Malik Willis had a hand in three of Miami’s four touchdowns and then kept the ball himself on the snap that decided the game, as Miami won 28-25 in East Rutherford on Sunday, its first victory of the season.
Willis completed 14 of 21 passes for 208 yards and two touchdowns, both to rookie Caleb Douglas, and ran eight times for 37 yards and a score. It was his most complete game of the year and the first victory of Jeff Hafley’s tenure as head coach, ending a five-game losing streak and sparing Miami its first 0-6 start since 2019.
The fourth-down call
The moment Willis talked about afterward came at the two-minute warning. Leading by three and facing fourth-and-1 at the New York 49, Hafley chose not to punt. He said later that he asked his offensive linemen how they felt and liked what he saw in their faces. Willis kept the ball, pushed up the middle and gained 2 yards, and the Jets never touched the ball again.
Willis described the call as a two-way bond between the coach and the huddle. “He trusted us,” he said of the call, “and we trusted him.” He called the whole afternoon awesome.
The game-winning play. pic.twitter.com/pyxu58fofd
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) October 25, 2026
How Willis built the lead
Miami had not been in front at any point of any game this season before Sunday. That changed on the first possession, a seven-play, 76-yard march that Willis finished with a 7-yard throw to Douglas for the rookie’s first NFL touchdown. The Dolphins led for the rest of the afternoon.
Just before halftime, Willis led a 15-play, 91-yard drive, hitting tight end Greg Dulcich for gains of 15 and 16 yards along the way. On second-and-goal he scrambled into the end zone from the 2 with 6 seconds left, making it 21-7 at the break. Dulcich finished with five catches for 86 yards.
The second half was harder. Willis completed only three passes after the break as the Jets closed to 21-17, but one of them broke the game open: a short throw to Douglas, who turned it into a 63-yard touchdown with 4:44 to play. New York answered with a Mason Taylor touchdown and a two-point catch to make it 28-25 with 3:24 left, which set up the fourth-down decision.
What it means for Miami
The Dolphins are 1-5 coming out of their bye week, and the win came in the home state of their coach, who grew up a short drive from the stadium. For Willis, the day added up to a 130.7 passer rating, two touchdowns through the air, one on the ground and the decisive yards on his own legs. The Jets fall to 2-5. Every score is in the Game Center.
What comes next
Miami hosts the New England Patriots on Sunday, November 1, at 4:25 p.m. EST. The Jets stay home to face the Las Vegas Raiders at 1:00 p.m. EST the same day.
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