Kyler Murray stayed confident even when the Arizona Cardinals were down by two scores in the fourth quarter. He believed he could make the plays needed for his team.
Murray helped the Cardinals set up a game-winning field goal by Chad Ryland as time ran out, marking a second straight week of dramatic finishes. This time, they defeated the Miami Dolphins 28-27, which was Tua Tagovailoa’s return after a concussion.
“I like us,” Murray said. “I want the ball in my hands. I want the ball in our hands. With the guys that we have offensively, as long as we stay on schedule and we execute, I think we can be one of the best offenses in the league.”
Murray led two scoring drives in the fourth quarter to bring the Cardinals back from a nine-point deficit. The first drive ended with a 2-yard touchdown run by James Conner, bringing the score to 27-25.
The second drive was a careful 13-play, 71-yard drive that took 5:01 and finished with Ryland’s 34-yard kick. The week before, Ryland kicked a 32-yarder to win against the Los Angeles Chargers 17-15.
The Cardinals (4-4) won back-to-back games for the first time since October 2021, and they had two receivers each gain over 100 yards for the first time since September 2021. Rookie Marvin Harrison Jr. caught six passes for 111 yards and a touchdown, while tight end Trey McBride had nine catches for 124 yards.
“It feels great,” Harrison said. “It does feel great.”
Tagovailoa threw for 234 yards, and the Dolphins (2-5) had their best offensive game of the season in his first start since being diagnosed with his third known concussion on September 12 against Buffalo.
He was cleared to return on Monday after doctors confirmed it was safe for him to play, and he passed the concussion protocol on Friday after being examined by an independent neurological consultant.
Tagovailoa played well, completing 28 of 38 passes. He did lose a fumble on the first drive, but Miami managed to recover it, and later in the third quarter, a snap went over his head, leading to a safety.
“I would say I felt like myself,” Tagovailoa said. “I’ve been preparing for five weeks as if I were to play while I was on IR, so it felt normal coming out there.”
His first pass was a 16-yard completion to fullback Alec Ingold during Miami’s opening drive, which ended with a 1-yard touchdown run by Raheem Mostert. Mostert also had a 6-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Miami fans cheered loudly when Tagovailoa was introduced and chanted his name after the first scoring drive. The biggest cheer came when Tagovailoa scrambled for a first down in the third quarter and slid to avoid a hit, something he hadn’t done when he got injured in Week 2.
“I think the biggest thing was he knew his teammates were going to give him a chance to play a pretty clean game,” coach Mike McDaniel said. “He had a good amount of clean pockets, and when he didn’t, he was decisive and kept himself out of harm’s way.”
Tyreek Hill caught six passes for 72 yards, marking his first game with at least 70 yards receiving since Week 1. De’Von Achane rushed for 97 yards and caught a pass for 50 yards, including a 12-yard touchdown catch.
“He came back and got the offense going. That was a beautiful thing to see,” Hill said. “We scored some points today, so that’s a positive.”
This was the Dolphins’ highest-scoring game of the season; their previous best was 20 points in Week 1.
Murray completed 26 of 36 passes for 307 yards, throwing a 6-yard touchdown to Michael Wilson and a 22-yard touchdown to Harrison. He also rushed for 19 yards.
Murray showed his quickness, avoiding a blitz from Jalen Ramsey during Arizona’s first scoring drive to keep the play alive and eventually find Wilson open in the end zone. He hasn’t been sacked since Week 5.
“They couldn’t sack him,” Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon said. “He extended plays a bunch, had a couple of free runners, couple (cover) zeros and got out of them. He’s tough back there to get down.”
Harrison outmaneuvered Ramsey and got a knee down in the end zone to bring the Cardinals within 20-18 entering the fourth quarter. A 2-point conversion attempt was unsuccessful.
The Dolphins led 13-7 at halftime, but their top-ranked pass defense struggled against Murray and Harrison in the second half.
Harrison made catches of 16, 22, and 18 yards on Arizona’s last two scoring drives.
“I try to be someone we can count on to make plays,” Harrison said. “Any time it’s a two-minute drill or we need a big play, I do my best to get open and catch the ball.”
