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Dolphins rout Chiefs, get first win of season

Nov 6, 2011 - 11:30 PM Kansas City, MO (Sports Network) - Behind three touchdown passes by Matt Moore and a stellar defensive effort, the Miami Dolphins got their first win of the season -- a 31-3 rout of the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.

Moore threw for 244 yards while Reggie Bush ran for 92 yards and a score for the Dolphins (1-7), who were off to their worst start since going 0-13 to open the 2007 season.

Miami recorded its first victory since December 12 of last year, when it earned a 10-6 win against the Jets.

"It validates some of the things we've been talking about, about how hard work pays off and how believing in each other and sticking with each other pays off," said Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano.

Matt Cassel passed for 253 yards, but completed only 20-of-39 throws for the Chiefs (4-4), who had won their last four games.

Kansas City held the first lead Sunday, going up 3-0 when Ryan Succop kicked a 43-yard field goal just past the midway point of the first quarter. That kick also ended the game's first drive, which lasted 14 plays but sputtered when the Chiefs started to approach the red zone.

It wasn't long before Miami went ahead for good. The Dolphins forced the Chiefs to punt from their own five-yard line and took over possession at the Kansas City 47.

They picked up big chunks of yardage to get down the field -- Moore found Brandon Marshall for a 20-yard gain on third down, and connected with Bush for an 18-yard gain two plays later.

Then, on 1st-and-goal from the three, his pass over the middle to Anthony Fasano put the Dolphins on the board with 46 seconds left in the frame.

That drive hinted at things to come for Miami, which displayed a remarkable big-play ability Sunday. The Dolphins needed just nine total plays during their next three touchdown drives.

And those possessions weren't short, either. Miami needed to go 78, 61 and 46 yards to reach the end zone. It just did so in a quick way.

The Dolphins took a 14-3 lead with 9:41 left in the second quarter when Moore hooked up with Fasano for another score.

He had connected with Charles Clay on passes of 21 and 22 yards to bring Miami to the Kansas City 35. On the next play, Moore rolled out to his right, stopped and threw a long pass to the left side of the field. Fasano was wide open to make the catch and stretched over the goal line with a defender on his back.

Miami's next touchdown came early in the third quarter, after a botched field goal by Kansas City led to a turnover on downs.

The Dolphins took over at their own 39 and picked up most of their yards during one play. Moore completed a 27-yard pass to Bush, and an unnecessary roughness penalty on the Chiefs' Tamba Hali brought the ball to the Kansas City 14.

Moore then completed a touchdown pass to Marshall, and a few minutes later, Bush ripped off runs of 18 and 28 yards to get the Dolphins into the end zone again. Suddenly, Miami had a 28-3 advantage and there was still 6:41 left in the third quarter.

The Dolphins hadn't scored 28 points in an entire game this season, prior to Sunday.

Dan Carpenter added a 42-yard field goal during the fourth quarter to complete the rout.

It's not as if the Chiefs didn't have chances to score. They held the ball for nearly 35 minutes and converted 40 percent of their third downs. They didn't fumble the ball away and Cassel didn't throw an interception.

They just couldn't get out of their own way.

"We definitely wanted this win for our fans. To be at home, to come in with another home game next week, but we didn't get it done," said Chiefs cornerback Brandon Flowers.

"All that wishing and what we would have thought we should have done is over with now. We've got to move on to the Denver Broncos coming in and try to get a win next week."

Kansas City ran 78 total offensive plays and gained 343 yards, for an average of 4.4 yards gained per play. But it usually started deep in its own territory and ended up punting while still on its own side of the field.

The Chiefs did get inside the Miami 10-yard line twice in the fourth quarter, but turned the ball over on downs both times.

Game Notes

Miami averaged 7.5 yards per offensive play...Bush finished with 50 yards on three catches...Moore completed 17-of-23 passes...Miami linebacker Kevin Burnett finished with 12 tackles and 1 1/2 sacks, both game highs.