The Miami Dolphins pulled out an absolute miracle with two laterals on a 69-yard touchdown on their final play to beat the New England Patriots, 34-33.
It’s the type of play that never works, but somehow turned into the play of the year and a moment that will be remembered fondly forever by Dolphins fans:
THE MIRACLE AT HARD ROCK STADIUM
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) December 9, 2018
» @NFLonCBS#NEvsMIA #FinsUp pic.twitter.com/Aoc1L5LcGG
Instead of lobbing the ball deep into traffic, Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill instead connected with Kenny Stills in the middle of the field, who pitched to DeVante Parker.
A second lateral from Parker went into the arms of running back Kenyan Drake, who weaved through the rest of the Patriots defenders and beat tight end Rob Gronkowski to the pylon.
The Dolphins then celebrated the shocking win in the end zone:
VICTORY CAM #FinsUp pic.twitter.com/3tPuWO61z9
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) December 9, 2018
Gronkowski, who was presumably in to knock down a Hail Mary, took a bad angle on the play, allowing Drake to score.
Asked Kenyan Drake if he ever could imagine making a play like that the crazy New England-beater in his career.
— Peter King (@peter_king) December 9, 2018
“In my dreams,’’ he said.
“Really. Just in my dreams."
Many things went wrong for the Patriots on the play, but the most egregious mistake may have been having Gronkowski on the field at all.
It was unlikely Tannehill had any shot of getting the ball to the end zone, so Gronkowski was only in as a tackler:
On the last play: Gronk said every time he’s played that last line of defense role in practice it’s been for a Hail Mary, but multiple Patriots defenders said they knew it was too far for anything but laterals.
— Nora Princiotti (@NoraPrinciotti) December 9, 2018
One #Dolphins player said they were surprised to see Gronk on the field for that final play. “We weren’t throwing a Hail Mary. They had to know that, right?” #Patriots
— Michael Giardi (@MikeGiardi) December 9, 2018
“I knew I couldn’t get caught from behind and Gronk was the only guy in front of me so I had to get in the end zone,” said Kenyan Drake. Frank Gore chips in and says he can’t catch you. Drake agreed, “no he can’t.” #Dolphins #Patriots
— Michael Giardi (@MikeGiardi) December 9, 2018
It was the longest game-winning touchdown on a final play since the NFL-AFL merger:
The @MiamiDolphins game-winning 69-yard touchdown on the final play against New England is the longest play from scrimmage to win a game with no time remaining in the fourth quarter since the 1970 merger. pic.twitter.com/EGsZPzqz6P
— NFL345 (@NFL345) December 9, 2018
But were the Dolphins worried when it came down to the finish? Not a chance:
Tannehill: “We had them right where we wanted them.”
— Adam Beasley (@AdamHBeasley) December 9, 2018
Ryan Tannehill, talking about the last play: “I was like, ‘Gronk’s on the field. We got this.’”
— Christopher Price (@cpriceNFL) December 9, 2018
“We have something for those type of situations. We work on it every Friday and Saturday,” Dolphins coach Adam Gase said after the game, via ESPN. “It’s boring because you might go three years without calling one of them. But these guys stuck with it and they executed that one for sure.”
New England still hasn’t clinched a playoff berth, but it would take a doomsday scenario to keep them out. The bigger consequence of the finish is that the win for the Dolphins keeps them in the hunt.
Miami improved to 7-6 and finishes the year with games against the Vikings, Jaguars, and Bills. The Dolphins are still alive and it’s because of one of the most outrageously miraculous plays ever — one we’ll be talking about for years.