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Michael Mayo, The Miami Sun Sentinel, published 2 December 1991
So much for a weekend of heated intrastate rivalries. After spirited battles of Gators-Seminoles and Heat-Magic, a season-low crowd of 51,036 at Joe Robbie Stadium was treated to the NFL`s version of a homecoming game on Sunday. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers played the pushovers. The Dolphins spotted them an early touchdown, then came back with 33 unanswered points for the season`s most convincing victory.
The score was 33-14, and the Dolphins established season highs for points, victory margin, yardage (468), rushing yardage (171) and possession time (35:10). It was the Dolphins` first bona fide rout this year and the first since a 30-13 win at Cleveland in November of last season.
``We were having fun out there for the first time in a long time,`` cornerback J.B. Brown said.
It also marks the first time the Dolphins (7-6) have risen above .500. They had failed on five occasions. The Bucs fell to 2-11. ``Everything was working,`` coach Don Shula said. ``We scored offensively and played defense. We built the lead, then went out and held it.``
The Dolphins also held firmly to their playoff hopes, buoyed by the Jets` loss at Buffalo. Although they technically trail the Jets (7-6) for the third and final wild-card spot, realistically the Dolphins hold the edge. The Dolphins play the Bengals at JRS next Monday night; the Jets will be at Detroit Sunday. The Dolphins and Jets play in the regular-season finale Dec. 22 at JRS. The Dolphins have won four of the last five, including the pivotal overtime win at Chicago last week. Getting over the .500 hump was a significant psychological boost after a season filled with injuries and turmoil. ``Everything feels good for a change,`` safety Louis Oliver said. ``We have a lot more confidence, and that attitude is showing on the field.``
That wasn`t all the Dolphins showed. For once they came dressed in their Sunday best. Mark Higgs rushed for 130 yards on 25 carries, his third 100-yard game in seven starts. Higgs replaced Sammie Smith as starter and picked up where Smith left off: He fumbled on the opening drive, and the Bucs marched 47 yards for a touchdown. But Higgs atoned; he had 103 yards by halftime, including a 19-yard touchdown run.
Dan Marino completed 20 of 32 passes for 307 yards and two touchdowns. He didn`t throw an interception and cracked 3,000 passing yards for the eighth straight year, an NFL record. Tony Martin had his best game, catching five passes for 106 yards, including a diving 26-yard touchdown reception just before halftime for a 24-7 lead. It was Martin`s first meaningful touchdown of the season and it came after he dropped one at the goal line earlier in the second period. Pete Stoyanovich kicked four field goals, a career-high, despite battling a 103-degree fever. His longest was 41 yards and helped lift his field-goal percentage of 81.3 percent overall.
The 24-point scoring burst in the second quarter was the franchise`s second-best single-period output. The Dolphins scored 28 points in a quarter against the Patriots in 1967. The much-maligned run defense, ranked 27th before the game, limited Reggie Cobb to 60 yards and the Bucs to 59. It was only the third time an opponent has been held under 60 yards.
The pass defense didn`t pick on Vinny Testaverde too badly -- only one interception -- but had a share of the fun, with four sacks. ``I don`t know where to go from here,`` said a bewildered coach Richard Williamson. ``That`s what I`m trying to figure out.``
The Dolphins have it figured pretty easily. Three more wins equals one big playoff shot. ``This was our best game of the year,`` Martin said. ``We had to prove we are a playoff team.``
``We finally got it all together,`` said guard Keith Sims. ``The offense played a great game. The defense played a great game. It`s the first time we`ve done that all year.``
``We went out and played like we really wanted to get to the playoffs,`` safety Bobby Harden said. ``We gave up the early touchdown, but then the defense stiffened and we took them out of their running game. When you win convincingly like this, it takes a lot of questions out of your mind. When we went out and played sloppy games and won close ones, we`d come in here and say, `What are we doing?```
The only question most fans were asking by halftime: What was Mark Higgs doing on the bench the last six weeks? Higgs, who started the first six games, when Smith had a knee injury, has as many 100-yard games this season as Smith does as a pro. But he got off to a rocky start Sunday. After rushing for a first down, breaking three tackles and sprinting into the open field for 18 yards on his third carry, Higgs fumbled. It happened after he switched hands and before he had a snug hold. Ricky Reynolds stripped the ball and it was recovered at Miami`s 47 by Kevin Murphy. Testaverde completed several big passes, and Cobb sprinted around left end for a 2-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead.
``I got the opportunity and I blew it,`` Higgs said. ``I was just hoping Coach Shula was going to give me another chance.``
He did, and Higgs ran with it. He gained 36 yards on his next four carries and finished with 10 carries of 6 yards or longer. Higgs displayed the speed and explosiveness that got him 146 and 111 yards in his first two starts. Higgs often ran straight up the middle or on the flanks of his guards. ``It was hammer time,`` said fullback Tony Paige, who blocked two Bucs on Higgs` 19-yard touchdown. ``We were crushing them today.``
The Dolphins crushed them in the second period. Marino threw a 6-yard touchdown to Mark Duper to tie it at 7, Stoyanovich kicked a 41-yard field goal to make it 10-7, Higgs` run made it 17-7, and Martin`s dive made it 24-7. Martin`s swan dive was worth the standard six points but should have been more. Judges would have given it a 9.9.
``I just dived and kept my eye on the ball,`` said Martin, who had outsprinted Carl Carter. ``I knew in my mind I could do it in the clutch.``
The Dolphins showed mercy in the second half. They were within the 5 twice and inside the 15 once and settled for three field goals. Stoyanovich connected from 24, 19 and 30 yards. ``I would have liked to put them away better than we did,`` Shula said. ``It was disappointing getting down there and not scoring touchdowns, but at least we were putting points on the board.``
The Bucs` final points came on Lawrence Dawsey`s 17-yard garbage-time catch.
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