Final
Ginn's 2 kickoff returns lead Dolphins past Jets
Nov 1, 2009 - 11:18 PM By DENNIS WASZAK Jr. AP Sports WriterEAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.(AP) -- Ted Ginn Jr. was angry, his ego bruised by an embarrassing benching.
The Miami wide receiver took out his frustration on the New York Jets, returning two long kickoffs for touchdowns in the third quarter, and the Dolphins' defense held on for a 30-25 victory Sunday.
"Not being in that starting lineup hurt me deep down inside," Ginn said. "I just wanted to make plays. You don't always have to be a starter to make plays."
Ginn certainly made that point loud and clear.
Benched in favor of rookie Brian Hartline, Ginn made all the difference on special teams by returning kickoffs of 100 and 101 yards for scores. He also became the first player to return two kickoffs for touchdowns in the same quarter since Green Bay's Travis Williams in 1967, according to STATS LLC.
"To be who I am and to have played as many games as I have as a starter, I had to do things on the other end to keep me confident," the 2007 first-round draft pick said. "Being a pro, you understand things happen. I got my mind right."
He also helped Miami (3-4) sweep the two regular-season games against the Jets (4-4) in the teams' second meeting in 20 days.
"We're responsible for the loss," said Jets special teams ace Wallace Wright. "That killed us. If they didn't run back those two kickoffs, it's over."
Maybe so, especially when the Jets' defense shut down the Dolphins' wildcat formation and held Miami to just 104 yards of total offense compared to New York's 378.
"Sometimes things just don't make sense," Jets coach Rex Ryan said. "Statistically, this game isn't going to look close."
Miami's second-ranked running attack rushed for just 52 yards, and Chad Henne was 12 of 21 for 112 yards and a late touchdown to Joey Haynos.
"They're a great team," Jets linebacker Bart Scott said sarcastically. "They'll probably contend for the Super Bowl."
It was one more shot in a tense rivalry reignited by a big heap of trash talk from both sides. It was ramped up after Jets linebacker Calvin Pace called the Dolphins' wildcat "nonsense" after Miami's 31-27 win on Oct. 12. The bad feelings were evident even before the game, when the Jets' Kerry Rhodes and a few Dolphins players got into a shoving match during warmups.
But, this time, the Dolphins had the final word on the field.
"When you have two teams that really hate each other, that's going to be your best football," Miami linebacker Joey Porter said. "I wish you could hate every team like you hate your rivals. They brought out our best football."
And, just like the last time these teams met, the game came down to the wire.
Facing a fourth-and-13 following a sack by Randy Starks with just over a minute remaining, Mark Sanchez scrambled before firing an incomplete pass over Dustin Keller and Jerricho Cotchery in the end zone to seal the loss for the Jets.
"This stings, going into the bye with a loss like this," said Sanchez, who was 20 for 35 for 265 yards and two touchdowns. "As a competitor and as an offense, we thought we were winning that game, no doubt."
They had a chance, particularly after Keller's pretty 16-yard diving touchdown catch made it 30-25 with 5:52 remaining. Sanchez connected with Wright for the 2-point conversion, but it was negated by an illegal shift. Sanchez's next attempt missed.
After New York's defense stopped Miami, the Jets had a shot to stun the Dolphins late. But Sanchez and the offense couldn't come through in the end.
"We felt we were going to be able to go in and seal the deal," Cotchery said. "Give them credit. They kept us out of the end zone."
After Jay Feely kicked a 55-yard field goal to tie a career and team mark and give New York a 6-3 lead, Miami struck back immediately with Ginn's 100-yard return.
Jason Taylor made it 17-6 with 7:32 left in the third quarter when he returned Shonn Greene's fumble 48 yards for a touchdown.
After Sanchez scored from 1 yard on a pretty play-action fake, Ginn struck again with a 101-yard return that made it 24-13.
New York came right back on Braylon Edwards' one-handed 19-yard touchdown catch with 1:35 remaining in the quarter. The 2-point conversion failed, making it 24-19.
"I've never seen a third quarter like that," Dolphins coach Tony Sparano said. "To win this football game and have a third quarter like that, my hat's off to that group in the locker room."
Notes: Ginn's 101-yard return was second in team history to Mercury Morris' 105-yarder in 1969 at Cincinnati. ... After running for 300-plus yards in two straight games, the Jets were held to 127 - including 102 by Thomas Jones.
