Calling for a fake punt with four minutes left is risky stuff from a rookie coach, especially one as even-keel as Joe Philbin.
The Miami Dolphins coach concedes Las Vegas isn't for him.
"I work too hard for my money," Philbin said Monday. "I'm not a gambler."
He does play the odds though, which paid off in Miami's 17-14 win Sunday over the St. Louis Rams. A successful fake punt was one of several key plays by the Dolphins down the stretch before St. Louis missed a 66-yard field goal on the final play.
With consecutive wins by a total of seven points, Miami (3-3) is showing a newfound knack for winning close games.
"We have a sense of urgency right now," linebacker Karlos Dansby said. "We have potential to be great, so everybody's chipping in and just doing their part."
At .500, the Dolphins are far from great, but they do share the AFC East lead with the division's three other teams. Miami has a bye before playing its first division road game next week against the New York Jets.
"It's a whole new season for us," receiver Marlon Moore said. "The sky is the limit."
There's a sense of enormous progress over the past year, because Miami was 0-7 at the end of October 2011. And narrow victories have been critical to the turnaround.
The Dolphins lost five games by a total of 11 points last season, when they finished 6-10. They endured back-to-back overtime losses this year to fall to 1-3.
But Miami hung on a week ago to win at Cincinnati, 17-13, and dug in again against the Rams, who drove 52 yards before stalling at midfield in the final seconds.
The mood in the Miami locker room has changed, veteran guard Richie Incognito said.
"It's a different feeling," he said. "We are all believing that we can win."
The latest victory required some serendipity. The Dolphins gave up 462 yards, the most they've allowed in a victory since 2008. They rushed for only 19 yards, the fourth-lowest total in team history. They ran only 49 plays. But for the second week in a row, they won with just 17 points.
Many elements are involved in learning how to prevail in close games, Philbin said.
"Hopefully, the chemistry is a little better, the resolve is a little stronger, the urgency to make a play is there," he said. "Our guys have watched the tape and learned from some of the prior mistakes."
