Dolphins Beat Jets 28-25 for First Win of Season as Willis Throws Two Touchdowns

The Miami Dolphins earned their first win of the season on Sunday, beating the New York Jets 28-25 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Malik Willis threw two touchdown passes to rookie Caleb Douglas and ran for another score. Willis completed 14 of 21 passes for 208 yards and did not throw an interception.

Miami led for the first time all season

Miami scored touchdowns on its first two drives, the first time it had done so this season, and took the lead for the first time all year when Willis threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Douglas. Douglas had missed Miami’s prior three games with an ankle injury.

The Jets answered, and Miami went back in front 14-7 on a 14-play, 60-yard drive capped by a 1-yard run from Ollie Gordon II. Gordon ran for 103 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries, and Miami rushed for 156 yards in all.

Jets rally falls short in the fourth quarter

Miami moved ahead 28-17 with 4:55 left when Willis found Douglas down the sideline for a 63-yard score, the team’s highest scoring output of the season. Geno Smith threw three touchdown passes for the Jets, including a 12-yarder to Mason Taylor, who caught five passes for 62 yards and two touchdowns.

Smith connected with Taylor on a two-point conversion to cut the lead to three with 3:24 left. Miami then ran out the clock, starting with a 14-yard run by Gordon, and Willis sealed the win with a 2-yard sneak on fourth-and-1 from the Jets’ 49 with less than two minutes left, with New York out of timeouts.

The Jets fell to 2-5, their fifth loss in six games and their eighth straight loss against an AFC East opponent. Braelon Allen started again for injured running back Breece Hall and ran for 104 yards on 17 carries. Omar Cooper Jr. caught five passes for 115 yards and a touchdown.

Miami moved to 1-5 with the win.

Reporting based on coverage by Reuters.