Why Dolphins' Hail Mary TD return against Jets shouldn't have happened

Miami Dolphins safety Jevon Holland never would've returned a Hail Mary 99 yards for a touchdown at the end of the first half of this past Friday's 34-13 win at the New York Jets had he listened to his coaches. 

"I have the red light to return any Hail Mary," Holland explained while speaking with Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. "They want me to knock it down, 100 percent. But in that moment, it was going into halftime, score was close. I was like, 'You know what? I’ve always wanted to do that,' and I was like, 'You know what? Might as well try it.' It turned out to fall on my side." 

Miami held a 10-6 lead with a couple of seconds remaining in the first half when Jets quarterback Tim Boyle attempted to throw a Hail Mary roughly 55 yards that failed to reach the end zone. Holland left his feet to secure what was essentially an arm punt, and then raced down the field before he encountered Boyle inside the New York 15-yard line. 

"When I cut back and it was just me and the quarterback one-on-one, I was like, 'OK! This could be my first touchdown of my career,'" Holland continued during his chat with Florio. "That right there, I was excited at that point. When it was Tim Boyle and me, I was like, 'There’s no tackling me right here.'" 

Holland ultimately traveled over 124 total yards to reach the end zone and stun those inside MetLife Stadium rooting for the home team.