EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Mud, a Monday night miracle and a sneaky fake spike.
They’ve all been part of an entertaining rivalry between the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets.
Disregard the records whenever these AFC East foes get together because good, bad or mediocre, the Dolphins and Jets always seem to get fired up to face each other.
“A lot times, they’re in the way of getting to the playoffs,” Dolphins linebacker Jelani Jenkins said. “It’s not really a hatred thing for me, but it’s definitely competition.”
The Dolphins (6-5) are in the middle of the AFC playoff picture, hoping to make the postseason for the first time since 2008. First up is a Monday night showdown with the struggling Jets (2-9), who’d love nothing more than to put a crimp in Miami’s playoff plans.
You know, the way the Jets did last season, when they beat the Dolphins 20-7 at Miami in the regular-season finale and eliminated them from postseason contention.
“Although the record isn’t as we’d planned, it’s still a great rivalry and we look forward to facing the Dolphins,” Jets quarterback Geno Smith said.
The Jets hold a slight edge in the head-to-head meetings — 50-46-1 — including a playoff loss to the Dolphins. The teams also have met 12 times on Monday nights, with the Jets winning seven.
“They seem to play some of their best football against us and we understand that going in,” Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill said. “So we have to be ready for it.”
Here are some memorable games between the Dolphins and Jets:
MUD BOWL (Jan. 2, 1983): A.J. Duhe will forever be etched in the minds of Jets fans after he intercepted three of Richard Todd’s passes and kept New York from advancing to its second Super Bowl appearance.
The Orange Bowl was a muddy mess because of heavy rainstorms, and things just got sloppier for the Jets and Todd, who finished with five interceptions in the Dolphins’ 14-0 victory. Duhe set up Miami’s first score with an interception and then sealed things when he picked off Todd’s screen pass and returned it 35 yards for a touchdown.
SUNDAY SHOOTOUT (Sept. 21, 1986): The Jets’ Ken O’Brien and the Dolphins’ Dan Marino just kept slinging in this slugfest.
With no time left in regulation, O’Brien connected with Wesley Walker on a 21-yard touchdown pass to tie it. Just 2:35 into overtime, O’Brien and Walker again hooked up, this time on a 43-yard toss that gave the Jets a 51-45 victory. The quarterbacks combined to set NFL single-game records of 884 net yards passing and 10 touchdown passes.
WINNER-TAKE-ALL (Dec. 22, 1991): The final wild-card playoff spot was on the line in the regular-season finale, with the winner heading to the postseason and the loser going home.
The Dolphins took a 20-17 lead with 44 seconds remaining on Ferrell Edmunds’ 1-yard catch from Marino. But O’Brien drove the Jets downfield and Raul Allegre kicked a 44-yard field goal. The Dolphins went three-and-out on their first possession of OT, then Allegre booted a 30-yard winner.
FAKE SPIKE (Nov. 27, 1994): It’s almost 20 years to the day since the Jets led 24-21 with 30 seconds left and the Dolphins had the ball at the New York 8.
Marino ran to the line of scrimmage and motioned he was going to spike the ball. Instead, Marino took the snap and threw to Mark Ingram for the winning touchdown — stunning the Jets and the Giants Stadium crowd. Miami went on to win the division, and the Jets finished with a five-game losing streak.
MONDAY NIGHT MIRACLE (Oct. 23, 2000): The ultimate proof no lead is ever safe when these two meet.
The Dolphins led 30-7 at the end of the third quarter, but the Jets tied it at 30 on Vinny Testaverde’s pass to Chrebet with 3:55 left. Miami retook the lead just two plays later as Jay Fiedler threw a 46-yard scoring toss to Leslie Sheppard.
Game over? Not quite. Testaverde hit eligible tackle Jumbo Elliott, who bobbled the pass as he fell to the turf in the end zone for a 3-yard TD with 42 seconds left. After the Jets intercepted Fiedler in OT, John Hall kicked a 40-yard field goal for a 40-37 victory powered by the largest comeback from a fourth-quarter deficit in NFL history.
“It was like straight playground football,” Chrebet said.
CHAD’S REVENGE (Dec. 28. 2008): Chad Pennington was once considered a franchise QB for New York, but injuries undermined his career. He was cut by the Jets when they acquired Brett Favre before the 2008 season.
Pennington signed with the Dolphins and helped them go from 1-15 in 2007 to 11-5 and the AFC East title as he won the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year award. The Dolphins needed to beat the rival Jets in the regular-season finale to make the playoffs for the first time since 2000, and Pennington threw two touchdown passes to defeat Favre and the Jets 24-17.
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