The Miami Dolphins pulled off a 180 on Sunday afternoon at Hard Rock Stadium, and not a moment too soon.
The Dolphins rallied from a 17-7 deficit late in the third quarter to stun the Jacksonville Jaguars 20-17 to kick off the teams’ 2024 seasons. The Dolphins, stymied for much of the day, came to life late in the second half, putting together three scoring drives in the game’s final 17 minutes.
However, there was a key moment on the other side of the ball that you can trace back to when this game turned from potential blowout in favor of the Jags to a fighting chance for a Miami comeback.
With the Jaguars leading 17-7 and with the ball in the red zone with a little over 2 minutes left in the third quarter, Jaguars RB Trevor Etienne broke for the goal line. As he approached it, Dolphins safety Jevon Holland reached in and punched the ball loose. It rolled into the end zone, where Kader Kohou recovered it for Miami.
Instead of being down 24-7, Miami still had life down 10 points. And from there, they wasted no time in closing the gap.
On the next play, Tyreek Hill caught a deep ball across the field, tiptoed through a defender’s tackle, and streaked up the sideline for a game-tilting 80-yard touchdown. Hill reenacted his arrest from earlier in the day with a fitting celebration.
From there, Miami’s defense dug its heels in and shut down the Jaguars’ offense, turning them over on downs inside their own 30. After the Dolphins missed a field goal, Jacksonville could muster just 1 yard on 7 plays over their final two drives of the game, setting the stage for the Dolphins to drive 8 plays and 31 yards for a walk-off Jason Sanders 52-yard field goal.
A great effort by the Dolphins to close out the game. However, it might all have been for not if it wasn’t for a tremendous play by the Dolphins’ star safety.
