Matt Moore saves Dolphins…again
The Miami Dolphins came back from a 14 point deficit Sunday to defeat the New York Jets 31-28. The last 17 points for Miami came with Matt Moore as the starting quarterback.
Matt Moore has done it again. Moore has led the Dolphins to four of their last six victories dating back to last season. .
Moore closed the game against the Arizona Cardinals week 14 last year. Then started and beat the Jets and the Bills in weeks 15 and 16 to clinch a playoff berth.
Sunday, Miami entered the fourth quarter trailing 28-14. Matt Moore put the team on his back and lead the Dolphins to two straight scoring drives to tie the game at 28.
A Bobby McCain interception inside the Jets 30 yard-line with less than a minute to play led to a 39-yard field goal by Cody Parkey to give the Dolphins a 4-2 record heading into Thursday night’s matchup with the Baltimore Ravens.
Moore went 13/21, 188 yards, 2 TD’s and 1 INT since coming in for Jay Cutler, who injured his chest, with 12:49 to play in the third quarter.
That’s a quarterback rating of 102.9 for the Dolphins backup quarterback.
When Ryan Tannehill got injured before the season started I wrote an article on why Matt Moore should start for Miami. What happened Sunday is exactly why.
Moore completed five passes for over 20 yards in nearly two quarters of play. Jay Cutler only completed six in his first five and a half games.
Matt Moore is a gunslinger, which people always say leads to more interceptions. However, in Moore’s three starts to finish last season and Sunday’s second half, Moore has thrown for 909 yards, 10 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions.
The veteran backup is averaging about one INT per game, but as long as he’s getting Miami in the end zone at the rate he is right now, who cares?
In Moore’s last six appearances, the only time the Dolphin offense has struggled is at Pittsburgh in a playoff game. Even then, Moore went 29 for 36 (80.6%), threw for 289 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
In Jay Cutler’s five games before Sunday the Dolphins were the worst scoring offense in the league. Although, Cutler did play well in the first half against the Jets Sunday.
We do not know who will be Miami’s QB Thursday night at Baltimore, but if it’s Matt Moore no one will be complaining.