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MIAMI, Oct. 29 (UPI) -- Jalen Ramsey made an interception in his first game with the Miami Dolphins, returning from a torn meniscus to lead his new team to a win over the New England Patriots on Sunday in Miami Gardens, Fla. Ramsey, who joined the Dolphins in an off-season trade and sustained the injury at training camp, missed the first seven games of the season. He was back to locking down his side of the field in the 31-17 AFC East division triumph at Hard Rock Stadium.
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"I'm not a scientist, I'm not a doctor," Ramsey, who had been expected to be out until December, said at his postgame news conference. "I can't tell you how it healed so quickly or what happened. I'm just glad it did."
The star cornerback also said that the team planned to limit his snaps to keep him healthy, but he chose to play the entire game.
"I was definitely not supposed to play that long today," Ramsey said. "I just felt like with how the flow of the game was going, I needed to stay in there and try to finish it off for my teammates."
Ramsey and the Dolphins (6-2) defense held the Patriots (2-6) to just 141 passing yards and 77 rushing yards. The Patriots were 1 for 9 on third-down conversions. With Sunday's win, the Dolphins earned just their second season sweep of the Patriots since 2000.
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa threw for 324 yards and three scores. Wide receivers Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill logged 121 and 112 receiving yards, respectively, and each caught touchdown passes.
"We are excited to come off with a win," Tagovailoa said. "It's tough to sweep any team in your division."
Patriots safety Kyle Duggar intercepted Tagovailoa on the Dolphins' second drive of the game. The Patriots took the lead three plays later, when quarterback Mac Jones connected with wide receiver Kendrick Bourne for a 24-yard score with 3:32 remaining in the first quarter.
Tagovailoa then rebounded from his turnover, marching the Dolphins to the Patriots 42-yard line, where he launched a long touchdown toss to Hill, tying the score.
He later threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Cedrick Wilson midway through the second quarter for a 14-7 lead.
Ramsey went on to grab an interception on a deep throw from Jones about 1:48 before halftime. Kicker Jason Sanders made a 30-yard field goal about a minute later to help the Dolphins take a 17-7 lead at the break.
Tagovailoa fumbled during a handoff on the first play of the second half. Kicker Chad Ryland made a 38-yard field goal four plays later to cut the deficit to one score.
The Dolphins responded with a nine-play, 77-yard touchdown drive. Running back Raheem Mostert scored with a 1-yard run.
The Patriots followed with a 13-play, 81-yard drive, which started in the third quarter and ended about 3:30 into the fourth.
Jones threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster to end that drive. The score, and an extra point, cut the Dolphins lead to seven points, but the Patriots never scored again.
Tagovailoa then led the Dolphins into Patriots territory on the next possession. He threw a 31-yard touchdown strike to Jaylen Waddle to end the drive with his third passing score of the day with 2:43 remaining.
The Dolphins defense then stifled the Patriots attack on their final drive to clinch the victory.
Tagovailoa completed 30 of 45 pass attempts en route to his fourth performance this season with at least 300 passing yards. He also threw one interception and lost a fumble. Jones completed 19 of 29 passes for 161 yards, two scores and an interception in the loss.
The Dolphins will play the Kansas City Chiefs on Nov. 5 in Munich. The Patriots will host the Washington Commanders Nov. 5 in Foxborough, Mass.
