Midway through a season filled with tough losses, key injuries, and frustratingly inconsistent play, the Miami Dolphins managed to put things together on Monday night.
While their preseason hopes of making the Super Bowl are still at risk, the Dolphins’ hard-fought 23-15 victory over the Los Angeles Rams showed the team that they might still have a chance to salvage their difficult season.
Tyreek Hill caught a short touchdown pass from Tua Tagovailoa in the third quarter, ending the longest scoring drought of his career. The Dolphins (3-6) kept the Rams out of the end zone and ended their three-game losing streak with just their second win in eight games.
“When we’re playing our best ball, we can still beat anybody,” defensive tackle Calais Campbell said. “We’ve just got to continue to believe, continue to fight. And obviously the margin for error is zero.
So it’s one game, but we’ve got to keep it going. For us to go where we want to go, we’ve got to keep fighting and believe.”
Rookie receiver Malik Washington rushed for 18 yards on the opening possession to score his first NFL touchdown, helping the Dolphins (3-6) recover from a tough stretch in which they lost three games by a combined 10 points since their last win on October 6.
Miami’s defense stepped up big at SoFi Stadium, forcing two turnovers and holding the Rams without a touchdown despite allowing 327 yards.
Tagovailoa threw for just 207 yards, but he made several important throws while the Dolphins converted six third downs, many of them in crucial moments. Tagovailoa was 9 of 12 for 137 yards on third downs alone.
“We’ve come a long way through however many losses in a row,” Tagovailoa said. “The resilience of this team with the external noise, everyone counting us out, hopefully this is an opportunity to not waste. Hopefully we can go on a run with this win and find our rhythm.”
Hill caught three passes, including his first touchdown since the season opener, despite playing through a wrist injury, while kicker Jason Sanders made three field goals.
“This is the kind of game that can spark a run,” Campbell said. “But it doesn’t mean anything if we don’t win the next one. … The hard part is, how do you continue this? But like we said in the (pregame) meetings, to create a wildfire, all it takes is one spark. So we keep believing, keep fighting and make a run for it.”
The Rams’ winning streak was halted.
Matthew Stafford passed for 293 yards, and rookie Joshua Karty kicked five field goals for the Rams (4-5), whose three-game winning streak ended due to a significant offensive decline.
Los Angeles failed to score a touchdown, marking only the eighth time in McVay’s eight seasons as coach that the Rams couldn’t manage a touchdown. It was also only the second time in four years that they didn’t score an offensive touchdown with Stafford as their quarterback.
“Defensively, I was pleased with the way we played,” McVay said. “We weren’t able to capitalize on offense. There wasn’t any semblance of complementary football. … There have been instances where we haven’t been consistent enough. Sloppy? Yeah. We have to be able to play better and be more consistent.”
After scoring 76 points in their last three wins, Los Angeles couldn’t score a touchdown for the first time since November 5, 2023, when Stafford was injured against Green Bay.
Puka Nacua caught nine passes for 98 yards, and Cooper Kupp had seven catches for 80 yards.
Los Angeles moved to the Miami 4-yard line in the fourth quarter, but McVay settled for a fourth field goal, cutting the lead to a one-score game with 6:31 left to play.
Miami’s Odell Beckham Jr. then made a key catch for a first down in the stadium where he injured his knee while winning the Super Bowl with the Rams three seasons ago. The Dolphins drove down the field and Sanders kicked a 50-yard field goal with 2:38 remaining.
