Dolphins defense leads Miami past Broncos

[November 03, 2008]  DENVER (AP) -- The Miami Dolphins bottled up Denver's ground game and intercepted Jay Cutler three times in a 26-17 win over the befuddled Broncos on Sunday.

Cornerback Will Allen returned the second of Cutler's mistakes 32 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter.

With Champ Bailey sidelined by a torn groin, Chad Pennington repeatedly picked on his replacement, Karl Paymah, who picked off one pass but otherwise was victimized all afternoon by Greg Camarillo, whose 11 receptions for 111 yards were season highs.

Ronnie Brown rushed 20 times for 59 yards, including a 2-yard scamper into the end zone with three minutes left to ice it for the Dolphins (4-4).

Denver (4-4) lost for the fourth time in five games.

Pennington wasn't especially sharp, but he didn't have to be with the great field position his defense kept giving him.

The Dolphins scored 13 of their points off turnovers. In the last five games, the Broncos have allowed 60 points off turnovers while not scoring a single point off takeaways themselves.

The Broncos rushed 12 times for 14 yards behind a banged-up backfield and a suddenly problem-plagued offensive line, and Cutler was 24-of-46 for 306 yards, two TDs and three interceptions.

The Broncos' ground game was stymied, their receivers blanketed, their usually solid offensive line repeatedly drawing flags and Cutler wasn't sharp at all -- and then their luck really went bad.

Trailing 16-10, Cutler reared back and hit Brandon Marshall in stride for a 77-yard touchdown to tie it pending the point-after. But wait. It was called back by a borderline offensive interference call.

Side judge Allen Baynes ruled that Marshall pushed off cornerback Jason Allen just before hauling in the pass at midfield. Cutler was so infuriated that he ripped the towel from his waist and tossed it in the direction of Baynes, who had his back turned to him, as the third quarter ended moments later.

Still smarting, Cutler threw his third interception on the first play of the fourth quarter, this one to safety Tyrone Culver, and the Dolphins capitalized on Dan Carpenter's fourth field goal, a 41-yarder that made it 19-10.

Less than a minute later, a now composed Cutler hit rookie fullback Peyton Hillis for a 1-yard touchdown after Hillis had hauled in a 47-yarder on the drive, pulling the Broncos to 19-17.

Hillis' seven catches for 116 yards made him the third running back in team history to gain 100 yards in a game through the air and the first since Floyd Little in 1974.

Matt Prater's 50-yard field goal pulled Denver to 16-10 in the third quarter, but he missed a 49-yarder minutes later.

The Broncos, bedeviled by turnovers all season, thought they had fixed things during their bye week, but Cutler threw interceptions deep in Denver territory on two of his first four passes.

Safety Jason Allen picked off Cutler's first pass at the Broncos 34 and that led to the first of Carpenter's three first-half field goals. Will Allen returned the second one 32 yards for a touchdown that put the Dolphins ahead 13-0.

The Broncos, who hadn't surrendered a touchdown in the first quarter all season, needed a big play to stay in it, and rookie Eddie Royal provided just that with a cutback 95-yard kickoff return before he was corralled by Patrick Cobbs at the 5.

Royal grabbed Cutler's 2-yard touchdown pass on third-and-goal to cut Miami's lead to 13-7.

The Dolphins drove 88 yards in 14 plays, but stalled at the 5 and settled for Carpenter's chip-shot field goal to take a 16-7 lead into the locker room.

[Associated Press; By ARNIE STAPLETON]

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