ loss to the Titans “embarrassing.” The defeat knocked Miami off its perch as the AFC’s No. 1 seed and brought back memories of other fateful late-season collapses in team history. However, shortly after the loss, Tagovailoa was steadfast in his belief that the Dolphins were a different team.

Chubb, who increased his season sack total to 9.5, acknowledged the talk that followed Miami after its upset loss. But he knew the team couldn’t do much about it until game day. Throughout the short week of preparation, McDaniel and players said wholesale changes to their process weren’t needed and they stuck to their normal routine.

The myriad of injuries the team entered with on Sunday didn’t do much to quell concerns entering the game. But by the fourth quarter, there were chants of “We Want Dallas” at Hard Rock Stadium, as many began to look ahead to a crucial three-game finish.

“The team is right where it needs to be, mentally, physically,” Chubb said. “We’ve got guys that are stepping up in big ways. You’ve got guys that have been doing this for a long time and will continue to do the things that they do and what makes them so great. So, this team is right where it needs to be. We’ve got just to stick together and understand that yes, we beat the Jets today but that’s not the end of our season and we’re going to keep fighting, keep working and next Sunday come out ready to play.”