Seven-hour NFL marathon

The Miami Dolphins overcame two weather delays to win the longest American Football game since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger in their season-opener yesterday.

Miami toppled the Tennessee Titans 27-20 in a marathon-like encounter for fans and players alike, which took seven hours, eight minutes to play, much longer than the typical 31⁄2 hours.

Lightning strikes in the vicinity of Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium saw the players leave the field twice during the game for a combined span totalling three hours, 59 minutes. The game began at 1pm (Eastern US time) and finally finished at 8.10pm.

The previous longest game since 1970 was a Bears overtime victory against the Ravens in 2013 that took five hours, 16 minutes.

Due to safety concerns, broadcaster Fox was stuck with limited camera angles when the game restarted.

Miami led 7-3 when the game was suspended for nearly two hours late in the first half. The teams went to the locker room during the delay and stayed on the field for halftime, which was shortened to three minutes.

‘‘I love the way we responded, the way we were able to overcome the delays, to come out with energy after sitting around,’’ Miami quarterback Ryan Tannehill said.

‘‘To come away from this long day, this grind of a game, and get a win, it feels good.’’

Lightning forced a halt again midway through the third quarter, and the second stoppage lasted just over two hours. About 10,000 fans remained at the finish.

‘‘That’s the job we have, to make sure we play through whatever situation,’’ Titans head coach Mike Vrabel said.