AFC Championship, 1985: New England 31 Miami 14

Game information
In an upset, the Patriots racked up 255 rushing yards and converted six Dolphins turnovers into 24 points.

On Miami's first offensive play, Steve Nelson stripped the ball from running back Tony Nathan, and Patriots defensive end Garin Veris recovered it to set up Tony Franklin's 23-yard field goal. The Dolphins later scored on an 80-yard drive, with quarterback Dan Marino completing passes to Bruce Hardy for 12 yards and Mark Duper for 18 before finding tight end Dan Johnson in the end zone with an 11-yard touchdown pass. But New England responded on a 66-yard possession, featuring a 45-yard run from Robert Weathers, to score on quarterback Tony Eason's 4-yard touchdown to Tony Collins, giving the Pats a 10–7 lead. On Miami's next drive, Marino fumbled the ball and nose tackle Lester Williams recovered for New England on the Dolphins 36-yard line. Patriots running back Craig James then rushed for 23 yards on three carries and Eason completed a 12-yard pass to Stanley Morgan on the 1-yard line before throwing a 1-yard touchdown toss to tight end Derrick Ramsey, giving the Patriots a 17–7 lead. Just before halftime Miami missed the chance to cut the deficit down to three points when tight end Dan Johnson dropped a pass from Marino in the end zone on a first and 10 from the Patriots' 16. As the next two plays fell short of a first down, Miami settled for a field goal from the Patriots' 14 yard-line, but Fuad Reveiz' kick sailed wide to the right after a badly taken snap.

Miami's Lorenzo Hampton then lost a fumble on the second half kickoff on a hit from Mosi Tatupu, and Greg Hawthorne recovered for New England on the Dolphins 25. Eason then converted the turnover into points at the end of a 6-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Weathers, making the score 24–7. The Dolphins had a chance to take the momentum back when safety Bud Brown recovered Fred Marion's fumbled punt return on the Patriots 45-yard line. But after a 19-yard run by Joe Carter and a 16-yard catch by Ron Davenport, Marion made up for his error by intercepting Marino's pass in the end zone to keep Miami from scoring. New England then put together a 13-play drive that took nearly eight minutes off the clock and moved the ball to the Dolphins 24-yard line. But Franklin missed a 41-yard field goal attempt, keeping the Dolphins' slim comeback hopes alive going into the fourth quarter.

Three plays into the final quarter, New England fumbled another punt return, this one lost by Roland James, and Miami took over on the Patriots 10-yard line. This time, they took advantage of their scoring opportunity with Marino's 10-yard touchdown pass to Tony Nathan on the next play, cutting their deficit to 24–14. Things looked even more promising for the Dolphins when they forced a punt and drove to the New England 38-yard line. But then Carter fumbled the ball and defensive end Julius Adams picked it up for the Patriots fourth fumble recovery of the day. New England then put the game away with a 9-play drive, featuring a 14-yard run by Tony Collins and a 13-yard carry by James. Tatupu later finished the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, putting the score out of reach at 31–14. With 7:34 left in the game, Miami mounted one last spirited drive, moving the ball to the NE 8-yard line. But two penalties pushed them back to the 28, and then a desperate pass from Marino was picked off by Raymond Clayborn in the end zone.

James was their main contributor on offense, rushing for a career postseason high 105 yards of the Patriots 255 total rushing yards in a game played in a steady rain. Of note, the Patriots ran the ball on 59 out of 71 offensive plays, amassing 255 rushing yards in an upset of the favored Dolphins. Weathers added 87 yards, while Collins rushed for 61 and caught three passes for 15. Eason threw for just 71 yards, but completed 10 of 12 passes with three touchdowns and no interceptions. The win was the first for the Patriots at the Miami Orange Bowl since 1966, the Dolphins inaugural season, ending a string of 18 consecutive losses by the Patriots in Miami and earning the Patriots their first trip to the Super Bowl in franchise history, and becoming the first to do so by winning three playoff games on the road.

This was the second postseason meeting between the Patriots and Dolphins. Miami won the only prior meeting.

Wikipedia

Craig James rushed for 105 of the Patriots’ 255 yards in their 31-14 win over the Dolphins.