Matt Asiata plays key role for Vikings in win over Dolphins with two touchdowns

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Based on how Vikings running back Matt Asiata dominated the first quarter Sunday, it looked like he had cracked what had been a porous Miami Dolphins run defense of late.

Asiata racked up 41 of his 58 total rushing yards in those first 15 minutes and touched the ball on all but two plays of Minnesota’s 10-play, 54-yard scoring drive. His 1-yard dive was the first of two rushing touchdowns for him and had Dolphins fans thinking about the 661 rushing yards the team gave up in a three-game stretch prior to last week.

“Every time I’m in there I’m just going to give it my all,” said Asiata, who also caught three passes for 19 yards in the 37-35 loss. “I was trying to put our offense in a good position to score and get down to the red zone and put points on the board and that’s what we try to do.”

Minnesota’s defense kept the Dolphins off the scoreboard again on their second possession and, after a punt, Asiata picked up where he left off with runs of 8 and 7 yards. By then his success on the ground had softened things up in the middle and back end of Miami’s defense, allowing rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to find a rhythm.

As a result of Bridgewater’s success through the air, Asiata wasn’t really heard from as a runner again until the fourth quarter. He unfortunately did contribute to Miami’s go-ahead score when he bobbled a short pass over the middle from Bridgewater that wound up being intercepted by Miami’s Derrick Shelby.

“I just took my eyes off of it,” Asiata said. “I tried to run before I caught it and that’s it.”

It looked like redemption was in the cards for Asiata late in the game after the Vikings fell behind 28-20. He caught a 9-yard pass on the first play of what ended up being the game-tying drive and then, after Bridgewater was stopped short on the two-point conversion only to be given a reprieve thanks to a defensive offsides penalty, he muscled his way in for the two points.

Dolphins kick returner Jarvis Landry fumbled the ensuing kickoff at his own 6 and Vikings safety Antone Exum Jr. recovered it at the 5. One play later, Asiata followed his blockers through a nice hole on the left side into the end zone to give Minnesota a 35-28 lead with 4:35 left. It looked like at that point his score was going to hold up.

“Yeah, it was a big momentum boost,” Asiata said. “I tried to set the tone and tried to score for our offense and tried to seal the win. We put the ball in the defense’s hands and we just came up short.”

via Matt Asiata plays key role for Vikings – and for Dolphins’ turnaround – TwinCities.com.