Tua Tagovailoa threw for 317 yards and four touchdowns, including two scores to running back De'Von Achane, and the Miami Dolphins routed the New England Patriots 34-15 on Sunday. The Dolphins (5-6) have a thin margin for error the rest of the season if they want to make it to the playoffs, but if they continue to play like they did against New England, it's hard not to see them making a deep run in the postseason.
The Dolphins received the ball first and wasted no time getting their offense going, driving 76 yards on 10 plays to take an early 7-0 lead. The Patriots responded with a lengthy drive of their own, but ultimately had to settle for a field goal, trailing 7-3 at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter saw more of the same, with the Dolphins scoring a touchdown on their opening drive of the quarter to take a 14-3 lead. The Patriots added another field goal, but Miami scored for a third time in as many drives to push its advantage to 21-6 at the half.
New England came out strong to start the third quarter, scoring its first touchdown of the game to cut the deficit to 21-13. However, the Dolphins responded with a long drive of their own, capping it off with a Tua Tagovailoa touchdown pass to push the lead back to 28-13.
The fourth quarter was a defensive struggle, with the only scoring play coming on a Patriots field goal. Miami added one more touchdown to its total, however, following a fumble recovery deep in New England territory. The final score was 34-15 in favor of the Dolphins.
The victory marked the Dolphins' third straight win and put them above .500 for the first time since the midpoint of October. If the playoffs started tomorrow, the Dolphins would be on the outside looking in, but their third consecutive victory has them trending in the right direction. The team will look to keep that momentum going next week when they travel to Las Vegas to face the Raiders.