Miami 44, Houston 26
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, October 25, 2015
Where: Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida
Temperature:
84°
Head Official:
John Hussey
Attendance:
65251
By The Sports Xchange
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. - Quarterback Ryan Tannehill set an NFL record on Sunday but smartly -- and quite accurately -- deflected credit.
Tannehill completed 18 of 19 passes for 282 yards and tied a career high with four touchdown passes to lead the Miami Dolphins to a relatively easy 44-26 win over the Houston Texans at Sun Life Stadium.
The Dolphins (3-3) built a 41-0 halftime lead over the Texans (2-5) and cruised from there.
Counting last week, Tannehill completed an NFL-record 25 consecutive passes. But of his four touchdown passes on Sunday -- including two to wide receiver Jarvis Landry -- 144 of the 167 yards were accomplished after the catch.
Tannehill was especially complimentary of Landry's 50-yard catch and run in the first quarter.
"He made 46 guys miss on the way to the end zone," Tannehill said, exaggerating by about 40.
Either way, the Dolphins are 2-0 under interim head coach Dan Campbell, who replaced the fired Joe Philbin. Miami has been dominant under Campbell, beating the Tennessee Titans 38-10 in the former tight end coach's debut.
Houston got three touchdown passes from quarterback Brian Hoyer -- two to wide receiver Nate Washington and one to running back Arian Foster, who also scored once on the ground.
However, Foster left the game with 4:04 left in the fourth quarter, suffering a right Achilles tendon injury even though he was untouched on the play. Foster will have an MRI on Monday, but the NFL Network reported that Foster has a torn Achilles and will miss the rest of the season.
"It obviously didn't look very good," Texans coach Bill O'Brien said. "I feel terrible for him."
This was Miami's first win against the Texans. The Dolphins had been 0-7 against the Texans, who built their win streak from 2003 to 2012.
Miami scored on its first possession, driving 88 yards on six plays. The march culminated with a 53-yard slant pass to wide receiver Rishard Matthews, who broke a tackle and was gone on the longest reception of his career.
The Dolphins made it 14-0 on Landry's spectacular 50-yard catch and run. Landry caught a quick out on the left sideline, nearly stepping out of bounds. Instead, he ran all the way across the field, making at least six defenders miss, getting 40 yards after the catch.
Miami made it 21-0 on a 10-yard TD pass to Landry, who dragged a defender into the end zone for the final 5 yards.
The second quarter was more of the same as Miami scored on a 54-yard screen pass to running back Lamar Miller and a 23-yard interception return by safety Reshad Jones.
On the play by Jones, Houston tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz dropped a pass and then tipped it up as he fell down, virtually gift-wrapping a pick-six for Jones, who punctuated his play with a wild sideways flip into the end zone.
Miller then scored on an 85-yard run as the Dolphins set the franchise record for most points in a half, breaking the previous mark from 1967. Miller finished the game with 175 rushing yards and 236 yards from scrimmage.
In the second half, Campbell rested many of his starters, mindful of the fact that Miami has to play a road game against the New England Patriots on short rest Thursday night.
"We were trying to take care of (the players), saving legs while still winning the game," Campbell said. "It was a good problem to have."
Tannehill, who misfired on a couple of passes that were negated due to penalty, had his only official incomplete pass on his final throw, which was dropped by tight end Dion Sims.
Meanwhile, the Dolphins became the first team in at least 75 years to score four offensive touchdowns of at least 50 yards in a half.
"It's terrible," O'Brien said of his team's play. "I don't have much to say. I'll just say that was not a good performance."
O'Brien told his team at halftime that "at the very least we'd like to go out there and win the second half, which I believe we did that."
But, O'Brien added: 'I don't think that's a moral victory."
NOTES: Texans backup QB Ryan Mallett missed the team plane and had to take a commercial flight. Houston had no comment about any possible disciplinary action. ... There were two routs played at Sun Life Stadium this weekend. The other was a 58-0 win by Clemson over the Miami Hurricanes. ... Dolphins starting CB Brice McCain (knee) was inactive, replaced by Jamar Taylor. ... Texans RG Brandon Brooks (toe) was out and was replaced by Xavier Su'a Filo. ... Texas starting CB Kareem Jackson (ankle) was out, replaced by Kevin Johnson. ... Dolphins RB Lamar Miller's 85-yard TD run was the second-longest in franchise history. Miller also has the top spot with his 97-yarder last year against the New York Jets. ... S Reshad Jones became the first player in Dolphins history to score on interception returns in two straight games. ... DE Cameron Wake moved past Bill Stanfill for second place on the Dolphins career sack list. Wake has 69 sacks, two on Sunday.
Top Game Performances
Team Stats Summary
|
Yards |
Scoring |
Defense |
Team |
Tot |
Rus |
Pas |
TD |
FG |
INT |
Sck |
FF |
Houston
|
322 |
71 |
251 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
4.0 |
1 |
Miami
|
503 |
248 |
255 |
6 |
1 |
1 |
4.0 |
3 |
Upcoming Games
-
Miami will play their next game on the road against New England. The Dolphins have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .500 after a loss.
-
Houston will play their next game at home against Tennessee. The Texans have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .400 after a loss.