(Miami, FL) – In a defensive slugfest that featured four turnovers and only 366 total yards between both teams, the Miami Dolphins (2-2) managed to hold on for a gritty 16-10 victory over the Tennessee Titans (2-3) on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium.
Dolphins starting quarterback Jay Cutler, who received plenty of boos from the home crowd throughout the afternoon after another lackluster performance by the offense, threw what ended up being the game-winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Jarvis Landry with 10:33 left in the fourth quarter.
Cutler, who finished with just 92 yards passing as well as one touchdown and one interception, struggled to sustain drives on offense.
Many fans in the crowd chanted for the Dolphins to insert backup quarterback Matt Moore into the game as a replacement for Cutler, but Miami head coach Adam Gase stuck with his starter.
“I’ll make the decision on the quarterback,” Gase said after the victory in his postgame press conference. “We’re not taking public polls.”
It wasn’t pretty on the offensive side of the ball, but the Dolphins got the job done on defense. They forced two Titans turnovers and sacked quarterback Matt Cassel a whopping six times on the day.
“The sky is the limit,” Dolphins linebacker Cameron Wake said of the defensive effort. “We have higher expectation for ourselves in that locker room than anyone else has.”
Dolphins star safety Reshad Jones who was a defensive juggernaut on the field Sunday against Tennessee. He returned one of his two fumble recoveries for a defensive touchdown after linebacker Kiko Alonso blasted Cassel on a blitz in the final seconds of the first quarter.
“I just kept playing when I saw the ball on the ground,” Jones said of his touchdown. “The guys up front did a great job of getting the ball out of the quarterback’s hands and I just kept playing, man. It ended up being a touchdown.”
Cassel, who started in place of rising star quarterback Marcus Mariota due to a left hamstring injury suffered last week, finished the day with 141 yards through the air on 21-of-32 pass attempts and one touchdown pass to tight end Phillip Supernaw in the third quarter.
On offense for the Dolphins, running back Jay Ajayi had 77 yards rushing on 25 carries as well as two receptions, while Landry finished with five receptions for 44 yards and a touchdown.
Up next on their schedule, the Dolphins will head north to take on the Atlanta Falcons (3-1) in a Week 6 contest at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The game, which is scheduled to kick off shortly after 1:00 p.m. ET next Sunday, will be broadcast regionally on CBS.
