Though there were a lot of big plays that led to the Miami Dolphins’ incredible comeback against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, a real argument can be made that the comeback began in earnest with Tua Tagoailoa’s 48-yard bomb to Tyreek Hill midway through the fourth quarter.
At that point, the Dolphins were down 35-21 and needed to score in a hurry if they wanted a chance to claw back into the game. To make matters more exciting, the scoring play took place on third down with 10 yards to go for a first down.
Another 👀 at @cheetah's first TD as a 🐬!
📺: Watch #MIAvsBAL on @NFLonCBS pic.twitter.com/cJyQiIu3ZG
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) September 18, 2022
Obviously, the Dolphins gained a lot more than just those 10 yards. In fact, it seems like the odds being stacked against the Dolphins in that moment helped head coach Mike McDaniel call that risky play. Within the Dolphins’ playbook, that play is known as the “f— it” play, based on McDaniel’s admission following the win.
“So we had a play ready, in case things weren’t going right, or in case there were various frustrations,” McDaniel told Peter King an hour after the game. “We installed that play with the expletives, that the quarterbacks knew as the ‘F— it’ play. Tua loved the play. If we really needed to make something happen, that was the play we’d call.”
Sunday’s Week 2 win did a lot for Tagovailoa, Hill and McDaniel.
For Hill, he scored his first two touchdowns as a member of the Dolphins. Right now, Hill leads the NFL in receiving yards with 284. 190 of those yards came on Sunday.
For McDaniel, he continued his undefeated streak as a head coach. More importantly, he did it against a team that many consider to be a playoff contender in the Ravens. That made the comeback all the more exciting and impressive.
As for Tagovailoa, Sunday’s win over the Ravens was without a doubt the biggest NFL game of his career. He showed some incredible guts and leadership to lead his team back from a double-digit deficit.
Everything seems to be clicking early for the Dolphins in the 2022 season, and the success of the “f— it” play is a clear example of that fact.
The Dolphins will get another chance to prove that they belong within the upper echelon of the league by facing the Buffalo Bills in Week 3. Only time will tell what other tricks McDaniel and Tagovailoa have up their sleeves for that game.
