Quarter-by-quarter analysis: Miami Dolphins’ 37-24 loss to New York Jets
First quarter
▪ Impact player: Jets wide receiver Chris Owusu brought down a 36-yard pass before racing 23 yards to a touchdown on an end around.
▪ Highlights: The Jets’ first drive ended with a field-goal attempt off the left upright after a Randy Starks sack killed the Jets’ drive. The Dolphins drove 46 yards to a 37-yard Caleb Sturgis field goal. Brian Hartline had two catches for 31 yards on the field-goal drive. Lamar Miller broke off a 20-yard run.
▪ Lowlights: The field-goal drive died when Daryn Colledge’s block blew up a third-and-1 run, and Miller got stuffed for a loss of 1. The next possession set the tone for the day — the Dolphins didn’t make Jets quarterback Geno Smith pay for throwing into double coverage. Instead, Owusu leaped for the catch. The Dolphins seemed to be caught flat-footed on the Owusu end-around TD.
Second quarter
▪ Impact player: Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill completed 9 of 12 passes for 99 yards and a touchdown in driving the Dolphins to a 17-14 halftime lead.
▪ Highlights: While stiff-arming Dolphins safety Reshad Jones, Smith fumbled, and Jason Trusnik recovered at the Jets’ 21. Daniel Thomas plowed in from 1 yard out five plays later. Pinned deep after the Jets took a 14-10 lead, Tannehill drove the Dolphins 93 yards and hit Charles Clay with a 23-yard touchdown pass after converting a third-and-15 with a 16-yard pass to Hartline.
▪ Lowlights: Eric Decker beat Cortland Finnegan deep for 40 yards, the first of several big plays for him. That set up Chris Ivory’s 8-yard touchdown catch on which Ivory was wide open in a blown coverage.
Third quarter
▪ Impact player: Smith had a career quarter — completing 8 of 10 passes for 192 yards and a touchdown as the Jets stormed back to tie the score 24-24.
▪ Highlights: A Koa Misi solo tackle, then a big push in the middle of the line prevented the Jets from turning third-and-1 at the Dolphins’ 2 into anything. After turning it over on downs, Miller blew through the right side for a 97-yard touchdown run.
▪ Lowlights: Owusu returned the second-half kickoff 87 yards. After Miller’s run put the Dolphins up 24-14, instead of the defense applying a crushing blow, it allowed a 74-yard touchdown pass from Smith to Decker. Going for it on fourth-and-5 from the Jets’ 36, the Tannehill missed Jarvis Landry with a pass that would’ve have gotten the first down. Another Decker catch, this time for 50 yards, set up a 26-yard field goal that tied the score.
Fourth quarter
▪ Impact player: Jets linebacker David Harris had 11/2 sacks, one of which caused a fumble that New York converted into its final points of the season.
▪ Highlights: They were few. Landry’s 17-yard catch to open the quarter seemed an indication the Dolphins would rejoin the offensive show.
▪ Lowlights: Sturgis’ 53-yard field-goal attempt floated wide right. The game remained 27-24, Jets, when on fourth-and-12 from the 39, punter Ryan Quigley caught the Dolphins asleep and lobbed a pass to Zach Sudfield. The 38-yard gain drained some of the life from Sun Life Stadium. Smith’s 23-yard touchdown pass to Jeff Cumberland on the next play put the Jets up 34-24 and finished the job. Tannehill was sacked five times in the quarter.
This story was originally published December 28, 2014 at 7:46 PM with the headline "Quarter-by-quarter analysis: Miami Dolphins’ 37-24 loss to New York Jets."