Miami Dolphins studs and duds: Comeback attempt falls short

Stud: Jeff Wilson, Jr., RB

Needing a spark, Miami’s offense just got a short field thanks to the Xavien Howard interception. They were then in danger of giving the ball right back as they were stopped on three-straight plays, setting up a fourth-and-eight.

Mike McDaniel elected to go for it and it proved to be the right play, thanks to Jeff Wilson. With no one open, Skylar Thompson dumped the ball off to the running back behind the line of scrimmage. He then forced a missed tackle by Matt Milano and ran for 13 yards and a fresh set of downs.

Wilson had struggled to get the ball moving on the ground, with fewer than three yards per attempt at this point. But he was able to make an impact play and allowed Miami to get into field goal range when it looked as though they were about to surrender excellent field position.

In addition to leading them to three points with that play, Wilson came up big again in the third quarter. Trailing 34-24, Wilson scored on a short touchdown run after Jaylen Waddle took a handoff to put them inside the two-yard line.

While the numbers weren’t huge, he stepped up when needed most which is why Wilson deserves some praise for his grit.

Dud: Robert Hunt, G

Whenever Miami made a big play, it seemed they had some sort of self-inflicted destruction that followed. That happened when Cedrick Wilson ran a punt back 50 yards, to give them the ball at the Bills’ 27.

An incomplete pass set up a second-and-10 and then Robert Hunt was called for a false start, moving it back to the 32. Even worse, it made it second and 15. Tyreek Hill pulled in a 13-yard pass but they had to kick a field goal two plays later on fourth and two — meaning those five yards proved to be very costly.