MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The wait for the Jets’ first win of the season continues after another sloppy, undisciplined and error-filled performance.
Penalties and fumbles ruined any chances the Jets had of capturing the first win of the Aaron Glenn era. The Jets fell to the previously winless Dolphins, 27-21, Monday night at Hard Rock Stadium.
The Jets are now 0-4 team, joining the Titans and Saints. This was also the Jets’ 11th straight loss in this building.
Glenn said he would clean up the Jets’ mistakes, but it’s been an extremely slow-moving process. The Jets turned the ball over three times, including once at the Dolphins’ 1-yard line. They committed 13 penalties for 101 yards.
Justin Fields was back after missing the Jets’ Week 3 loss in Tampa because of a concussion. He completed 20 of 27 passes for 226 yards and one touchdown. He also ran it seven times for 81 yards, including a 43-yard TD. He also fumbled.
Breece Hall rushed 14 times for 81 yards. Garrett Wilson caught six passes for 82 yards and a highlight-reel touchdown. Rookie tight end Mason Taylor had five grabs for 65 yards.
Wilson caught a 23-yard touchdown pass with 1:49 remaining, and Fields ran in the two-point conversion to cut the Dolphins’ lead to 27-21. The Jets tried an onside kick, but Darren Waller recovered.
The Jets forced a three-and-out but could only stop the clock once. They got the ball back at their own 1 with two seconds left. Fields threw it to Wilson, who lateraled it to Jeremy Ruckert, but he threw an illegal forward pass to Wilson.
Tua Tagovailoa was 17-for-25 for 177 yards and two touchdown passes for Miami. Both of them went to Waller, who was playing for the first time since he retired with the Giants after the 2023 season.
Tyreek Hill had six catches for 67 yards, but he left the game early in the third quarter after suffering a gruesome left knee injury. Players from both teams went over to Hill before he left the field on a cart.
The Jets continue to find ways to hurt themselves. Trailing 24-10 late in the third quarter, the Jets drove into the red zone with a chance to make it a one-possession game. Wilson caught an 18-yard touchdown pass but it was negated when he was flagged for offensive pass interference.
On the next play, John Simpson was called for unnecessary roughness, pushing the Jets back to the 36. They had to settle for a Nick Folk 50-yard field goal.
It was that way all game for the Jets. They fumbled twice in the first half in Dolphins’ territory and opened up the third quarter by fumbling the kickoff. Isaiah Williams lost it and Dante Trader Jr. recovered it at the Jets’ 36.
Six plays later, Tagovailoa rolled right and threw it to a wide-open Waller for a 9-yard touchdown that gave Miami a 17-3 lead.
The Jets answered on the next series without attempting a pass. They ran it four times and scored on a 43-yard Fields’ rush on fourth down. Fields dropped back to throw it. When the pocket collapsed, Fields reversed field and took off and scored.
The Dolphins went ahead 24-10 on the next series on De’Von Achane’s 9-yard touchdown run. Tony Adams missed a tackle and Jamien Sherwood over-ran the play. The Jets also had a costly 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty three plays earlier on rookie Kiko Mauigoa for hitting Tagovailoa’s helmet after he ran for 5 yards.
The Jets were fortunate to only be down 10-3 at halftime. They looked like they were going to score a touchdown on their first drive but Braelon Allen had the ball punched out at the 1 just before he crossed the plane.
Jack Jones knocked it out and Minkah Fitzpatrick recovered it at the 4.
The turnover turned into a 14-point swing. The Dolphins drove 96 yards and scored on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Tagovailoa to Waller on fourth down in the back of the end zone. The Jets allowed pass plays of 28 and 25 yards on the possession.
Allen almost fumbled again on the ensuing kickoff. The ball came loose, but the referees said he was down. The Dolphins challenged the call and lost. Allen injured his knee on the play and was ruled out pretty quickly.
The Jets drove into Miami territory but turned it over again. This time Fields coughed it up while scrambling on fourth-and-5 from the 36. Tyrell Dodson slapped the ball away from Fields and Jordan Phillips recovered it returned it to the Jets’ 43.
A holding penalty negated a 15-yard gain by Hill that would have given Miami a first down at the 27. The Dolphins ended up punting.
The first half ended with Folk putting the Jets on the board with a 58-yard field goal with no time left. They were helped by a Miami illegal contact penalty that gave the Jets a first down at the 40.
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
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