Raiders vs. Dolphins: 4 winners and 4 losers from Oakland’s 27-24 win

The Dolphins didn’t make it easy on the Raiders, but Oakland got the win on Sunday night with a final score of 27-24.

It was 10-9 at the half, and ended up being a close game for most of the second half. The Dolphins pulled within four points of the Raiders in the third quarter, and then nobody scored again until there was 4:37 left in the game. That score — Marshawn Lynch’s second touchdown — sealed the game for the Raiders.

But it wasn’t for a lack of effort on the Dolphins’ part. Jay Cutler actually had a great game, and he tried to get the Dolphins moving. He did hit Julius Thomas for a 27-yard gain and it looked like they had some momentum. But the drive stalled out. Cutler hit Thomas again with a 14-yard pass to convert a fourth down, but a holding penalty on Jermon Bushrod brought it back. When they replayed the down, Cutler’s pass went incomplete.

The Dolphins got another shot after a pick by safety Reshad Jones. A roughing-the-passer call and a play that was ruled an incomplete pass but was overturned on review helped Miami move the ball. Cutler got it to Julius Thomas in the end zone and Kenyan Drake ran in the two-point attempt to pull within a field goal of the Raiders with just over a minute and a half remaining.

Miami tried an onside kick, and they had executed one perfectly earlier in the game. This one was... not perfect. Amari Cooper recovered, and the Raiders kneed it out for the win.

Obviously the Raiders were winners, and the Dolphins were losers. But here are the rest of the winners and losers from Sunday night’s matchup.

The Dolphins just had this field at Hard Rock Stadium resurfaced after their Week 7 game against the Jets. But it’s already a hot mess.

The Miami Hurricanes also play at Hard Rock Stadium, and they beat Virginia Tech on Saturday night. They tore it up pretty good, because the field was in terrible shape on Sunday night.

Williams got the Dolphins on the board on a 10-yard pass from Jay Cutler. His teammate picks up a key block for him, then Williams takes down two defenders by the sheer force of his will before Supermanning into the end zone.

The Raiders might as well have extended an invitation to the Dolphins to onside kick on them based on the formation they lined up in. Nobody was within four yards of the restraining line. The probability was high that the Dolphins could recover this.

So Cody Parkey kicked it, and Parkey also recovered it. It was perfectly executed.

Too bad the Raiders couldn’t capitalize on that flawless onside kick. Kenyan Drake fumbled the ball, and Oakland recovered. The Raiders scored a touchdown on their next possession.

There’s no way the ref is going to pick up a flag because you claim you were just kidding around, Lee Smith.

Although, to be fair, it did look like he was just kidding around.

Jay Cutler is our favorite disinterested quarterback meme. But he didn’t play like a disinterested quarterback. Cutler had just one incompletion in the first half, and it was on a batted ball. He finished 32 of 41 for 311 yards and three touchdowns.

The offense has been a liability for Miami this season. If Cutler keeps playing this way, it won’t continue to be.

Lynch had two scores in the Raiders’ win, and this first one was a vintage run. He finds a hole, evades a defender, and essentially walks into the end zone.

His second touchdown locked up the win for the Raiders, and he’s got great blocking. He just walks right into the end zone again.

This would have gone in the winner column, because it had two of our favorite things: A fumble recovery by a lineman, and said lineman trying to run the dang ball. Derek Carr fumbled, and Newhouse was there. He scooped it up and started to run.

Then a Miami defender took Newhouse’s legs out from under him. He went flying and lost the ball in the process, and Miami recovered.

It’s still beautiful, even though he lost the ball.

The Dolphins gave them a game, but the Raiders go home with a win.