DOLPHINS TOP STRUGGLING JETS

The Miami Dolphins offense continued to struggle, but their special teams bailed them out in a 30-25 victory over the New York Jets on Sunday.  Relegated to kickoff return duty, Ted Ginn, Jr. had a record breaking day scoring two long touchdowns as Miami found a way to prevail in a game in which they were dominated statistically.  The Dolphins improved to 3-4 while the Jets evened their NFL record at 4-4.  New York has gone 1-4 since a 3-0 start to the season.

Miami also rewarded NFL betting enthusiasts who backed them as +3 road underdogs with the outright victory.  The Dolphins moved to 3-4 against the spread, while the Jets squared up their NFL pointspread mark at 4-4.  Like their straight up record, the Jets have failed to cover in four of five after getting the money in three straight to start the season.  The 55 points scored went OVER the posted total of 40.  The Dolphins have gone OVER in five of seven, including four straight while the Jets are dead even against NFL totals with a 4-4 mark.

Ginn, usually the Dolphins’ starting wide receiver, was relegated to return duty and clearly sought to make a statement.  In the third quarter, with the Jets leading 6-3 he did just that by returning a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown.  Later in the period, he returned another kickoff 101 yards for a touchdown.  All told, Ginn had 299 return yards and set or tied NFL records with his third quarter onslaught.  He became the first player since 1967 to have two kick returns for touchdowns in the same quarter.  He also became the only player in NFL history to have two touchdowns of 100+ yards of any type in the same game.  

In his postgame comments, Ginn talked about his performance and his reaction to the demotion from the starting lineup:

"Not being in that starting lineup hurt me deep down inside. I just wanted to make plays. You don't always have to be a starter to make plays."

"To be who I am and to have played as many games as I have as a starter, I had to do things on the other end to keep me confident. Being a pro, you understand things happen. I got my mind right."

The Jets special teams took the blame for the loss, said coverage man Wallace Wright:

"We're responsible for the loss. That killed us. If they didn't run back those two kickoffs, it's over."

Jets’ rookie QB Mark Sanchez played well, and underscored his frustration with the loss:

"This stings, going into the bye with a loss like this. As a competitor and as an offense, we thought we were winning that game, no doubt."

The Jets will have a bye week before returning to action on November 15 against the Jacksonville Jaguars.  They’ll play at New England the following Sunday before returning home to host the Carolina Panthers.  The Dolphins head to New England for a game against the Patriots this Sunday, with Miami a +10’ road underdog and the total set at 47.  They’ll host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers the following Sunday before playing on the road at Carolina on Thursday, November 19.