Tua Tagovailoa expressed mild concern this week that he didn’t want the Miami Dolphins’ goodbye to interrupt the momentum they had built during a recent winning streak.
Some rust from the bye week showed in Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans with errant pitches and drops, especially early. But Tagovailoa and the offense worked things out, fast enough, in fact, that Tagovailoa called it off a day before he ended the third quarter.
Tagovailoa passed for 299 yards and the Miami Dolphins raced to a 30-point lead before holding on for their fifth straight victory, a 30-15 victory over the lowly Texans.
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Tyreek Hill #10 of the Miami Dolphins runs the ball during the first quarter of a game against the Houston Texans at Hard Rock Stadium on November 27, 2022 in Miami Gardens, Florida.
(Eric Espada/Getty Images)
“We could have finished a lot of series better … but that’s always hard when your team is hot and then you go into a bye week,” Tagovailoa said. “You try to go back in a week like this to find that feeling that you had with that drive.”
Tagovailoa had his fourth straight game without an interception, Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill each had 85 receiving yards and the Dolphins defense had three takeaways in a game that was a 30-point halftime blowout.
Tagovailoa finished 22 of 36 passes with a TD. He now has 11 touchdowns since he returned from a concussion in Week 7. Skylar Thompson was 1-of-5 for 6 yards in relief for the Dolphins (8-3).
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Houston (1-9-1) had just 32 yards in its first 25 plays with Kyle Allen starting at quarterback in place of Davis Mills on the bench. The Texans finished with 210 yards of total offense, most of which came in the second half when they scored 15 straight points.
The Texans also sacked Tagovailoa four times, all after Miami’s veteran left tackle Terron Armstead left late in the second quarter with a pectoral injury. Armstead signed a five-year, $75 million free agent deal to anchor Miami’s line before this season.
Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel did not have an injury update for Armstead, who has been dealing with a toe problem all season. But McDaniel took the blame for the pass protection lapses after Armstead’s departure, adding that he became too aggressive in his plays in the third quarter.
“It was something I said to the team after the game that I will learn from because it wasn’t fair to them,” McDaniel said. “When you have some roster changes, you can’t put them in the positions that they were put in. I don’t think it was a fair representation of the overall group.”
Houston running back Dare Ogunbowale had a 3-yard TD rushing game in the third quarter for the Texans’ first score, and tight end Jordan Akins had a 25-yard TD reception in the fourth quarter.
Kyle Allen #3 of the Houston Texans fights during the first quarter of the game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on November 27, 2022 in Miami Gardens, Florida.
(Eric Espada/Getty Images)
“In games like today, when you’re down 30-nil at the half, you have to look at the positives,” Houston coach Lovie Smith said. “We could have gone two different ways in the second half. I like the way we responded.”
Miami scored on six of their first seven possessions, and their receivers were wide open in the Houston secondary. Five Dolphins players had 20 receiving yards. Waddle had 10 catches and Hill had nine.
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In the first quarter, Waddle broke Miami’s franchise record for most receiving yards (1,926) in the first two seasons of a career. Jarvis Landry, now with New Orleans, previously held the brand.
Allen completed 26 of 39 passes for 215 yards and two interceptions.
Standout rookie running back Dameon Pierce was held to 8 yards on five carries for Houston, a week after he had just 8 in a loss to the Commanders.
Waddle had a 22-yard catch on the opening drive to set up Miami’s first score, a 45-yard Jason Sanders field goal, and Tagovailoa found tight end Durham Smythe in the end zone later in the quarter to give him Miami a 10-0 lead. .
Miami added four scores in the second quarter, including two turnovers.
Xavien Howard #25 of the Miami Dolphins scores a touchdown after recovering a fumble during the first half at Hard Rock Stadium on November 27, 2022 in Miami Gardens, Florida.
(Megan Briggs/Getty Images)
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Linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel intercepted Allen deep in Texans territory and returned the ball to the 3-yard line. Running back Jeff Wilson pushed him. In the second quarter, cornerback Xavien Howard returned a fumble, which was forced by safety Eric Rowe, for a touchdown.