Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa made his seventh start against New England on Sunday, and like the previous six, the Miami Dolphins defeated the Patriots – this time by a 34-15 count.

“It’s great anytime you can find a win against a divisional opponent,” Tagovailoa said. “It’s not my win. It’s a team win.”

Tagovailoa contributed four touchdowns to the team’s win, including three in the second quarter as the Dolphins reached the end zone on three straight possessions on their way to a 31-0 lead against an AFC East rival.

Miami had the game so well in hand and with another game in four days, the Dolphins pulled Tagovailoa in the fourth quarter. But after New England cornerback Christian Gonzalez returned a fumble 63 yards for a touchdown to cut Miami’s lead to 31-15 with 10:10 to play, Tagovailoa returned to steady the ship and finish the game, all the way to three kneel-downs to close out the contest.

The Dolphins posted their third straight victory as they have climbed back into the AFC playoff race.

When Tagovailoa returned from a four-game absence because of a concussion, Miami had a 2-4 record. The Dolphins lost their first two games with Tagovailoa back on a field goal on the final snap and a field goal with five seconds remaining. But Miami is up to 5-6 with six regular-season games remaining.

“It feels good to win any way,” Tagovailoa said. “But getting into a rhythm of stacking wins up in the win column, I definitely think that that’s a big morale booster for the guys in the locker room and this is something they can take into this upcoming week. Guys are feeling good. Everything feels better when you win.”

Tagovailoa completed 29-of-40 passes for 317 yards with no interceptions against New England.

Tagovailoa had the fourth game of his career with at least four touchdown passes. He also had four in a 30-28 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Oct. 24, 2021, and a 70-20 victory over the Denver Broncos on Sept. 24, 2021. Tagovailoa threw for six touchdowns in a 42-38 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Sept. 18, 2022.

Tagovailoa threw a 7-yard pass to tight end Jonnu Smith and passes of 9 and 11 yards to running back De’Von Achane for the second-quarter touchdowns.

For the fourth touchdown, Tagovailoa connected with former Alabama teammate Jaylen Waddle on a 23-yard pass with 1:37 left in the third quarter. Waddle had eight receptions for 144 yards on Sunday.

“There were some things second half-wise we knew we could have capitalized on that we didn’t,” Tagovailoa said, “things that we said we wanted to do coming out in the second half that we didn’t. Those can be frustrating.

“But I would say we’re still below the .500 threshold and it’s a long way to where we want to get to, so we’ll enjoy this win, but this next one is going to be big for us and we’re excited to go down there to Green Bay and show everybody on prime time what we can do.”

The Dolphins play the Packers at 7:20 p.m. CST Thursday at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin. NBC will televise the game.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.