The Miami Dolphins earned a bunch of firsts in Week 7. They led for the first time, scored on the opening drive for the first time, led at halftime for the first time, and at the end of the game, they won for the first time.
Jeff Hafley used the bye week well to get his hard-hitting team prepared for a dogfight. Welcome to the AFC East's biggest rivalry! On Sunday, Hafley checked off that final box he was missing.
While there were plenty of Dolphins players who stood up and took the Jets to task, two former players who spent last year with the team gave the Dolphins the boost they desperately needed.
Miami Dolphins can thank former cast offs for first victory of the Jeff Hafley era
Jason Sanders
Sanders isn't the kicker who puts the ball in play on kickoffs. That was handled by the punter in Week 7, but he did handle the field goals. Sanders was perfect on extra points, but his best kick of the day (for Miami, at least)came when Sanders lined up for a 40-yard field goal.
Sanders couldn't nail the easy three-point kick, hitting it off the crossbar. The kick would come into play later, as the Jets would lose by three points to Miami. Making that kick would have changed how the rest of the game played out.
Dolphins fans know all too well how it feels to watch Sanders miss a critical field goal. On Sunday, he didn't get another shot at redemption.
Minkah Fitzpatrick
The former Dolphins first-round pick, who was traded to the Steelers and then traded for by Chris Grier last year, was again traded this past offseason by Jon-Eric Sullivan. In his first game against his former team, Fitzpatrick played well.
Unfortunately for the Jets, the 10 tackles that Fitzpatrick produced in Week 7 were not enough. The safety did, however, miss an opportunity to keep Dolphins WR Caleb Douglas out of the end zone.
Fitzpatrick was in the perfect position to stop Douglas on his 63-yard touchdown. Fitzpatrick allowed Douglas to dance along the sideline and came up short. The touchdown gave the Dolphins all the points they would need to win the game.
The victory is Jeff Hafley's first as an NFL head coach. Ironically, it comes in a stadium that he grew up just 20 miles from.
All the hard work the Dolphins have put into this season finally came together, and the result was what they were hoping for.
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