MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (FNN SPORTS) – A lot was at stake today as the Miami Dolphins hosted the Denver Broncos for their home opener at Hard Rock Stadium, and the Phins delivered.
Dolphins Make Franchise & NFL History
Once the game started, Tua wasted no time (1 minute 23 seconds) driving the Ferrari into the endzone as he connected with a wide-open Tyreek Hill for a 54-yard touchdown to give the Dolphins a 7-0 lead. The second drive took a little longer but ended with another touchdown. This time third round pick De’Von Achane got his first NFL touchdown for a 14-0 lead.
After a slow start, Russell Wilson drove the Broncos down the field at the end of the first quarter and got Denver on the board with a 12-yard touchdown to Courtland Sutton to cut the lead in half (14-7).
Despite multiple holding penalties negating big plays, Tua got the Phins back in the endzone with a trick shovel pass to Archane for a one-yard touchdown, his second on the day and a 21-7 lead.
Denver tacked on a 31-yard field goal after an offensive pass interference took a Courtney Sutton touchdown off the board, but the Dolphins drove right back down the field and Mostert broke a 20-yard touchdown run to put the Phins up 28-10. A forced fumble by Jevon Holland with just under two minutes put the Dolphins on the three-yard line and Mostert ran it in to give Miami points, tying for second most points scored in the first half in Dolphins history. Denver got inside the 10-yard line but settled for a 25-yard field goal to close out the half trailing 35-13.
The second half was more of the same. Tua connected on his first 17 passes (16 for 16 in the first half), but eventually missed on his 18th, falling one short of the team record. Archane then broke a 40-yard run to get the ball inside the 5-yard line and Mostert finished it off with a one-yard touchdown, his third of the game.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Tua surpassed 300 yards for the game, throwing another shovel pass to Archane for a touchdown. With that score, the Dolphins set a franchise record for points in a game (56), breaking the 55 they scored on Thanksgiving Day (11/24) in 1977 against the St. Louis Cardinals. Mike White entered the game and threw a 68-yard touchdown to Robbie Chosen, giving Miami 63 points–the most points scored in the NFL since 1966.
Archane went over 200 yards rushing for the day with a 67-yard touchdown, his fourth of the day. That score got the Dolphins to 70 points, two shy of an NFL record.
When asked about the last drive Coach McDaniel said, “I’m very okay with the decision, and I think the team, notably the leaders of the team supported it, the captains supported it. It’s not the way you want to get the record. I would hope that if the shoe was on the other foot, the opponent would feel the same way. That’s called karma. I’m trying to keep good karma with the Miami Dolphins.”
The lone highlight of the day for the Broncos was a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Marvin Mims Jr. in the middle of the fourth Quarter.
The Dolphins are 3-0 for the second consecutive season and improved to 9-1 all-time vs. Denver at home. After two close losses by three total points, the Broncos lost by seven touchdowns and have fallen to (0-3) on the season.
This was a game full of NFL and Dolphin records, including most points (70) and yards (726). The Dolphins are the first team in NFL history to record five passing touchdowns and five rushing touchdowns in the same game. Mostert and Achane are the first pair of teammates ever to both score 4 TDs in the same game. Tua set an NFL record with 10 victories against a Super Bowl winning coach. The 50-point margin of victory is 2nd all-time behind a 52-point win against the Patriots during the undefeated 1972 season.
Tua Tagovailoa, who entered today the #1 passer in the NFL, added 309 yards and four touchdowns with a 155.8 QB rating. While he usually uses his running ability as an advantage, he didn’t have to run at all today.
Running back Raheem Mostert continued his hot start, adding three rushing touchdowns, pushing his league lead to six, including a touchdown reception.
In the first full game of his career, De’Von Achane ran for 208 yards on 18 carries with four total touchdowns.
Lost in the incredible rushing performance was Tyreek Hill, who had nine catches for 157 yards, including the 54-yard touchdown to open the game. And the Dolphins did all of this without their second-best receiver as Jaylen Waddle is still in concussion protocol.
“It’s a lot of players executing a lot of things to a standard that’s unrelenting,” McDaniel said when asked his thoughts about 700+ yards and 10 touchdowns.
Diehard Dolphans
After a little rain to start the morning, the sun came out and the fans were tailgating in full force. There were a lot of hardcore fans there, but maybe none as diehard as Joe Bailey and Allie Goodman. Both have represented the Dolphins at the Super Bowl, with Allie being voted Fan of the Year (nominated by fans, selected by the Dolphins).
Joe Bailey (Lake Worth) is witnessing his 461st game in 54 years. He’s missed only 3 home games since 1970. When asked about the outlook for the season, he said “We got a Ferrari. As long as we got a guy that knows how to drive stick shift we are going all the way if we don’t blow a clutch.”
Allie “Dolphreaky” Goodman (Naples) is from Eastern Pennsylvania and her father was a die-hard fan who said “Sundays were about football. It was about the Dolphins and there was no other thing.” When she isn’t rooting on the Dolphins and heading up the SW Florida Dolphan Club, she is working on her charity Dolphreaky’s Phriends (dolphreakysfphriends.org – @dolphreaky)
There were pockets of Broncos fans including Emily G (Tampa), a lifetime fan who lived in Denver was still confident despite the 0-2 start. “No worries” as she predicts a 21-13 Broncos victory.
Stu Moss (hailing from New York) disagreed and was sure they will get to 3-0 with 28-10 victory. When asked how he became a Dolphins fan, he replied, “My wife’s a Dolphin fan and she said if I ever want to sleep with her again I gotta become a Dolphin fan.”
What’s Next
Denver travels to Chicago in a matchup between two winless teams. Miami travels to Buffalo next weekend to take on the 2-1 Bills in a big AFC East matchup.
If the Dolphins keep scoring this way, the 1972 team might have some company.
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Matt Wolff is a sports reporter for Florida National News. | info@floridanationalnews.com
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