Ryan Fitzpatrick engineers ‘FitzMagic’ in Dolphins’ win over Raiders

Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick fielded a shotgun snap with 19 seconds to play Saturday night, devoid of timeouts and facing a two-point deficit. But the 38-year-old wasn’t fazed by the score, the circumstances or the sturdy grasp of Raiders defensive end Arden Key’s left hand in his face mask.

Fitzpatrick stepped up in the pocket and lofted a perfect throw to uncovered wide receiver Mack Hollins for a 34-yard gain, plus 15 more yards because of Key’s roughing-the-passer penalty.

FitzMagic at its finest.

“My face mask was getting pulled, and my head was getting ripped off. … I didn’t know we completed it,” he said.

Fitzpatrick replaced starter Tua Tagovailoa with 9:47 to play and engineered three scoring drives — including the game-winning one in the final minute. Dolphins kicker Jason Sanders followed Fitzpatrick’s crazy completion with a 44-yard field goal, giving Miami a 26-25 victory and preserving its playoff positioning with one week left.

The wily veteran finished 9 of 13 for 182 yards, a touchdown pass to running back Myles Gaskin and as the unlikely hero in a crucial win.

“We felt like we needed a spark,” said Dolphins coach Brian Flores, explaining his decision to bench Tagovailoa. “If we have to go to a relief pitcher in the ninth, that’s what we’ll do.”

Flores said Tagovailoa, selected with the No. 5 overall pick in April’s NFL draft, will start Miami’s season finale against the Buffalo Bills. But he struggled against a Raiders’ defense that has struggled to stop anybody all season.

Tagovailoa rarely looked to throw downfield, instead settling for checkdowns to running backs and tight ends for minimal yardage. He finished 17 of 22 for 94 yards, a short TD pass to Gaskin and five three-and-outs, prompting Flores to replace him with Fitzpatrick, who began the season as the starter.

Fitzpatrick quickly picked up the pace, covering 84 yards in 13 plays to net the game-tying field goal on his first drive. He capped his second drive with the 59-yard TD to Gaskin, who ran a slant pattern, broke free from linebacker Raekwon McMillan and sprinted down the sideline for the go-ahead score.

Las Vegas responded by driving for the go-ahead field goal, unknowingly setting up what Fitzpatrick called the best throw — and moment — of his 16-year career.

“The odds are pretty low there of us being able to complete something with the proper yardage and not have to throw a Hail Mary but actually kick a field goal,” Fitzpatrick said. “In that case, you’re throwing up a prayer a little bit.”

The Dolphins (10-5) are slotted as the No. 7 seed for the AFC playoffs and would secure a playoff berth with a win next week. Fitzpatrick has more than 5,000 career passing attempts and 223 TD passes.

But he’s never played in a playoff game and said he “would love nothing more than to get there.”

“It was a great effort by not just him but the entire offense. Him understanding how to get in a groove and where to go quickly with the ball and whatnot,” Tagovailoa said. “I think that’s what makes Fitz who he is. In a way, it really wasn’t as shocking tonight to see what had happened.

“They call him FitzMagic for a reason.”

Contact reporter Sam Gordon at sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on Twitter.