FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) – Tua Tagovailoa has heard a lot during his NFL career about his shortcomings. Beating the New England Patriots continues not to be one of them.
Raheem Mostert had a pair of TD runs, including a 43-yard romp in the fourth quarter, and Tagovailoa added a 2-yard touchdown pass to Tyreek Hill to help the Miami Dolphins hold off the Patriots 24-17 on Sunday night.
With the the victory, Tagovailoa improved to 5-0 against New England coach Bill Belichick.
"It’s never a me thing,“ Tagovailoa said. "Every time we face coach Belichick’s team it’s always a challenge, and we know we’re going to get their best. … We’re going to take them however they come."
Mostert carried 18 times for 121 yards and Tagovailoa completed 21 of 30 passes for 249 yards and an interception. Jaylen Waddle added four catches for 86 yards before leaving in the fourth quarter following a hit by Marte Mapu.
"One hundred yards is hard to come by especially in a passing league. That means everything was going on all cylinders,“ Mostert said.
After opening with two road wins, the Dolphins will try for their second straight 3-0 start under coach Mike McDaniel when they host Denver next weekend.
New England dropped to 0-2 for the first time since 2001, which was Belichick’s second season as coach. Trailing 24-17, the Patriots appeared to keep their hopes alive by converting a miraculous fourth-and-4 on the Dolphins 33. Mac Jones completed a pass to Mike Gesicki short of the first down marker, but the tight end spun and flipped the ball to left guard Cole Strange, who lunged forward.
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