2026 NFL season, week 7: What we learned from Sunday’s games | Latest NFL News, Analysis and Updates

Jeremy Bergman’s takeaways:

1. “Dolphins hold on, then slam the door for first win of Hafley era”. Winning in the NFL isn’t easy, especially with a young, inexperienced team weighed down by a dead cap. This was more than clear in the Dolphins’ first five games of the 2026 season, all of which they lost. But before October ended, Miami scored its first victory of the campaign. The opening victory of the Jeff Hafley era was also the first game all year in which Miami held a lead – at halftime or at any time! Most of the credit goes to Malik Willis, who played up to his contract. Willis showed mobility to move the chains and reach the end zone, and the quarterback established chemistry with Greg Dulcich and rookies Chris Bell and Caleb Douglas, the latter of whom scored his first two touchdowns, including a 63-yard catch and run in the fourth quarter that extended Miami’s lead. Ollie Gordon II had another professional outing in place of De’Von Achane (103 yards, TD on 25 totes). Chop Robinson and Co. put enough pressure on the backline to frustrate Geno Smith and force rushed throws. Miami hit a lull in the third quarter, but closed out the victory after New York pulled away in the fourth quarter. Facing a fourth-and-1 at midfield with a lead of three at the two-minute warning, the intrepid Finns lined up heavy and forced their way into the win column. For Hafley, a New Jersey native, this triumph over the rival Jets will be unforgettable and, hopefully, for Miami, the first of many to come.
2. Unforgivable loss for the Jets. For an Aaron Glenn regime in danger of falling behind midway through its sophomore season, Sunday’s home game against Miami should have been the perfect balm: battling against a team that hasn’t led for a single second all season. Instead, the Jets took a dive. New York allowed long touchdowns on each of Miami’s first two possessions (21 plays, 11:42 total). Geno Smith threw his second interception in as many weeks to end the Jets’ chance to tie in the second quarter. Glenn took his three timeouts in the half and let Miami run out the clock before the Dolphins scored their third touchdown with just six seconds left in the second frame. Down by seven in the fourth quarter, the Jets appeared to have something brewing when Braelon Allen brought Gang Green to the 1-yard line, but what followed was a flameout: two 1-yard losses, then a 12-yard sack to set up a field goal. Two punts later, and Miami scored on a 63-yard catch and run after veteran safety Minkah Fitzpatrick missed an open field tackle on a rookie WR. UGLY, ugly, ugly, ugly! The Jets have a wild-card-worthy roster, but to sniff at the playoffs, they need to win games against the NFL’s runaways. This was one of those games, as was next week’s home game against the Raiders. A loss to Las Vegas and owner Woody Johnson might consider calling off his marriage to Glenn.
3. Cooper came to play in a packed band. The buzz in New York in recent weeks has been about the Jets’ difficulty integrating their star WR, Garrett Wilson, into the offense. That’s on the heels of catching just four passes in the Jets’ Week 6 loss — and that will continue this week after recording just two receptions on three targets for 26 yards and being spotted barking at Geno Smith after a botched trip to the red zone. But if it’s possible, let’s be positive about New York’s playmaking talent, starting with rookie Omar Cooper Jr. Since returning from injury last week, Cooper has recorded back-to-back 100-yard games, the first Jets rookie to do so since Al Toon in 1985. He is also the first rookie in Jets history with at least 100 receiving yards and a touchdown in consecutive games, according to NFL Research. In Sunday’s loss to Miami, the WR caught two 50+ yard bombs from Smith, serving as a one-man downfield turnover machine. Cooper possesses a combination of speed and physicality that serves him well against secondaries, giving New York another outlet if they can find it. Smith passed the ball Sunday to Cooper, Mason Taylor (two touchdowns) and Wilson, leaving Adonai Mitchell and Kenyon Sadiq without their fair share of attention. With Breece Hall set to return, there are a lot of mouths to feed in New York, and no one will be satisfied as long as the Jets continue to suffer discouraging losses.

Next-Gen Stats Preview for Dolphins-Jets (via NFL Pro): Dolphins passer Chop Robinson generated five pressures on 23 passes against the Jets, including a key third-down sack that snuffed out a fourth-quarter red zone drive. Entering the Week 7 afternoon window, Robinson owns a 23.4% pressure rate for the season, the highest in the NFL (minimum 100 pass rushes).

NFL Research: The Dolphins scored a season-high 28 points against New York and are now 6-1 in their last seven games after a bye, the third-best record in the NFL since 2020. The Jets have now lost four of their last five games against teams entering with zero wins in Week 6 or later.