NFL reporter Mike Klis analyzes a key play from the Dolphins’ 26-17 victory over the Broncos on Sunday:
The play: The Broncos trailed 19-17 but had momentum. Miami had third-and-19 at its 47-yard line with 6:37 remaining. The Broncos put seven men on the line of scrimmage, and all seven rushed Dolphins QB Chad Pennington. Just as blitzing linebacker Jamie Winborn was reaching Pennington, he flipped a screen pass to running back Ronnie Brown. Uh-oh. Brown gained 18 yards before he was pulled down by linebacker D.J. Williams. Uh-oh, again. Williams suffered a partial tear in the medial collateral ligament of his left knee while making the tackle. He is expected to miss three or four games. Broncos safety Marlon McCree also suffered a severely sprained ankle on the play. On fourth-and-1, Dolphins fullback Lousaka Polite picked up the first down, and Miami later picked up another third-and-long on the way to scoring the game-clinching touchdown.
Point/counterpoint: Before the third-and-19, Broncos coach Mike Shanahan accepted a 10-yard holding penalty instead of a 5-yard sack and a loss of down. On second- and-9 at the Broncos’ 43, Elvis Dumervil sacked Pennington for a 5-yard loss. But Dolphins left tackle Jake Long was called for holding on the play. Instead of third-and-14 from his 48, Shanahan took second-and-19 at the Dolphins’ 47. Shanahan later said he wanted to push Miami out of field-goal range. On the next play, Pennington threw an incomplete pass, which made it third-and-19 before the screen.
Future prospects: Although it was surprising Shanahan took the penalty instead of the sack and loss of down, it still came down to stopping the screen on third-and-long. “It was just a great call for what we had on defense,” Winborn said. “They made the play and executed it well.”
