McDonald: This is not fantasy football

DAVIE — At the genesis of the Cincinnati Bengals’ rally to top the Miami Dolphins 27-17 on Sunday, Miami safety T.J. McDonald was called for unnecessary roughness on an incomplete pass on third-and-3 that extended what turned into Cincinnati’s first touchdown drive.

“They called what they called,” said McDonald on Monday about the call that was for a hit on a defenseless receiver.

“It is what it is, but I mean, we have a job to do too. It’s not fantasy football. We come out here to do a job on defense.

“We try to play within the rules, but it’s getting kind of crazy.”

McDonald said the way the game is being called goes against things defenders are taught growing up.

“The physical plays that you’re taught to make, in that situation I’m just trying to make sure that he didn’t catch the ball,” McDonald said.

“At some point like, what do you do?

“You know what you signed up for when you come to play this game. You know that it’s a physical game. You can’t take that out the game.”

McDonald added that Dolphins coaches were on his side regarding the penalty.

The drive resulted in an 18-yard touchdown pass from Andy Dalton to Joe Mixon on the first play of the fourth quarter that got the Bengals rolling.

How it all began: Before the two Bengals defensive touchdowns that obliterated the Dolphins’ onetime 17-point lead, there was the key third-down play that Miami didn’t convert while still firmly in control.

Miami faced third-and-1 from its own 34-yard line leading, 17-3, after Cincinnati’s 51-yard field goal. In the shortyardage situation, quarterback Ryan Tannehill threw deep and incomplete to receiver Kenny Stills.

It was a quick threeand-out for the Dolphins, who after being on the field for eight plays the previous drive, punted the ball right back to the Bengals, who went on a eightplay drive that resulted in the Dalton-to-Mixon touchdown to make it 17-10.

After that, you know the rest.

Bengals defensive end Michael Johnson intercepted a ricocheted Tannehill pass near the line of scrimmage and returned it 22 yards for a fourth-quarter touchdown to tie the game on the ensuing Miami drive, and then Sam Hubbard returned a fumble recovery for another touchdown to put Cincinnati up 10 and the final margin in a loss coach Adam Gase likened to getting “kicked in the n---.”

“It probably irritates me more than anything that we screwed it up on offense,” Gase said. “We scored more offense for their team on the offensive side than they let up, and that bothers me. I feel awful because our defense played really well and they did exactly what we wanted them to do.”

The play was designed for Albert Wilson near the yard to gain, but he got knocked off his route and that’s where things broke down.

“We didn’t execute the first part of the play,” Gase said. “Albert got knocked off and then Ryan should’ve had the opportunity to run but he couldn’t because we didn’t do what we were supposed to do on the front side.”

Trade rumors: Even though former NFL executive Michael Lombardi reported on Monday that the Dolphins were talking to multiple teams about potentially trading receiver DeVante Parker, league sources say Miami is not, and has not held discussions about trading Parker.

At the heart of the matter is Parker’s value to the Dolphins, and his future with the franchise, which appears to be on unstable footing because of his numerous injuries throughout his four-year career.

Since being drafted in 2015, Parker has contributed 141 receptions for 1,948 yards, and has scored eight touchdowns in the 44 games he’s played, which includes 25 starts. But Parker has missed 10 of the 54 regular season and postseason games he’s been on the roster for because of foot, quadriceps, ankle, back and a hand injuries.