Miami Dolphins defeat New England Patriots 31-17 as Jalen Ramsey stars in debut – NBC 6 South Florida
A memorable debut for Jalen Ramsey as his Miami Dolphins defeated the New England Patriots 31-17 at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday.
The star cornerback was rarely targeted by Patriots quarterback Mac Jones in the first half, but with two minutes left in the second quarter, Jones attempted a pass to Kendrick Bourne, but a crafty Ramsey skipped the route, intercepted the ball and hit it for 49 yards back to the Patriots’ own 40-yard line.
The Miami Dolphins started the game slowly as an interception by Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa gave the Patriots a 7-0 lead in the first quarter with a 24-yard touchdown from Mac Jones to Kendrick Bourne.
But the Dolphins responded quickly after Tua hit Tyreek Hill with a 42-yard touchdown for his eighth touchdown of the season, making him the league’s all-time leader in touchdown receptions.
The Dolphins entered the second quarter with a little more fire in their belly as they forced New England into a short possession after Ramsey Ezekiel Elliott forced a fumble that led to a punt.
The Dolphins went on a long 53-yard drive, scored on a 1-yard touchdown from Jeff Wilson Jr., and took a 14-7 lead.
Jason Sanders hit a 30-yard field goal to end the second quarter, making the score 17-7 in the first half.
The second half began with the Patriots kicking off the Dolphins.
The Phins went for it on the first play, but a simple handoff to Raheem Mostert ended up on the ground and was recovered by New England.
The Patriots failed to make a three-pointer again, but managed to get back into the game with a 38-yard field goal from Chad Ryland.
The Dolphins responded with a 77-yard drive that included a 22-yard pass to Tyreek Hill and a 27-yarder to Jaylen Waddle on a third-and-9. Chase Claypool caught a 15-yard pass to get the Dolphins into the Patriots’ red zone and scored on a 1-yard run by Mostert to make it 24-10.
In the fourth quarter, the Patriots completed an 81-yard drive that ended with a 3-yard touchdown pass from Jones to JuJu Smith-Schuster, increasing the score to 24-17.
The Phins got back to work and quickly countered with a 31-yard touchdown from Tua to Waddle after 10 plays on a 75-yard drive, putting the Dolphins up 31-17.
A late interception by Brandon Jones led to a scary moment on the field as the safety was slow to recover after a hard tackle and earned Smith-Schuster an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after standing over him as he lay injured.
