With Marino Passing, the Dolphins Catch Up

Dan Marino completed 22 of 37 passes for 330 yards as the Miami Dolphins came from behind to beat the Indianapolis Colts, 34-20, Sunday.

The victory left Miami with a 7-4 record, while Indianapolis dropped to 3-8 with its fifth loss in the last six games.

Helped by a 70-yard punt return for a touchdown by Robbie Martin, Indianapolis shot to a 10-0 lead before the Dolphins began taking control.

Still, it took a pair of fumble recoveries in the Miami end zone to stop the final Colt threats in the fourth quarter.

“We started off as flat as I can remember,” Dolphin Coach Don Shula said. “They were fired up. Our defense did keep them to field goals and then we started to make the plays offensively.”

Lorenzo Hampton and Ron Davenport each scored two touchdowns for Miami. Hampton’s four-yard run in the second quarter tied the game, 10-10.

Offsetting field goals of 32 yards by the Colts’ Raul Allegre and 44 yards by the Dolphins’ Fuad Reveiz preserved the tie at halftime, 13-13. Earlier, Allegre made a 28-yard field goal, while Reveiz kicked one of 45 yards.

The Dolphins, winning their 11th straight game against the Colts over the past six seasons, took control with Marino’s passing, including a 31-yard completion to Bruce Hardy and a 37-yarder to Nat Moore that set up a pair of one-yard touchdown runs by Davenport and Hampton in the third quarter.

The scoring dive by Hampton came five plays after a successful onside kick gave Miami possession near midfield.

Indianapolis Coach Rod Dowhower said the onside kick “caught our young fellows. We tell them time and again to look out for it. Maybe this taught them a lesson.”

The Colts got one of the touchdowns back on an 80-yard pass from quarterback Mike Pagel to Wayne Capers late in the third quarter, but Marino’s passing put the game out of reach.

The Miami quarterback, who had only 27 passing yards in the first period and 108 in the first half, totaled 196 yards in the third quarter.

Passes of 16 yards to Mark Duper and 21 yards to Hardy carried the Dolphins to the Indianapolis 20 at the end of the third period, and two plays into the final quarter Marino fired a 17-yard scoring pass to Davenport.

The Colts reached the Miami one-yard line with under five minutes remaining on a 30-yard pass from Pagel to Oliver Williams, but Williams fumbled the ball and Glenn Blackwood recovered it in the end zone.

Pagel completed 14 of 33 passes for 222 yards but, except for the 80-yard touchdown play, the Colts’ offense was ineffective.