Miami 17, New England 16
When: 4:25 PM ET, Sunday, September 12, 2021
Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts
Temperature:
82°
Head Official:
Clete Blakeman
Attendance:
65878
By Field Level Media
Tua Tagovailoa passed for 202 yards and a go-ahead three-yard touchdown to rookie Jaylen Waddle as the Miami Dolphins spoiled Patriots quarterback Mac Jones' NFL debut with a 17-16 win over host New England in the season opener on Sunday afternoon.
Waddle, the No. 6 overall pick in this year's draft, grabbed his first career touchdown catch with 10:51 remaining in the third quarter to put Miami on top for good at 17-10. Nick Folk's 42-yard field goal with 2:50 left in the third and another from 33 yards out at 10:36 of the fourth pulled New England within 17-16.
Tagovailoa, who also had a rushing touchdown, finished 16-for-27 passing and was also intercepted by New England defensive back Jonathan Jones with 8:07 to play in the fourth. Mac Jones and the Patriots drove 41 yards before running back Damien Harris lost a fumble at the Dolphins' 11-yard line.
Waddle finished with four catches for 61 yards and the score and DeVante Parker had four catches for a team-high 81 yards for Miami (1-0).
Mac Jones, the No. 15 overall pick in this year's draft, completed 29 of 39 passes for 281 yards and a touchdown in his pro debut. Harris rushed for 100 yards on 23 carries and Nelson Agholor made five catches for 72 yards and a score for New England (0-1).
Miami and New England were tied 10-10 at halftime.
Tagovailoa capped a 10-play, 80-yard opening drive with a three-yard TD run off the right tackle to put the Dolphins up 7-0 with 5:29 to play in the first quarter. Folk kicked a 27-yard field goal to put the Patriots on the board at 10:17 of the second.
Jones connected with Agholor for his first career touchdown pass with 2:30 left in the half to put New England ahead 10-7. The rookie faked a handoff to Harris before firing a seven-yard strike to Agholor.
Jones and Tagovailoa were teammates at the University of Alabama. Tagovailoa led the Crimson Tide to a national championship in the 2017 season and Jones guided the program to its 18th title last season.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
Team Stats Summary
| |
Yards |
Scoring |
Defense |
| Team |
Tot |
Rus |
Pas |
TD |
FG |
INT |
Sck |
FF |
| Miami
|
259 |
74 |
185 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0.0 |
3 |
| New England
|
393 |
125 |
268 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
2.0 |
0 |
Upcoming Games
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New England will play their next game on the road against N.Y. Jets. The Patriots have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
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Miami will play their next game at home against Buffalo. The Dolphins have a W/L % of 1.000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
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