From kicker Dan Carpenter’s three field goals to three big fourth-down stops by the defense in the red zone and some strong running by both Reggie Bush and rookie quarterback Ryan Tannehill, the Dolphins had a banner day.

Statistical Milestones

Wide receiver Brian Hartline became the eighth player in team history to reach 1,000 receiving yards in his 9-yard catch late in the third quarter. It’s the7th time it’s been done in franchise history. … Tight end Anthony Fasano tied Jim Mandich for the second most touchdown catches by a tight end with his 23rd late in the fourth quarter. He trails Bruce Hardy (25) by two. … Wide receiver Marlon Moore made his first career start in place of the injured Davone Bess today. … Linebacker Jason Trusnik made his first start in a Dolphins uniform today when he stepped in for the injured Koa Misi. … Carpenter’s 53-yard field goal in the first quarter is tied for the eighth-longest field goal in Dolphins history and tied for his fourth longest. He also hit a 53-yarder last week at San Francisco and with 10 field goals of 50 yards or more. Carpenter trails only Pete Stoyanovich (14) in team history. … Running back Marcus Thigpen made his first career reception in the second quarter when he hauled in a 15-yard pass from Tannehill. … Thigpen also set a new career-high for fair catches as a punt returner with three. He had one the entire season before today as Davone Bess usually handled punts inside the Miami 20. … Linebacker Kevin Burnett sacked Chad Henne in the first half to give him 2.5 on the season and 17.5 for his career. … Fullback Jorvorskie Lane joined running backs Ricky Williams (2009), Ronnie Brown (2007) and Bernie Parmalee (1994) as the only players in Dolphins history to record both a rushing and receiving touchdown and a two-point conversion in a season. … Tannehill’s 30-yard run in the third quarter was the second longest by a Miami quarterback in franchise history, behind only Pat White’s 33-yard run at New England on November 8th, 2009. He became the fifth quarterback in team history and first since Chad Henne in 2009 to rush for more than 50 yards in a game (51). … Bush went over 100 yards for just the second time this season when with 104 yards on the afternoon and moved within six yards of reaching 1,000 for the second year in a row.

Turning Point

Just when it looked like the Jaguars were going to take advantage of the only turnover of the day by the Dolphins, a fumble by rookie quarterback Ryan Tannehill, a mental error did them in. Former Dolphins quarterback Chad Henne completed a 20-yard touchdown pass to Justin Blackmon but the play was negated by an illegal substitution penalty on offensive lineman Guy Whimper. He lined up as an eligible receiver but forgot to report to the official and four plays later Henne was stopped short on fourth-and-1 by linebacker Karlos Dansby at the Miami 11. The Dolphins offense went 89 yards on 14 plays in 7:34, with Tannehill hitting Lane for the touchdown and instead of trailing by seven points Miami went into the half with a 10-3 lead.

Eye In The Sky

Miami’s offensive line established its dominance at the line of scrimmage early, especially in the passing game by giving rookie quarterback Ryan Tannehill a clean pocket and plenty of time to throw. The pocket broke down once on the play when Tannehill fumbled in his own end but the front five rebounded on the next series and gave Tannehill time to find Marcus Thigpen for 15 yards and his first career catch. They picked up a head of steam on that drive both in run blocking for Bush and Daniel Thomas and in keeping Tannehill clean and giving him throwing lanes to exploit. … On the defensive side of the ball, the front seven frustrated Henne by sacking him twice but hitting him multiple times. … Tight end Anthony Fasano succeeded in getting the better of Jaguars middle linebacker Paul Posluszny both as a run blockers and a receiver. He caught six passes for 56 yards and a touchdown and also caught a two-point conversion.

Next

The Dolphins host the Buffalo Bills next Sunday at 1 p.m. in the final home game of the 2012 regular season.