DAVIE, Fla. (AP) -The Miami Dolphins clung to a one-point lead early in the fourth quarter when quarterback Chad Pennington took the field for a series he expected to be pivotal.
“In the huddle I said, ‘This is the drive to win the game,”’ Pennington recalled later.
Thus began a 16-play, 79-yard touchdown march that took nine minutes and helped the Dolphins beat the Seattle Seahawks 21-19 Sunday.
The strong finish is part of a pattern for the rejuvenated Dolphins (5-4). They have a winning record for the first time since the end of the 2005 season, and in the past four victories they’ve preserved a lead of a touchdown or less at the start of the fourth quarter.
e out these guys really are pretty resilient, and I do think there’s good character out there.”
Last year the Dolphins were rarely ahead, which may be why they now guard a lead so stubbornly. Whatever the explanation, they’re good closers.
Miami has outscored opponents 56-29 in fourth quarter. In the other quarters, the Dolphins have been outscored 153-136.
“I think we are building confidence in ourselves and the ability to win,” Pennington said. “Instead of having a feeling of `here we go again’ when things don’t go our way, we focus on switching the vibe and switching the momentum.”
Even after the long drive against Seattle that put the Dolphins ahead 21-13, they flirted with overtime – or even defeat. The Seahawks drove 55 yards to score a touchdown with three minutes left, but Yeremiah Bell knocked down a pass on a two-point conversion attempt.
Seattle forced a punt and moved to the Miami 49 before Seneca Wallace threw four consecutive incomplete passes, the last with 24 seconds left.
“I guess we wanted to make it exciting,” defensive end Vonnie Holliday said.
t San Diego, Miami controlled the ball for 12 minutes in the final period to preserve a 17-10 lead.
“We’re learning how to finish people and put people away,” guard Justin Smiley said.
With a game on the line, Sparano said, it helps to be able to put the ball in the hands of experienced, talented players. He said Pennington and running backs Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams are all good in the clutch.
“I have trust in those players,” Sparano said.
Still, the Dolphins would prefer to seal the deal earlier. They had a chance against Seattle, scoring on their first two possessions for a 14-0 lead.
But the offense then began to sputter, and an interception return for a touchdown let the Seahawks back into the game.
“It seems like we wait until the game gets close to turn on our real game,” cornerback Will Allen said. “That’s something that we have to fix and we have to stop. When we have a team down, we have to keep moving.”
Also keeping the game close was Miami’s kick coverage, the NFL’s worst. Seattle had a 29-yard punt return and kickoff returns of 50 and 32 yards. The Dolphins missed 10 tackles on the three runbacks, and 72 yards came after first contact, Sparano said.
tting it done, then we need to find other people,” Sparano said.
But if kick coverage and narrow margins of victory are the biggest complaints, that’s more evidence of progress for the once-woeful Dolphins.
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