Dolphins Finally Win, and Ollie Gordon and Caleb Douglas Head Into Patriots Week as the Names to Watch

The Miami Dolphins spent six weeks hearing about a winless season. On Sunday at MetLife Stadium they ended the talk with a 28-25 win over the New York Jets, the first victory of Jeff Hafley’s tenure and the first of the season at 1-5. Malik Willis threw two touchdown passes and ran for a third, and the Dolphins held on after the Jets cut a 28-17 deficit to three in the final minutes.

The result also reshuffled how Miami’s skill players look for the next slate. Fantasy managers setting Week 8 rosters, and anyone using a DFS NFL optimizer to test salary-cap builds, now have one real game of evidence on an offense that had scored 24 points or fewer in all five of its earlier games.

Willis finally looks like the quarterback Miami paid for

Willis went 14 of 21 for 208 yards and added 37 yards on eight carries. Miami scored on its first two drives and led for most of the afternoon. “He was decisive, and I thought he competed today at a really, really high level,” Hafley said after the game. His two scoring throws both went to a rookie who had missed most of the season.

The deciding moment came with the lead at three points and two minutes left. Facing fourth-and-1 near midfield, Willis pushed forward behind his line for the first down that ended the game. It was also his third touchdown of the day, and a game plan that leans on his legs near the goal line is useful context when the next opponent arrives.

Caleb Douglas made the most of a short return

Douglas, a third-round pick out of Texas Tech, was back after an ankle injury and finished with two catches for 70 yards and two touchdowns. The first was a seven-yard score that capped the opening drive. The second was a 63-yard catch-and-run in the fourth quarter that put Miami up 28-17. His season line now reads nine catches for 183 yards and two scores, a 20.3-yard average on 13 targets.

Two catches is a thin sample, and a receiver who scores twice on three targets will usually see that rate fall. Still, the target share matters more than the touchdowns here. Douglas lined up as a starter, and the offense found him on a deep route and on a short throw turned long, two different ways to produce yards.

Ollie Gordon carries the backfield

The steadier fantasy story is Ollie Gordon II. He ran 25 times for 103 yards and a one-yard touchdown, his fourth game in a row with a rushing score. Since De’Von Achane’s season-ending ACL tear, Gordon has 69 carries for 332 yards and four touchdowns, and he has become the clear lead back.

The wrinkle is Jaylen Wright, who left the Jets game with a quadriceps injury and did not return. If Wright misses time, Gordon’s workload could grow further. His reception total was a single catch for no yards on three targets, so his value depends almost entirely on carries and goal-line chances.

What the Patriots game changes

The schedule does not get easier. New England comes to Hard Rock Stadium for a 4:25 p.m. kickoff on Sunday, November 1, on CBS. The Patriots are 4-3 after a 30-24 loss in Chicago and have injuries of their own on the offensive and defensive lines, but they are listed as 7.5-point road favorites with a total of 44.5, according to the opening lines.

That spread has a direct effect on how the game may play out. A team that trails tends to throw, which would help Douglas and Willis, while a team that stays within a score keeps feeding Gordon. Miami’s offense has now shown both modes in a single game against the Jets, though a better defense will test each one harder.

For a broader look at what the first win meant inside the building, Craig Davis covered the postgame mood and Hafley’s decision on fourth down in his Pressure Point column on Willis and the win.

Friday’s final injury report will settle most of the open questions around Wright, linebacker Willie Gay Jr. and the rest of the Miami roster. Until then, Gordon, Douglas and Willis are the three Dolphins whose Sunday afternoon looks different from where it stood a week ago.