Jalen Ramsey's vibes wow even Dolphins' Tua Tagovailoa | Schad

MIAMI GARDENS — Tua Tagovailoa was speaking about Jalen Ramsey after the game and he was reflecting on how he had watched the star cornerback run out for pregame introductions on Sunday.

"One of the coolest walkouts I've seen from any Miami Dolphin player since I've been here," Tua said, as though he was a fan, and well, yeah, it's OK to concede that he is a fan.

Tua is a fan of Ramsey's athleticism and his confidence and his swag and his Alpha status.

"Through the smoke and you know, he did his deal and the crowd went wild and then you know to top it off, he got an interception, you know he got a forced fumble, all of those things," Tua said.

The Dolphins beat the Patriots 31-17 and Tua passed for 300 yards and three touchdowns, including a home run to Tyreek Hill and ho-hum, we've seen it over and over this season.

Miami beat New England and this team is 6-2 for the first time in 22 years and yeah that's great and all.

But what this game was all about was Ramsey and his Dolphins' debut.

"The hype is real when it comes to someone like Jalen Ramsey," said Tua, who knows a thing or two about Taylor Swift-type hype himself.

It had been three months and a day since Ramsey injured the meniscus in a knee, trying to cover Hill in a practice. It required surgery and, yes, he beat projected timelines.

"People think, 'Oh, he came back here because he got a (mensicus) trim,' " Ramsey said Sunday. "Like, nah, I got it. I had a full repair."

With Miami leading New England 14-7, Ramsey intercepted Mac Jones on Sunday. The six-time Pro Bowler peeled off one receiver and in front of another and - whoosh - he was off to the races.

Our Hal Habib's Takeaways: Tua Tagovailoa throws 3 TD passes in Dolphins' 31-17 victory over Patriots

"It was a good play," Ramsey said. "But in order for it to be a great play in order for me to help the team out a little bit more, I should have scored. Gotta find a way to do that."

Earlier in the game, Ramsey had forced Ezekiel Elliott to fumble and DeShon Elliott of Miami nearly recovered. It squibbed out of bounds and won't count because Miami instead accepted a penalty committed by the Patriots.

Patriots hardly even Dolphins' rival now

The New England thing, all of the greatness that it was once, no longer is a thing.

Miami has won 6 of 7 against the Patriots and Tua is 6-0 against the Patriots.

Buffalo can compete with Miami. And Kansas City, too. And maybe Baltimore can compete with the the Dolphins, on a good day. That's the cream of the crop in the AFC.

But this Dolphins team had better be on its way to its first playoff victory in more than 20 years because what excuse would there be for them not to?

More: What, no celebration? Dolphins' Tyreek Hill explains muted reaction to TD

At one point on Sunday, Miami's offense was playing without starters at left tackle, left guard, center and right guard. No matter.

For all of Sunday, Miami's defense played without Pro Bowl cornerback Xavien Howard and rising star safety Jevon Holland. No matter.

The Dolphins, under Mike McDaniel, are finding a way. They are finding their way.

Dolphins 6-2, first in AFC East

To be frank, lots of Sunday was boring. The Patriots are boring. They tried to drag Miami down into the mud pit with them but there's too much talent on the Miami side.

It's not really even a rivalry right now. Both franchises have to be on somewhat more equal footing for that to even be the case.

Ramsey recently turned 29. Prime time. He's a former Florida State, Jacksonville and Rams star.

He is supremely brash and self-assured and carries himself with championship moxie.

Even Tua, a much more laid-back, self-deprecating celebrity, can see it and feel it and soak it all in.

The Patriots offense may stink in general. But the Dolphins forced them to punt five times, stopped them on downs and, yes, came up with that key interception by Ramsey, in his debut.

Miami's defense looked much more like what it's supposed to look like. And surely defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is geeked about what he saw from Ramsey on Sunday.

Jalen Ramsey return inspires Miami Dolphins

"Well, he totally disappointed me," McDaniel joked. "He called that he was going to come back and have a pick six. Pick field goal is phenomenal. Like, you want to talk about something that goes above and beyond, that you can't manufacture, is what he brought to our team."

McDaniel said Ramsey sidled up to him on Sept. 17, Week 2 at New England, and let him know this was the game he was targeting as a return.

"Next level, man," Tyreek Hill said of Ramsey.

Ramsey believes he healed quickly because of a smart rehabilitation program and diligent commitment, but also because of the power of the mind.

Ramsey expected to return quickly. Ramsey expects to win big. Ramsey expects to play well.

And that all rubs off on his teammates.

"I told the whole team I was gonna get a pick today," Ramsey said. "I've been telling the whole team for a couple of weeks, I was gonna get picked my first game back."

Joe Schad is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on social media platforms @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miami Dolphins' Jalen Ramsey defies science with rapid return from knee injury