Marino Misfires, Oilers Win : Houston Holds Him to 103 Yards in a 39-7 Victory Over Miami

Even with Dan Marino at his best the Miami Dolphins have trouble winning. When he struggles, they have no chance.

Houston held Marino to a career-low 103 passing yards as a starter and the Oilers overpowered the Dolphins, 39-7, Sunday.

“We wanted to get in his face and frustrate him,” Oiler defensive end William Fuller said. “We weren’t worried about sacks. We wanted to bat the ball.”

Fuller and backup end Richard Byrd each batted down passes.

Marino left the game with 11:29 remaining after completing 11 of 29 passes and throwing two interceptions. Marino passed for 90 yards as a reserve in his pro debut in 1983 against the Raiders.

“You can’t point to one thing,” Marino said. “We can’t give up, we just have to keep playing and try to get better as a team.”

The Oilers didn’t get a sack, extending the Dolphins’ NFL record to 16 games without allowing a sack. Marino has not been sacked in 647 pass attempts.

But Houston’s defensive line harassed Marino throughout the game and batted down two of his passes early.

“This is what the doctor ordered,” Oiler safety Jeff Donaldson said. “We really planned on him moving the ball. We just wanted to contain him.

“But after the first two series, when it was three plays and out, it seemed he was pressing.”

Houston’s Warren Moon was the quarterback with the hot hand this day, completing 19 of 23 passes for 254 yards and two touchdowns. Moon’s touchdown throws covered two yards to Allen Pinkett and 25 yards to Curtis Duncan.

Passes by Moon set up four other Houston scores, including field goals of 32, 40 and 32 yards by Tony Zendejas. Moon completed 12 of 14 passes in the first half and had a streak of 10 consecutive completions at one point.

The Oilers (2-2) took a 19-0 halftime lead on a safety when a high snap was batted out of the end zone by Miami punter Reggie Roby, a 32-yard field goal by Zendejas, a three-yard scoring run by Alonzo Highsmith and Pinkett’s touchdown catch.

Zendejas added kicks of 40 and 32 in the third quarter and Moon hit Duncan with a touchdown pass after a 48-yard interception return by Robert Lyles.

A 33-yard run by Lorenzo White set up Pinkett’s second touchdown, a 10-yard run with 2:58 left, making it 39-0.

The Dolphins (1-3) averted a shutout on a 97-yard kickoff return by Marc Logan with 2:40 left in the game.

Miami Coach Don Shula couldn’t recall a worse performance for the Dolphins.

“We didn’t do anything right,” he said. “It’s one of the worst performances I’ve been associated with. I’m bitterly disappointed. Our offense didn’t get anything going and our defense couldn’t stop anyone.

“(Marino) was ineffective at times and had some dropped sometimes. But he was going against eight defensive backs and tight coverage. They totally disregarded the run.”

Obviously, it worked.