Breece Hall gained 197 yards from scrimmage and fellow rookie Sauce Gardner made two critical plays as the New York Jets pounded the Miami Dolphins 40-17 on Sunday afternoon in East Rutherford, N.J.

Hall carried 18 times for 97 yards and caught two passes for 100 yards and a touchdown.

The young Jets (3-2) also got 210 passing yards from second-year quarterback Zach Wilson, who is 2-0 this season after starting the season on the injured list.

New York also snapped a four-game losing streak against AFC East rival Miami.

The Dolphins (3-2), who have lost two straight games, played without their top quarterbacks — Tua Tagovailoa and Teddy Bridgewater — both due to concussion protocol. Bridgewater started Sunday but left after just one play as he was hit by Gardner, causing a safety.

Third-string quarterback Skylar Thompson, a rookie seventh-round pick who had never taken a snap before Sunday, took over and completed 19 of 33 passes for 166 yards and one interception.

New York took a 12-0 lead with the safety (Bridgewater was called for intentional grounding from the end zone), Greg Zuerlein’s 34-yard field goal and Michael Carter’s 1-yard run to start the second quarter.

That TD was set up by Wilson’s 79-yard swing pass to Hall, who dragged safety Brandon Jones for the final 20. Jones held on to Hall’s left leg, finally getting him down at the goal line.

With 9:55 left in the second quarter, Miami got on the board on Raheem Mostert’s 12-yard run.

New York stretched its lead to 19-7 on Wilson’s 5-yard diving run with 2:38 left before halftime. That score was set up by Gardner’s first career interception.

Miami answered with an 11-play, 75-yard drive, capped by a 1-yard sneak by tight end Durham Smythe with just four seconds left before halftime.

The Dolphins cut their deficit to 19-17 with a 46-yard Jason Sanders field goal, the only points in the third quarter.

But after Sanders missed a 54-yard attempt wide right, the Jets drove for Carter’s second 1-yard TD run. That gave New York a 26-17 lead with 9:22 left.

The Jets poured it on from there, scoring on a 5-yard run by Hall and a 15-yard end around from Braxton Berrios. The TD by Hall was set up by Carl Lawson’s strip-sack, recovered by Quinnen Williams.

–Field Level Media

The Miami Dolphins, who are hoping to extend their winning streak to six games on Sunday against the lowly New York Jets, are riding the hot passing arm of Tua Tagovailoa.

Miami (6-7) is more than a touchdown favorite over the visiting Jets (3-10), and that has a lot to do with Tagovailoa, who is second in the NFL with a 70.9 completion percentage.

Over the past three weeks, Tagovailoa has been even better, completing 80 percent of his passes for an average of 249 yards per game.

Tagovailoa doesn’t throw down field much, but Miami’s short passing game is working, thanks in large part to speedy Jaylen Waddle, a rookie first-round pick. Waddle leads Miami in catches (86) and yards (849).

Miami’s other top target is tight end Mike Gesicki, who has 59 receptions for 642 yards.

But despite how well things have gone the past five games, Dolphins coach Brian Flores said he’s wary of the Jets.

“They’ve got some talented players,” Flores said.

It’s faint praise for a Jets team that has lost two straight games and five of its past six, including a 24-17 home defeat to the Dolphins on Nov. 21.

New York has already been eliminated from playoff contention for a franchise-record 11th consecutive year, the longest active drought in the NFL.

One of those “talented players” Flores talked about is Jets rookie quarterback Zach Wilson, the second overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.

Predictably, Wilson has struggled as a rookie, missing three games due to injury and compiling a 2-7 record in his nine starts. He is completing just 56.1 percent of his passes and has just six TD passes. He has been intercepted 11 times.

But Jets rookie head coach Robert Saleh hasn’t lost faith in Wilson.

“Zach is the future of this organization,” Saleh said. “He’s extremely talented, and he has a bright head on his shoulders.”

Wilson on Sunday will have to contend with a Dolphins defense that either blitzes or fakes one on every down.

Rookie outside linebacker/defensive end Jaelan Phillips leads Miami with 8 1/2 sacks, and the Dolphins have one of the best cornerback combos in the league in Byron Jones and Xavien Howard.

Bright spots for the Jets this year include Braxton Berrios, a former Miami Hurricanes star who is making a Pro Bowl case as a kickoff returner (28.7 average) and punt returner (13.8).

On defense, linebacker C.J. Mosley leads New York with 118 tackles, including 17 last week against the Saints.

Defensive tackle Quinnen Williams (team-high six sacks) and his brother Quincy Williams (82 tackles at linebacker) have played well.

Bryce Hall, who leads New York with 10 passes defensed, is a young cornerback who has emerged as a budding star.

Offensively, Wilson has few healthy weapons as Elijah Moore (43 catches) and Corey Davis (34 catches) are out. That leaves slot receivers Jamison Crowder (team-high 45 catches) and Berrios (32 catches) as the top options.

Meanwhile, three of Miami’s running backs — Myles Gaskin, Salvon Ahmed and Phillip Lindsay — were placed on the COVID-19 health and safety protocol list on Monday.

The Dolphins are hoping running back Malcolm Brown — who returned to practice on Wednesday — will be ready this week. He has missed six straight games and has been out nearly two months due to a quadriceps injury.

Miami also has an issue at safety, where rookie Jevon Holland was also placed on the COVID list. Safety Brandon Jones was limited this week due to an ankle injury.

–Field Level Media