It took less than a year for another alliterative miracle to come around and potentially unseat the Minneapolis Miracle as the NFL’s wildest walk-off finish in 2018.
The Miami Dolphins used two laterals and a circuitous run-after-catch from Kenyan Drake to beat the New England Patriots last Sunday on a 69-yard play, quickly dubbed the Miami Miracle.
While it lacked the win-or-go-home consequences of the Vikings’ 61-yard score to beat the New Orleans Saints in January’s Divisional Round, it kept the Dolphins afloat in the AFC playoff hunt and sent their fans into a hysterical celebration as Drake sprinted past stumbling tight-end-turned-safety Rob Gronkowski for the game-winning score. It wasn’t far off from Stefon Diggs’ catch and run in that it featured a falling-down “defensive back” along the right sideline 11 months prior.
The Vikings know what that ecstatic feeling is like, but they also know how quickly a team can be brought back to earth. Their post-miracle game against the Philadelphia Eagles resulted in a deflating 38-7 defeat that cost them at a shot at the Super Bowl. Whether they were emotionally exhausted, outschemed or some combination of the two is hard to pinpoint.
How would head coach Mike Zimmer advise a team to snap back to reality after a shocking result? “I’m not gonna tell [Miami] that,” he said coyly on Wednesday.
The tremors of an improbable play like Sunday’s can last into the next week of game prep, as the Vikings can likely attest. Extra interview requests, bigger crowds at the team facility, etc. The Dolphins were shown chanting “See you Wednesday” in the locker room after the dramatic win, insinuating they’d be getting a pair of days off.
Like the Vikings, Miami will have to travel to a different time zone and play in a difficult road environment after their miracle. They’ve lost their last five road games by an average of 16.2 points per game, but head coach Adam Gase likes their progress since a Week 11 bye.
“I think once we hit the bye guys had a chance to kind of regroup, and we’ve got some guys back healthy,” he said. “Just that week off really helped us. We’ve had a really good energy since that bye week.”
The Dolphins began the season 3-0 before losing six of eight. Now a two-game winning streak has them ticking upward in December. They are locked in a four-way tie for the final AFC Wild Card spot and will likely have to win out to make the postseason. Miami can ill-afford a slip-up at U.S. Bank Stadium, where they’ve never played in the regular season.
“We really don’t have a choice,” said Dolphins head coach head coach. “We’re in survival mode as far as every game is big for us. We’ve got to do everything we can to try to win this one. We don’t have time to caught up in last week. That’s over and done, and we’ve got to move on to the next one.”
The Dolphins host Jacksonville and travel to Buffalo — a pair of 4-9 teams — for their final two games. The Vikings might present their greatest hurdle.
Minnesota, on the other hand, also needs three consecutive wins to ensure a postseason spot. After firing offensive coordinator John DeFilippo Tuesday, they’ll look to interim Kevin Stefanski to provide a spark against a 26th-ranked defense.
If things go well, they won’t need a miracle.
“I’m never comfortable,” said Zimmer, “until that last zero hits the clock.”
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