The Dolphins' last gasp Sunday was an onside-kick attempt that, like the rest of the day, didn't go their way.
''I thought I had it,'' linebacker Keith Adams said of the loose ball that was in his grasp before he lost it. ''I should have made that play.'' Adams dove on the loose ball, but it squirted out as he seemingly bounced on the turf. The Dolphins considered asking for a review of the play because the ball went out of bounds but realized it would not have made a difference.
''We looked at it upstairs, and it looked like their guy batted it out of bounds,'' coach Nick Saban said, ``and if they bat it, they can do that.''
NOT SECOND-GUESSING
The Dolphins' failed two-point conversion attempt took the football out of their quarterback's hands on a pass. So how did Daunte Culpepper feel about that?
``I always want the ball in my hands. But I had a job on that play, too. I was supposed to block.''
Asked if he thought that was the best call, Culpepper said, ``I'm not saying it's the best, the thing is we have to execute it. Coach made the call, we went with it. We don't have time to second-guess. We have to make it happen.''
THE TIME IS NOW
The Dolphins are 1-3 and in the AFC East cellar with trips to New England and New York the next two weeks.
Are they feeling a little pressure now?
''We've had the sense of urgency around here since the first game,'' Saban said. ``You think we're pleased about this? No, I'm not pleased about it. The players aren't pleased about it.
``I think the players were ready to play today but the thing about it we did not execute well enough and had too many bad plays. And we keep doing the same thing, the same stuff is going to happen.''
THIS AND THAT
Defensive end Jason Taylor sustained a bruised rib in the second quarter but continued playing after leaving for one series to get X-rays.
Olindo Mare's 52-yard field goal was the 14th of his career from 50 yards or longer, tying Pete Stoyanovich's club record. . . . Wes Welker moved past Mercury Morris into first on the Dolphins' all-time kickoff-return yardage list. He has amassed 2,962 kickoff return yards in his three seasons with Miami.
