Dolphins (minus-3 rushing) use 2 defensive TDs to beat Vikes
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| Team Stat Comparison |
| |  |  |
| 1st Downs | 25 | 15 |
3rd down efficiency | 5-17 | 5-13 |
4th down efficiency | 4-4 | 0-0 |
| Total Yards | 361 | 261 |
| Passing | 247 | 254 |
Comp-Att | 26-44 | 26-42 |
Yards per pass | 5.6 | 6.0 |
| Rushing | 114 | 7 |
Rushing Attempts | 35 | 13 |
Yards per rush | 3.3 | 0.5 |
| Penalties | 6-49 | 5-40 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 2 |
Fumbles lost | 2 | 1 |
Interceptions thrown | 1 | 1 |
| Possession | 36:00 | 24:00 |
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| Minnesota Passing | | | C/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | | Johnson | 26/44 | 262 | 0 | 1 |
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| Scoring Summary |
| FIRST QUARTER | MIN | MIA |
 | TD | 10:58 | Chester Taylor 1 Yd Run (Ryan Longwell Kick) Drive: 12 plays, 96 yds, 6:19 | 7 | 0 |
| SECOND QUARTER | MIN | MIA |
 | FG | 0:51 | Olindo Mare 44 Yd Drive: 5 plays, 18 yds, 1:10 | 7 | 3 |
 | TD | 9:26 | Justin Peelle 11 Yd Pass From Joey Harrington (Olindo Mare Kick) Drive: 9 plays, 78 yds, 3:32 | 7 | 10 |
| THIRD QUARTER | MIN | MIA |
 | FG | 8:51 | Ryan Longwell 35 Yd Drive: 9 plays, 26 yds, 3:59 | 10 | 10 |
| FOURTH QUARTER | MIN | MIA |
 | FG | 0:48 | Ryan Longwell 19 Yd Drive: 4 plays, 2 yds, :56 | 13 | 10 |
 | TD | 5:33 | Renaldo Hill 48 Yd Fumble Return (Olindo Mare Kick) | 13 | 17 |
 | TD | 11:35 | Jason Taylor 51 Yd Interception Return (Olindo Mare Kick) | 13 | 24 |
 | TD | 15:00 | Chester Taylor 1 Yd Run (Ryan Longwell Kick) Drive: 15 plays, 76 yds, 3:25 | 20 | 24 |
MIAMI (AP) -- Jason Taylor zigzagged through the open field,
waved the ball in his left hand and leaped across the goal line to
finish with a flourish.
| Scouts Inc.'s take ... |
The Dolphins beat the Vikings with great defense and two defensive touchdowns. The Vikings stuffed the Dolphins' ground attack (minus-3 yards rushing), but Miami QB Joey Harrington (above) moved the chains well enough in the air to get the victory (254 yards, one touchdown). The No. 1 defense in the AFC came up big, especially defensive end Jason Taylor (two forced fumbles and an interception for a touchdown).
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Looking more like breakaway runners than defensive players,
Taylor and cornerback
Renaldo Hill were the best ball carriers the
Miami Dolphins had Sunday.
Taylor and Hill returned turnovers for touchdowns in the fourth
quarter, and Miami overcame another sputtering offensive
performance to beat the
Minnesota Vikings 24-20.
The Vikings, ranked first in the NFL in run defense, lost
despite setting a team record by limiting the Dolphins to minus 3
yards rushing in 14 carries. Running back
Ronnie Brown netted 2
yards in 12 attempts.
The last time a team won with such a poor rushing total was on
Oct. 29, 1961, when Philadelphia beat Washington 27-24 with minus-12 yards.
"They shut down one half of our offense," quarterback Joey
Harrington said. "We threw well enough to win. And yeah, we got
some help from J.T. and Renaldo."
Hill returned a fumble 48 yards for Miami's go-ahead score, and
Taylor scored on a 51-yard interception return with 3:25 left to
tie George Martin's NFL record for linemen with his seventh career
touchdown.
The Dolphins (4-6), who had the league's worst record less than
a month ago, won their third consecutive game.
"When we were sitting there at 1-6, nobody gave us a chance to
win another game," Harrington said.
The Vikings (4-6) lost their fourth game in a row, committing
three turnovers in the final period.
"We had the game in hand until we self-destructed in the fourth
quarter," quarterback
Brad Johnson said.
Minnesota was nursing a 13-10 lead with 10 minutes left when
Chester Taylor lost a fumble for the second consecutive series.
Hill picked the ball up, found himself in the clear and sprinted to
the end zone.
"I'm just glad I was able to scoop and score," Hill said.
The Vikings were again at midfield when Jason Taylor sealed the
victory, peeling off a blocker to step in front of a screen pass by
Johnson and sprinting untouched for the score.
"He's unbelievable," Johnson said. "I asked him, and he said
he read the scheme. I felt we had him blocked. I never saw him
until after he made the play."
Taylor has had a hand in seven turnovers this season and has
scored twice.
"He might replace Barry Sanders as my all-time favorite
player," teammate Andre Goodman said. "It's amazing the type of
year he's having."
Taylor said he sensed a big play coming.
"I hadn't been feeling good all game," he said. "I didn't
feel like I was in a groove. Before that play I told the official,
`I'm about to do something outrageous."
Chester Taylor scored on a 1-yard run as time expired.
The Dolphins won even though they lost a fumble after reaching
the 1, had a 58-yard touchdown pass negated by a penalty and
trailed in time of possession by 12 minutes. Their rushing yardage
was a franchise low, and a team record for the Vikings defense.
Harrington went 26-for-42 for 254 yards with one score. He
improved to 1-6 starting against the Vikings, with the losses
coming when he played for Detroit.
"There has been a bit of a something against those guys,"
Harrington said. "It's nice to beat them."
His lone interception almost cost Miami the game. Antoine
Winfield returned the interception 26 yards to the 3, setting up
Ryan Longwell's 19-yard field goal three plays later to put
Minnesota ahead 13-10.
Harrington went 7-for-8 on the Dolphins' first possession to
help them drive 72 yards to the 1, but Brown lost a fumble and
Minnesota's
Dwight Smith recovered.
After dodging that threat, the Vikings mounted their longest
scoring drive of the season -- 96 yards in 12 plays -- with Chester
Taylor vaulting into the end zone from the 1.
But the Vikings struggled to move the ball the rest of the day,
and Winfield acknowledged frustration with his offense.
"The guys need to be more accountable and go out there to do
what we need to do," he said.
Game notes
The Dolphins came away with their longest injury list of
the season: LB Channing Crowder (hip), CB Will Allen (groin), S
Travares Tillman (hand), DE David Bowens (knee), WR Wes Welker
(ankle) and CB Michael Lehan (nose). Bowens, Welker and Lehan
returned to the game after being hurt. ... Sidelined for Minnesota
were CB Cedric Griffin (neck stinger), G Artis Hicks (ankle sprain)
and T Marcus Johnson. ... Former Vikings QB Daunte Culpepper (knee)
was inactive for the sixth game in a row. "It was nice to get the
win for him," Jason Taylor said.<