The Chris Grier and Brian Flores era in Miami began in 2019 with the intention of cleaning up the teams cap situation, establishing a young core of foundational and cornerstone players and building a sustained winner.
That mission was always going to take time and finding that young core of players wasn’t going to be easy.
The good news? One of those players was was already on the roster.
2018 7th Round Draft Pick: Kicker Jason Sanders out of New Mexico.
Jason Sanders, NFL Kicker
In his first season as an NFL Kicker, Jason Sanders completed 18 out of his 20 attempted field goals, good for 90%. (He’s 83.3% for his career)
While his second season would bring with it a drop off in overall stats, Jason Sanders would continue to be a quality starter for the team and more importantly for this article, the highlight of one game in particular.
Number 7 kicks 7
It was week 14 of the 2019 season and Miami Dolphins (3-9) were on the road against their division rival New York Jets (4-8). This was the first time Adam Gase would be facing off at home against his former team and both were trying to work themselves out of an early season hole to get back [close to] .500.
While in the end, the Dolphins would drop this one to move to 3-10, there was still quite a bit to celebrate. Insert Jason Sanders.
Over the course of this game, Jason would be the only point-scorer for the Dolphins, kicking a franchise record seven field goals with ranges of 22, 25, 28, 31, 53, 47 and 37 yards.
This not only made him only the eighth kicker in NFL history to make seven field goals in a game but it allowed him to pass the previous record holder, Olindo Mare, for the franchise record.
Had he made his eighth, a miss from 34 yards out, he would have tied an NFL record.
Even though Jason didn’t grab an NFL record himself, this game did include one.
The Kicking Game
With Jason Sanders snagging a franchise record himself, with seven total field goals, the record for total field goals in a game was in reach.
Jets Kicker Sam Ficken would add to the box score himself, in this one, by tallying three total field goals. When added to Sanders’ seven, the result is an NFL record 10 field goals in a single game. Incredible!
Here’s the full kicking stat line:
- Sanders: 22, 25, 28, 31, 53, 47, and 37
- Ficken: 44, 42, and 37
While this game was not the offensive blowout that football fans have come to crave, the sheer volume of field goal attempts and the record being within reach gave this otherwise anticlimactic event between two sun-500 teams a touch of excitement.
In a season like 2019, Miami Dolphins fans (and Jets fans, too) were looking for any excitement they could to hang their hat on. They certainly got a little in this one.
