Dolphins QB Malik Willis, offense come alive to beat Jets for first win in 2026
Published in Football
They say bye weeks allow teams to rest and recalibrate in order to finish the rest of the season.
It looks like quarterback Malik Willis and the Miami Dolphins used that time wisely.
The offense came out on fire as the Dolphins beat the New York Jets, 28-25.
“We got a chance to really see where we were at,” Willis said of the bye. “We put a lot of good stuff on tape. And when you see that consistent, game in and game out, it builds a lot of confidence in guys.”
Willis would lead the Dolphins to touchdowns on three of their first four drives. The five-year veteran looked every bit of the quarterback that he was with the Green Bay Packers, utilizing his arm and legs to throw for 208 yards and two touchdowns and completed 67% of his passes. He added another 37 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Arguably their best drive of the season came right before halftime when they went 91 yards on 15 plays as Willis scrambled for a 2-yard touchdown with six seconds left to go up 21-7.
The offense would cool in the second half yet thanks to some timely plays — looking at you, Caleb Douglas and Ollie Gordon II, the latter of whom would finish with 103 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries — would ultimately make the difference
Welcome back, Douglas
After missing the last three games with an ankle injury, the rookie wideout came back with a vengeance.
Douglas would catch two of his three targets for 70 yards and two touchdowns. The last score — 63-yard catch-and-run in which he shook off former Dolphins and Jets safety Minkah Fitzpatrick in the fourth quarter — ultimately decided the game.
“I was out there just reacting,” Douglas said. “Minkah is a guy that likes to come down and really try to tag you so I was just trying to see how we moving and I felt like I had an edge. I just took it and kept going.”
Dulcich, have yourself a day
Many predicted that the tight end would be heavily featured in the offense to help Willis find some easy completions.
That wasn’t necessarily the case during the first five games but the Greg Dulcich-Willis connection came alive against the Jets.
Dulcich would catch five balls for 85 yards, both of which were team highs.
The only issue: all of Dulcich’s production came in the first half.
Garrett Wilson inactivity
The ability to neutralize a team’s best offensive weapon can be a defense’s best asset.
And that’s exactly what coach Jeff Hafley did, limiting Wilson to two catches for 26 yards.
Unfortunately, rookie wideout Omar Cooper Jr. picked up the slack, picking up his second game of more than 100 yards receiving in as many contests. He finished with 115 yards on five catches and a touchdown. Tight end Mason Taylor also came alive, making five catches for 62 yards and two touchdowns.
Defense tightens when needed
It says a lot about a defense when it can limit an offense in potential scoring positions.
And despite the Jets’ two touchdowns in three red-zone trips, the Dolphins did a solid of tightening when it mattered most.
First, it was safety Michael Taaffe’s interception in the first quarter when the Jets were just outside the red zone. In the third quarter, they forced a field goal attempt again just outside the red zone that kicker Jason Sanders missed.
Then came another field goal attempt — this time, a make — when the Jets got to the Dolphins 1-yard line in the fourth quarter.
“I loved the resiliency of the defense when they had the ball on the goal line and we stopped them down there,” Hafley said. “That was a huge series in the game.”
These plays made a difference considering the margin of victory.
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©2026 Miami Herald. Visit miamiherald.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.







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