Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins put away Chargers to claim fifth straight win
Tua Tagovailoa and the Miami Dolphins have won five straight games.
The Dolphins held on to secure a 29-21 win against the Los Angeles Chargers at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday afternoon behind an impressive two-touchdown outing from Tagovailoa.
DUB 🔥#FinsUp x @Verizon pic.twitter.com/ePIDYbcBbt
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) November 16, 2020
Dolphins out to quick start after blocked punt
The Dolphins didn’t waste any time Sunday and jumped out to a 7-0 lead almost instantly after a huge special teams play.
After shutting down the Chargers’ opening drive, Dolphins linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel blocked a punt that was recovered on the 1-yard line, setting up an easy touchdown run from Salvon Ahmed.
Tagovailoa then led a 13-play, 88-yard drive their next time out that he capped with a perfect 3-yard touchdown pass to a wide open Jakeem Grant to put them up 14-0.
.@Tua finds Jakeem Grant for a @MiamiDolphins TD! #FinsUp
📺: #LACvsMIA on CBS
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/p1akRoFoep pic.twitter.com/lQnpq2m5bm— NFL (@NFL) November 15, 2020
Though they were held to two field goals in the second and third quarters — and gave up two touchdowns from Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert — Tagovailoa kicked off the fourth quarter with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Durham Smythe to finish an easy drive set up by Xavien Howard’s interception just plays before.
Though Herbert found Keenan Allen for a 13-yard touchdown just before the two-minute warning to bring the Chargers back within nine, it was too late. The Dolphins recovered an onside kick and then ran out the clock to seal their fifth straight win.
Herbert went 20-of-32 for 187 yards with two touchdowns and the interception while leading the Chargers to their third straight loss — all of which came by a single score. Tagovailoa finished 15-of-25 for 169 yards with two touchdowns, and is 3-0 as Miami’s starter.
“Looked like [Tagovailoa] made some good decisions,” Dolphins coach Brian Flores said, via NBC6’s Ruthie Polinsky. “Some throws he got into some tight windows. We’ve talked about this. We have a lot of confidence in all of our draft picks to develop and improve. He’s no different.”
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