On Sunday, the Miami Dolphins earned their first win of the season as they defeated the New York Jets 28-25 at MetLife Stadium.
Miami held its first lead of the season during the team’s opening drive, as they marched down the field and quarterback Malik Willis connected with wide receiver Caleb Douglas on a 7-yard touchdown pass.
Miami then jumped out to a 21-7 halftime lead before New York rallied in the third quarter. Another touchdown by Douglas increased Miami’s lead in the fourth quarter before a pair of first downs, which included a game-sealing fourth-and-1 conversion, allowed Miami to run out the clock and secure their first win with quarterback Malik Willis.
Miami Dolphins Quarterback Malik Willis Sends Strong Message After Jets Win
Following the game, Miami Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis was asked whether the win showed what kind of team the Dolphins could be in the future. Willis replied, “We’re just trying to continue to figure that out. One play at a time, one opportunity at practice at a time, one opportunity in a game at a time. We have so many young guys. We’re trying to figure out who we actually are and what we want to be great at. And I think we’re doing a great job figuring it out.”
Willis added, “It’s a great group and they put in a lot of time and effort. I think it’s more of a deep breath they can take, like ‘all this work that we’re putting in is going towards (something)’ cause you can have that mindset, but you keep having the same result, it can wear on you mentally.”
Meanwhile, Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley said of Willis’ performance in the win, “[He’s] basically like a rookie starter [in terms of game experience]. He’s going to learn. He was decisive today. He got rid of the ball quick. He made good decisions. I’m really proud of him and how he’s responded. The bigger thing is the belief I have in Malik. He needs to have that in himself.”
Willis went 14-for-21 with 208 passing yards and two passing touchdowns. He added 37 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown on eight attempts.
Miami Dolphins’ Identity
As Willis stated, the Dolphins are trying to figure out what kind of team they are and what they can excel at. After the game, the Miami Herald’s Omar Kelly opined that Miami’s run game is resulting in the team creating a physical identity.
Kelly wrote: “As the season has progressed it has become obvious the backfield now belongs to the 2023 Doak Walker Award winner (Ollie Gordon), and the offensive line has established itself as the alphas of the team.
“It shows trust. All our coaches, they definitely trust the O-line. I think their trust in me is starting to grow more each week,” Gordon said. “That’s a great feeling to have whenever you feel your coaches and team can lean on you.”
Hafley acknowledged the playcalling has leaned into what Gordon does well, which is power runs, inside zone and gap scheme plays. Expect it to continue to evolve. “He is everything this offense wanted to be. Ruthless, energetic, resilient. He runs hard,” Paul said. “He pops his [gums]. He talks after he runs. He just has that swagger to him and I feed off that.” And clearly, so do the Dolphins offense.”
Dolphins QB Malik Willis Sends Strong Message After Win vs. Jets