The Jets recovered a fumble with a little under three minutes left to ice the game..
And I've got to be honest with you, I'm glad they did, because Ryan Tannehill didn't have many more hits left in him.
Seven times Tannehill was sacked today. Seven. That's a Jets franchise record. I believe at one point he was taken down three times in four plays. It was hard to watch, and Dolphin fans should count their blessings it ended when it did, because the kid was holding on for dear life.
What a disaster for the Miami Dolphins today, mainly on the defensive side of the ball.
Geno Smith had a hall of fame performance from the get-go, completing 20-25 passes for 358 yards, and 3 TD's. His passer rating was a perfect 158.3. He was barely touched. His WR's, mainly Eric Decker, were wide open all day long.
The defense is a mess right now. A big, expensive, mess, that I expect will be completely overhauled over the next five months, starting with DC Kevin Coyle.
Look, I like Coyle. His group did a nice job over the first half of the season. But it simply cannot be overlooked just how bad the implosion has been since early November.
Once the backbone of this team, the unit has been their achilles heel over the stretch run this season. It's been so bad that they've given up over 28 points five out of the final six games. It's been so bad that they may very well have saved Geno Smith's job. GENO SMITH.
I don't see Randy Starks returning. I don't see Cortland Finnegan returning. I don't see Philip Wheeler, or possibly even Dannell Ellerbe returning. I also, as I mentioned above, don't see Kevin Coyle returning.
Cornerback, linebacker, interior lineman.. all of these will be priority number one starting, well, now. Expect a completely new unit beginning in 2015.
Now to the offense..
Ryan Tannehill was great in the first half, when he had time to throw. He finished the day surpassing Dan Marino in regards to completions in a season, and also threw for over 4,000 this season. He was fine today, and finished the season with career numbers in every single area.
Lamar Miller also had a career day today, rushing for nearly 180 yards and surpassing 1,000 on the season. He also had a 97 yard TD run in the third quarter, which broke a franchise record.
Brian Hartline had his best day of the year, catching five passes for 97 yards. I don't suspect he'll return next season because he just doesn't fit the new offense. However, you never know.
Somebody who did absolutely nothing today was WR Mike Wallace, who was apparently benched for most of the game. During the first quarter, Ryan Tannehill was seen shouting at the wideouts coach, who then walked over to Wallace and said something to him. Wallace then walked to the bench and remained there for the entire game.
I suspect this could be the last we see of Wallace, who the team may cut given his contract despite his 10 TD's this season. Don't be surprised to see some more dominos fall here shortly as this is a fluid situation.
The offensive line, like Wallace, was a joke today. As I said, Tannehill was sacked seven times and took three times as many hits. Besides Pouncey, Albert, and Ja'Wuan James, expect some serious retooling in this area as well this offseason.
Another domino I expect will fall is the firing of special teams coach Darren Rizzi, who's unit has been awful this season. It may have been at it's worst today, when they brought an all out block on fourth and five from midfield. Rex Ryan, who is notorious for fake punts, called it once again, and the Jets found a wide open Zach Sudfeld over the middle of the field to basically ice the game.
You can say that's on the players, but why call that play in that situation? It doesn't make sense, and, unfortunately for Rizzi, I expect it could have been his final call for the Miami Dolphins.
Another 8-8 season, another collapse to the Jets in the final game, and another long offseason ahead for the embattled team that resides out of South Florida.
Unfortunately, it's groundhogs day all over again.
To the offseason we go.
[UPDATE: Brandon Gibson just stood next to Mike Wallace during post game interviews and answered questions on his behalf. Seriously. Wallace did not say a single word.]
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