Omar Kelly: Minkah Fitzpatrick's game-saving interception almost never happened

Omar Kelly, Miami Herald on Dec 1, 2025

Published in Football

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MIAMI — Consider it the game-saving interception that almost never happened, and actually won’t count in the stat books.

I’m referring to Tyler Shough’s two-point conversion throw at the end of the fourth quarter, which followed a 15-yard touchdown reception to Devaughn Vele, and would have tied the score 19-19 with 1:17 left in regulation of this Miami Dolphins 21-17 win.

The Dolphins’ communication system was having issues all game, and on the two-point conversion attempt the New Orleans Saints were about to run, which followed a 5-yard penalty for false start, the headset communication system the coaches use broke down, and defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver wasn’t able to get the play call into inside linebacker Tyrel Dodson.

Dodson, who serves as the green dot player, the defender who wears a headset that allows Weaver to call in the defensive plays, couldn’t hear the call on that critical play, so he improvised.

Dodson turned to his fellow defenders and simply told everyone to “get a man,” according to his teammates.

They did. Or maybe they didn’t.

“I’m not sure everyone was playing the same call,” fellow inside linebacker Jordyn Brooks said. “But Minkah [Fitzpatrick] made a great play.”

Before the snap, coach Mike McDaniel wanted to call a timeout when he learned that the communication system had failed. He ran to the referee on the sideline, but after the defense lined up a couple of Miami’s defensive assistants insisted Dodson heard the call because the defenders were lined up properly.

Miami’s defensive coaches encouraged McDaniel to let the play, play out.

Fitzpatrick, who has served as Miami’s primary nickel cornerback most of this season, said the defense doubled Saints receiver Chris Olave, who had been New Orleans’ top weapon in the passing game most of the season, and that left him with Vele, the slot receiver, 1-on-1.

“I was in zero coverage, the [receiver] runs a shallow. I slipped it and caught the ball,” said Fitzpatrick, who ran the interception back 100 yards to score on the two-point conversion that put Miami ahead 21-17, which sealed Miami’s fourth win in five games.

From that point the Saints had 1:17 left and needed a touchdown to win the game. Recovering an onside kick provided the Saints a great start on that drive, but Chop Robinson tackled Tyler Shough for no gain on a fourth-and-1 carry from Miami’s 36-yard line, giving Miami possession, and the win after two kneel downs.

“We were close,” Saints coach Kellen Moore said. “Obviously it’s a challenging two-point play when you’re going from the 7 [after committing a false start]. I thought [Fitzpatrick] made a phenomenal play. Obviously we’ll look at it in detail and see if we can give ourselves any other cleaner opportunities, but the guy made a really good play.”

And an even better improvisation for the Dolphins defense, even though the interception won’t count on Fitzpatrick’s season and career tally.

However, the only proof Fitzpatrick needs that the game-saving play happened is the game ball, which McDaniel awarded the eight-year veteran, who is having an uneven season in his controversial and surprising return to the Dolphins.

The same Dolphins that initially selected the former Alabama standout in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft, traded Fitzpatrick a season later to Pittsburgh when he demanded to be moved through his agent, then reacquired him six years later in a trade that swapped Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith, two former Pro Bowlers, for Fitzpatrick and a swap of a 2027 seventh-round pick for the Steelers’ 2027 fifth-round selection.

After the game Fitzpatrick gave the postgame speech to his teammates and told them he wouldn’t rather play with any other group of guys this season.

“I really appreciate how much this defense has been fighting. We obviously had a really rough start to the season, and I think what I appreciate most is the fact that even through our downs, and our low periods, we were still sticking together. We weren’t pointing fingers. We weren’t worried about other guys,” said Fitzpatrick, who also recorded his first career sack in Sunday’s game against the Saints. “We were all worried about what we could do better, what I could do better, and everybody kind of took on that personality.

“We uplifted each other when we made mistakes, and we really focused on just getting better over these last five, six weeks. We’ve been seeing a gradual incline, and we’ve got to keep doing that.”

Who knows exactly where that will lead this Dolphins team. But the recent wins, this team’s November transformation, certainly keeps the final five weeks of the 2025 season interesting.

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