Marino Lends Saints Hand in 24-13 Victory : Interconference: New Orleans pressures Miami quarterback into fumble and interception that are returned for touchdowns in the second half.
NEW ORLEANS — Dan Marino had a hand in three touchdowns, but only one of them belonged to the Miami Dolphins.
Robert Goff scored on a 28-yard return of Marino’s fumble, Vince Buck returned an interception thrown by Marino 34 yards for another touchdown and the New Orleans Saints sacked Marino a career-high five times in a 24-13 victory over the Dolphins Sunday.
“We’ve got some big play guys on our defense and they all showed up to play in this one,†said Pat Swilling, who sacked Marino once and forced the fumble that Goff returned for a touchdown. “All our guys rushed really, really well. With this defense you can count on us getting to anybody.â€
New Orleans (9-3), which allowed only one previous opponent to pass for more than 200 yards this season, gave up 259 yards to Marino, but pressured him throughout the game.
Marino completed 26 of 42 attempts despite a heavy rush throughout the game.
The Dolphins have given Marino excellent protection throughout his career, until the past few weeks. He has been sacked 13 times in the last three games and 24 times this season.
Marino again got little help from Miami’s running game, which managed only 58 yards in 18 rushes. The Dolphins have rushed for 100 yards only once in their last 10 games.
“Pat Swilling is probably in the top three or four pass rushers in the league,†Marino said. “He’s going to give you pressure.â€
With the score tied, 10-10, in the third quarter, Swilling hit Marino as he was cocking his arm to throw. The ball popped loose, Goff picked it up and ran for the go-ahead touchdown.
Buck’s interception return came in the fourth quarter and all but clinched the victory.
“We just started getting more and more pressure on Marino,†linebacker Sam Mills said. “We don’t have just one or two guys that give us a pass rush, we’ve got a lot of them.
“We’ve got great pass rushers sitting on the bench on this team.â€
Bobby Hebert of the Saints completed 11 of 22 passes for 135 yards, leading New Orleans to an early lead on a one-yard touchdown run by Dalton Hilliard in the first quarter.
The Dolphins (8-4) had only two first downs and 24 yards in the first quarter, but Marino completed 13 of 14 passes for 142 yards in the second quarter, including a two-yard touchdown pass Mark Duper to tie the score, 7-7.
Pete Stoyanovich kicked a 48-yard field goal to give Miami a 10-7 lead in the third quarter, but Morten Andersen kicked a 26-yarder on the Saints’ next possession.
Then the New Orleans defense took control.
“It’s tough enough to lose, but the manner in which we lost makes it all the tougher,†Miami Coach Don Shula said. “Giving up the offensive touchdowns, the fumble recovery and the interception for touchdowns enabled them to win the game.â€
The Dolphins had a chance to take the lead just before halftime when Marino drove them to the Saints’ 12-yard line with 51 seconds left. But an offensive pass interference call put Miami back on the 37 and Stoyanovich came up short on a 55-yard field-goal attempt with six seconds left.
Stoyanovich made a 34-yard field goal 57 seconds into the fourth quarter to make it 17-13, before Buck’s interception return with 9:55 left.
Despite the loss, Miami remained one game behind Buffalo in the AFC East when the Bills lost in overtime to the Indianapolis Colts.
The Dolphins are 2-4 since opening the season with six consecutive victories.
New Orleans, which remained one game behind the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC West, plays its third game in 11 days Thursday night against the Atlanta Falcons.
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