Dolphins punter throws touchdown to kicker on one of coolest plays you’ll see all year
The Miami Dolphins haven’t been afraid to get tricky at all this season. They’ve sprung surprise onside kicks and run fake punts, but nothing was quite like the play which gave them the lead in the second quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
Facing a fourth-and-goal at the Eagles’ 1-yard line, the Dolphins sent out their field-goal unit and quickly motioned everyone but punter Matt Haack and center Daniel Kilgore out wide into bunch formations. The play ended with a touchdown pass from Haack to kicker Jason Sanders.
Haack took the snap from Pepper and immediately darted to his left, where five of his teammates were lined up. Four of them motioned out to the sideline, drawing most of Philadelphia’s defense with them. Sanders slipped through a crease when three other Eagles defenders rushed at Haack and the punter slipped a shovel pass through an opening to Sanders to tie the game. An extra point — held by Haack and booted through by Sanders — gave Miami a one-point lead with 4:40 left in the first half at Hard Rock Stadium
The touchdown pass by Haack was the first of his career. His only other pass attempt was an interception he threw back in 2017. He now has as many touchdown passes as quarterback Josh Rosen does this year in 109 pass attempts. Haack also has one run for 2 yards this year on a successful fake punt.
The touchdown catch by Sanders was the first catch of his career. To celebrate, Sanders tossed the ball into the Miami Gardens sky before defensive tackle Christian Wilkins lifted him in the air. Haack then flew in for a leaping chest bump with his fellow specialist.
Philadelphia, however, responded with a touchdown to take a 21-14 lead into halftime.
This story was originally published December 1, 2019 at 2:34 PM with the headline "Dolphins punter throws touchdown to kicker on one of coolest plays you’ll see all year."
