Dolphins Keep Coming Back, 16-13 : AFC: Stoyanovich’s 35-yard field goal in overtime gives Dolphins a victory over Patriots.

With quarterback Dan Marino and kicker Pete Stoyanovich, the Miami Dolphins are never out of hope, even when it appears as if they are running out of time.

On Sunday, during a 16-13 victory over the New England Patriots, Marino directed the Dolphins to the tying touchdown with 2:53 to play in the fourth quarter and the winning field goal 8:17 into overtime.

For the second consecutive week, Stoyanovich was perfect on the decisive kick. His 35-yarder, his third field goal of the game, ended a comeback from a 13-3 halftime deficit.

With Buffalo losing to Houston, Miami (11-5) won the AFC East and earned a first-round bye in the playoffs.

The Patriots finished 2-14.

“We can’t afford to make mistakes at the end,” Marino said. “We’ve been able to avoid making mental mistakes in those situations.”

It was the sixth time this season and 24th in Marino’s career that the Dolphins won after trailing during the fourth quarter.

The fifth time came a week earlier when Stoyanovich’s 37-yard field goal with seven seconds left gave Miami a 19-17 victory over the New York Jets. His missed extra point with 2:30 to play had left the Dolphins one point behind.

“We had absolute confidence he would make the field goal,” said Don Shula, who joined George Halas as the only other NFL coach with 300 regular-season victories. Halas had 319.

The Patriots played one of their best games of the season but still lost for the fifth time in a row.

“It was just another heartbreaking loss in a season of heartbreaking losses,” assistant coach Dante Scarnecchia said.

Coach Dick MacPherson returned to the sidelines after missing seven games because of an intestinal ailment that required surgery. Scarnecchia, who filled in during his absence, shared the decision-making duties with MacPherson.

Bobby Humphrey’s one-yard touchdown run and Stoyanovich’s extra point late in the fourth quarter tied the score, 13-13.

Until that drive, Marino had completed 15 of 32 passes for 144 yards. He completed three of four for 41 yards during that series and was three of three for 32 yards during the winning drive.

The Patriots couldn’t get a first down on the opening overtime series, and the Dolphins got the ball at their 35-yard line after a punt. Marino opened the drive with a 12-yard pass to Humphrey, then added 10-yard completions to Tony Paige and Mark Duper, putting the ball at the New England 23.

After a five-yard Miami penalty, Humphrey ran three times for 10 yards, setting up the field goal.

“It is a great feeling,” said Stoyanovich, who was left off the Pro Bowl rosters last week. “It has been a little bit of a down week for me but I didn’t let it bother me.”

After Humphrey’s touchdown, the Patriots were moving toward a go-ahead field goal on third and 10 at the Miami 28 with 16 seconds to play.

But Larry Webster’s 11-yard sack of Jeff Carlson moved New England out of field-goal range, and Carlson threw an incomplete pass into the end zone on the last play of the quarter.

Former USC running back Scott Lockwood gained 123 yards in 30 carries for the Patriots.

The Dolphins lost two key players because of injuries during the first half. Rookie linebacker Marco Coleman, who has six sacks, twisted his left ankle late in the first quarter. Mark Higgs, who needed 108 rushing yards to reach 1,000, twisted his right knee early in the second quarter after gaining 23 for the game.

The Dolphins were leading, 3-0, when the Patriots took possession in the first quarter after Reggie Roby’s punt went straight up and traveled only one yard. Starting at their 36, the Patriots needed nine plays for rookie Sam Gash to run one yard for his first NFL touchdown.