- NFL
FINAL 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
MIAMI 0 3 21 6 30
NY JETS 0 3 16 6 25 FINAL
SCORING SUMMARY
2ND QUARTER: NYJ - FG, JAY FEELY 23 YD, 2:40. NYJETS
3-0
MIA - FG, DAN CARPENTER 48 YD, 13:05.
MIAMI 3-3
3RD QUARTER: NYJ - FG, JAY FEELY 55 YD, 4:36. NYJETS
6-3
MIA - TD, TED GINN JR. 100
Nov 1 4:07 PM - NFL
MIAMI 30
NY JETS 25 0:00 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Nov 1 4:07 PM
TD NYJ DUSTIN KELLER 16 YD PASS FROM MARK SANCHEZ (TWO-POINT PASS CONVERSION FAILED)
Dolphins 30, Jets 25 4th - 5:52Nov 1 3:44 PM
TD NYJ DUSTIN KELLER 16 YD PASS FROM MARK SANCHEZ (TWO-POINT PASS CONVERSION FAILED)
Dolphins 30, Jets 25 4th - 5:52Nov 1 3:44 PM- NFL
TD NYJ
DUSTIN KELLER 16 YD PASS FROM MARK SANCHEZ
(TWO-POINT PASS CONVERSION FAILED)
MIAMI 30
NY JETS 25 5:52 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Dolphins 30, Jets 25 4th - 5:52Nov 1 3:44 PM
TD MIA JOEY HAYNOS 5 YD PASS FROM CHAD HENNE (TWO-POINT PASS CONVERSION FAILED)
Dolphins 30, Jets 19 4th - 8:48Nov 1 3:33 PM
TD MIA JOEY HAYNOS 5 YD PASS FROM CHAD HENNE (TWO-POINT PASS CONVERSION FAILED)
Dolphins 30, Jets 19 4th - 8:48Nov 1 3:33 PM- NFL
TD MIA
JOEY HAYNOS 5 YD PASS FROM CHAD HENNE
(TWO-POINT PASS CONVERSION FAILED)
MIAMI 30
NY JETS 19 8:48 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Dolphins 30, Jets 19 4th - 8:48Nov 1 3:33 PM - NFL
MIAMI 24
NY JETS 19 0:00 LEFT, 3RD QTR
Nov 1 3:23 PM
TD NYJ BRAYLON EDWARDS 19 YD PASS FROM MARK SANCHEZ (TWO-POINT PASS CONVERSION FAILED)
Dolphins 24, Jets 19 3rd - 1:35Nov 1 3:19 PM
TD NYJ BRAYLON EDWARDS 19 YD PASS FROM MARK SANCHEZ (TWO-POINT PASS CONVERSION FAILED)
Dolphins 24, Jets 19 3rd - 1:35Nov 1 3:19 PM- NFL
TD NYJ
BRAYLON EDWARDS 19 YD PASS FROM MARK SANCHEZ
(TWO-POINT PASS CONVERSION FAILED)
MIAMI 24
NY JETS 19 1:35 LEFT, 3RD QTR
Dolphins 24, Jets 19 3rd - 1:35Nov 1 3:19 PM
TD MIA TED GINN JR. 101 YD KICKOFF RETURN (DAN CARPENTER KICK)
Dolphins 24, Jets 13 3rd - 3:09Nov 1 3:12 PM
TD MIA TED GINN JR. 101 YD KICKOFF RETURN (DAN CARPENTER KICK)
Dolphins 24, Jets 13 3rd - 3:09Nov 1 3:12 PM
TD MIA JASON TAYLOR 52 YD FUMBLE RETURN (DAN CARPENTER KICK)
Dolphins 17, Jets 6 3rd - 7:32Nov 1 2:58 PM
TD MIA JASON TAYLOR 52 YD FUMBLE RETURN (DAN CARPENTER KICK)
Dolphins 17, Jets 6 3rd - 7:32Nov 1 2:58 PM
TD MIA TED GINN JR. 100 YD KICKOFF RETURN (DAN CARPENTER KICK)
Dolphins 10, Jets 6 3rd - 10:10Nov 1 2:51 PM
TD MIA TED GINN JR. 100 YD KICKOFF RETURN (DAN CARPENTER KICK)
Dolphins 10, Jets 6 3rd - 10:10Nov 1 2:51 PM- NFL
MIAMI 3
NY JETS 3 0:00 LEFT, 2ND QTR
Nov 1 2:25 PM - NFL
MIAMI 0
NY JETS 0 0:00 LEFT, 1ST QTR
Nov 1 1:39 PM
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