The Miami Dolphins finally got the kind of Sunday they had been waiting on.
After opening the year 0-5 and looking every bit like a team stuck in transition, Miami came out of the bye and played with a different edge against the New York Jets. The result was a 28-25 win, the Dolphins’ first victory of 2026, and a game that showed both what this team can be when it’s clicking and how quickly it can wobble when the rhythm disappears.
The first half was as sharp as Miami has looked all season. The Dolphins scored on their opening drive to take their first lead of the year, then answered the Jets’ tying touchdown with another first-quarter score. They added a touchdown in the second quarter and went into halftime ahead 21-7 after piling up 231 yards.
That start lined up with the work Miami said it would do during the bye. Head coach Jeff Hafley said the staff would self-scout and figure out what needed fixing, and the offense looked like a unit that had actually listened.
Offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik called a strong game, and Malik Willis played with a confidence Miami had been missing. He was decisive, accurate and willing to pull the ball down and move.
By the break, the Dolphins had a clear grip on the game.
The second half tried to throw that all out the window.
Miami opened the third quarter with a five-yard three-and-out, followed by a nine-play drive that went just 28 yards and ended in a punt, then another three-and-out that produced two yards. Across those first three possessions of the half, the Dolphins averaged 2.9 yards per play. That stretch had the game teetering for a moment.
Then Caleb Douglas changed the mood in a hurry.
On Miami’s fourth drive of the second half, the Dolphins mixed a five-yard run from Ollie Gordon II with a five-yard holding penalty on the Jets, then Gordon added three more yards on the ground. When Willis dropped back and felt pressure immediately, he got the ball out short to the rookie receiver, and Douglas took over from there. He tip-toed down the sideline for a 63-yard touchdown that pushed Miami ahead 28-17 and snapped the offense out of its lull.
Willis was central to the win all afternoon. He finished 14-for-21 for 208 yards, two passing touchdowns and a rushing score, while also adding six carries for 39 yards. It was the kind of performance the Dolphins needed from a first-year starter, and he delivered it.
Greg Dulcich gave Miami the early spark. On National Tight Ends Day, he caught five passes for 87 yards in the first half, helping fuel the fast start before the Jets bottled him up after halftime.
Gordon continued to make the most of his expanded role with De’Von Achane sidelined. He carried the ball 25 times for 103 yards and a touchdown, and he keeps looking like a back Miami can lean on without hesitation.
The Jets did rally late to make things interesting, but the Dolphins had already done enough to hang on and finish the job.
So yes, the win came with some messy stretches. The offense faded for a while, and Miami still has plenty to clean up.
But there were also flashes of real quality everywhere on the field, and that matters too. After five weeks of disappointment, the Dolphins finally put together enough good football to get over the line.
In Other News...
Dolphins Need More From A Few Struggling Starters Against The Jets
The Dolphins are heading into their first divisional test of the 2026 season with a familiar kind of urgency, the kind that tends to surface when a handful of starters need cleaner work before the margin gets any thinner. Against the Jets, Miami will be watching the trenches closely, with Austin Jackson carrying a heavy load on the right side and Chris Johnson and Chop Robinson also under the microscope as the Dolphins look to limit the kind of errors that can quickly tilt a division game.
Malik Willis adds another layer to that equation, because Miami needs steadier play from the quarterback spot to keep the offense on schedule against a defense that can make life difficult. The Jets arrive with one of the leagues best pass defenses, so the Dolphins do not have much room for the sloppy stretches that have shown up before. For Miami, the challenge is simple enough to say and hard enough to solve: get more from the players who have been up and down, and do it quickly enough to avoid letting an early divisional game get away. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Face One Trade Deadline Test They May Not Budge On
With the trade deadline approaching, the Dolphins are shaping up as sellers, but one name appears to be off the table for now. ESPN reporters Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport said Miami is expected to listen on some pieces, yet the team views its young edge rush group as part of the future, not a short-term source of help for someone else.
Chop Robinson is the clearest example of that stance. A 2024 first-round pick with multiple years of contract control remaining, he should draw interest from teams looking for pass-rush help, but Miami does not currently plan to move him this season. For a club weighing its deadline options, that kind of line in the sand says plenty about which players it believes still fit into the long view. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Face A Jets Backfield Twist Right Before Kickoff
The Jets are still waiting on Breece Hall, who has not played since Week 3 because of a quadriceps injury and is now unlikely to suit up against the Dolphins in Week 7. There is still a chance he tests the leg in a pregame workout, but for Miami, the more immediate concern is the shape of New Yorks backfield if Hall is unavailable.
Braelon Allen has handled the lead role in Halls absence and is expected to get the start against a Dolphins defense that has shown vulnerability against running backs. If Hall cannot go, Allen would be the one carrying the load again, giving New York a familiar setup right before kickoff and leaving Miami to prepare for a backfield built around a runner who has already taken on a heavier workload. [Read more 🡒]