Hyde10: Hill’s injury, Waller’s night, three takeaways — 10 thoughts on Dolphins’ win vs. Jets

MIAMI GARDENS — This Miami Dolphins season needed a whiff of good news, and got some with their first win of the season Monday night against the error-prone New York Jets.

The Dolphins won, 27-21, to move to 1-3 on the season. The Jets fell to 0-4. But it was an expensive with with a key injury for the Dolphins.

Here are 10 thoughts on the night:

1. The costliest 10-yard catch possible to the Dolphins season came early in the third quarter when Tyreek Hill was tackled by Jets safety Malachi Moore and tumbled out of bounds at the 36-yard line on the Jets sideline. Everyone immediately knew something was seriously wrong. The Jets training staff sprinted to Hill. Players waved for the Dolphins trainers to come across the field. A cart quickly was brought out, Dolphins and Jets players went over to pay respects to Hill. The Dolphins receiver smiled and waved to the crowd while being driven off, but that emotion couldn’t mask the serious knee injury he apparently suffered and what it means to the season. He was taken in a wheelchair to an ambulance and driven to the hospital as the third quarter went on. No doubt updates will be coming Tuesday, but good news isn’t on the menu.

2. Stat of the night: Jets three fumbles and lost all three; Dolphins with two fumbles and didn’t lose either. Fumbles are typically fifty-fifty propositions to recover, meaning a measure of luck is involved. Still …

3.This Dolphins defense had no takeaways through three games – and got those three Monday night. Let’s go through them: 1) Cornerback Jack Jones made the kind of play this Dolphins defense has lacked this year on the opening drive after the Jets took the ball 81 yards down the field. Running back Braelon Allen was going in for an apparent touchdown when Jones knocked the ball out at the 1-yard line. Minkah Fitpzatrick recovered at the 4-yard line;. 2) In the second quarter, the Jets drove 38 yards before  linebacker Tyrel Dodson strip-sacked Fields and Jaelan Phillips picked up the ball at the 36 yard line; 3) On the opening kickoff of the second half, Cameron Goode and Dante Trader knocked the ball loose from Jets return man Isaiah Williams. Trader recovered it at the Jets 37.

4. Darren Waller had a long, odd wait for his first appearance with the Dolphins — and he made it a big opening with two touchdowns. His first catch on the first series Monday, a 14-yarder over the middle. His second one came on fourth-and-goal from the 5. Mike McDaniel went for it and was rewarded when Tua’s perfect throw to the back of the end zone was where only the 6-6 Waller could grab it. Touchdown. He did for a great catch and a touchdown. He caught a second, 9-yard touchdown to make it 17-3. Waller had four catches for 27 yards and recovered the final onside kick in his first game since 2023.

5. Tua Tagovailoa had his best game of the season in completing 17 of 25 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns. He was asked primarily on a night of three Jets turnovers to play a clean game, and he did just that after five giveaways in the opening three games. No turnovers this night. He was regularly moved outside the pocket to create easier passing lanes that he used. Tua is 6-0 against the Jets.

6. “Violence,” Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Edwards wanted from his defense. Then the Jets ran 11 times for 76 yards on their opening drive before fumbling it away. They had 197 yards rushing and a staggering 7-yard average per carry. They couldn’t even run much by the fourth quarter since they were behind. This continued a troubling theme for a Dolphins front seven that carried big expectations into the season. They entered Monday ranked 28th in yielding 145 rushing yards a game and 22nd with opponents averaging 4.5 yards a carry. Some of it Monday was Justin Fields, who had an impressive, 43-yard touchdown run. No matter how it all went, the three Jets turnovers hid a continuing problem for this defense. Do credit linebacker Jordyn Brooks for 16 tackles.

7. A good, Dolphins’ family story played out Monday: Jason Taylor and Zack Thomas weren’t just Hall-of-Fame honorary captains for the Dolphins this game. They had their allegiance stretched, too, with Taylor the proud father and Thomas the proud uncle of Jets tight end Mason Taylor, the second-round rookie from LSU. Mason’s mom, Katina, who is Zach’s sister and Jason’s ex-wife, greeted her son before the game on the sideline, too. Mason caught a rare Jets pass for 8 yards and a first down in the second quarter. That started a night where he had more first-downs catches of 11, 27 and 9 yards. The St. Thomas Aquinas High alum entered with six catches on the season. Next up: Former Dolphins receiver Oronde Gadsden gets to see his son, Oronde, another rookie tight end, comes to town with the Los Angeles Chargers on Oct. 12th.

8. McDaniel stuck with the running game Monday night to present a balanced offense. Twenty-five passes. Thirty-one rushing plays. That’s what this offense needs, and it’s easier to do when you have the lead al night. But why wouldn’t he stick with the run with De’Von Achane continuing to play so strong? Achane ran 20 times for 99 yards. That included a strong, 9-yard touchdown run that put the Dolphins up, 24-10, in the third quarter.

9. Quick Hits:

*Cole Strange started at right guard for the Dolphins. Strange was signed Sept. 9th off the Cleveland Browns practice squad. Regular James McDaniel (pectoral) can’t return from injury until after the Oct. 12th game against the Chargers at the earliest.

*Hidden stat of the night: The Dolphins had two fumbles they got back. The Jets had three fumbles and lost all three.

*That was Kiko Mauigoa, the former University of Miami linebacker, called for a roughing penalty for hitting a sliding Tagovailoa late in the third quarter.

*Serious question: Are the Jets tanking? Or is Aaron Glenn trying to revive their Jeff Ulbrich Era? Twelve penalties for 101 yards? A fair catch on a punt at the 3-yard line? Regular disorganization. Sure, the Dolphins had their youth-league moment at the end of the Patriots loss. But the Jets looked like that all night.

10. Next Game: Dolphins at 1-3 Carolina on Sunday at 1 p.m.. Who is Carolina? The team that beat Atlanta, 30-0, a Sunday ago? Or the team that got run off the field Sunday in New England, 42-13. Bryce Young hasn’t kept the strong finish to last year going as he has a 77.1 rating with five TDs and three interceptions. Carolina is the 29th-ranked scoring offense and ranks 19th among defenses in points allowed.