Tua Tagovailoa's TD pass to Jonnu Smith gives Dolphins 32-26 overtime win over Aaron Rodgers, Jets

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Tua Tagovailoa wouldn't want to repeat everything that was said in the Miami Dolphins' huddle Sunday when they trailed the New York Jets in the fourth quarter.

“Just know we were getting after everyone inside the huddle," Tagovailoa said, "to make sure you're blocking the way you need to block, you're running the routes the way you need to be — you need to be in the right spots."

Whatever was said helped keep Miami's slim playoff hopes alive as the Dolphins (6-7) overcame 8- and 3-point fourth-quarter deficits, as well as one of Aaron Rodgers' best games in years, to beat the Jets 32-26.

Tagovailoa sealed it with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Jonnu Smith in overtime to help the Dolphins spoil Rodgers' first 300-yard passing game in nearly three years and beat the Jets for the ninth straight time in Miami.

After Jason Sanders tied it with 7 seconds left in regulation with a 42-yard field goal, Tagovailoa quickly moved the Dolphins down the field.

That came after Anders Carlson gave the struggling Jets (3-10) — who were eliminated from postseason contention for the 14th straight year — the lead with a 42-yarder with 52 seconds remaining. But Malik Washington put the Dolphins in great position to help set up Sanders' field goal with a 45-yard kickoff return to Miami's 46-yard line.

“It was one of those moments where you make a split (second)- decision and just take it and see what happens next," the rookie Washington said, "and be a football player.”

Tagovailoa was 33 of 47 for 331 yards and two TDs. He had just one incompletion on Miami's eight-play, 70-yard scoring drive that was capped by Smith's fourth touchdown of the season. Smith didn’t have a reception before catching three passes for 44 yards on the winning drive.

“A win means a lot,” said Tagovailoa, who has 300 yards passing in three straight games. “It means a lot because we have no room for error to lose another game."

Rodgers was 27 of 39 for 339 yards, ending a drought of 34 regular-season games without a 300-yard passing game — dating to Dec. 12, 2021, while with Green Bay — and had a TD pass to Davante Adams.

But Rodgers could only watch from the sideline in overtime as the Jets never got the ball after blowing a second straight second-half lead.

“A lot of different ways we’ve lost these games,” Rodgers said. “Everybody has some skin on that, but we had opportunities on offense. Whatever happens on defense doesn’t matter. We got to get to 30 (points). We didn’t do it.”

Rodgers and Adams connected for a 3-yard score in the third quarter, the pair's 79th touchdown in the regular and postseason. They passed Pittsburgh's Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown for the fourth-most by a quarterback-receiver duo in NFL history.

Adams finished with nine catches and 109 yards.

Down 8 at the start of the fourth, Tagovailoa found Tyreek Hill for a 4-yard touchdown, and Jaylen Waddle caught the two-point conversion to tie it at 23. Hill caught 10 passes for 115 yards, and Waddle added 99 yards on nine catches.

The Jets had taken a 20-15 lead in the third on Adams' touchdown that was set up by a 42-yard pickup by Garrett Wilson, who beat cornerback Jalen Ramsey on a double move to get open. A 40-yard field goal by Carlson later stretched New York's lead to 8 after the Dolphins went scoreless in the quarter.

“Actually, when we were down 23-15, when we were trotting back on the field, everybody knew what was at stake at that moment,” Hill said. “We know if we lose, it’s over. Our season is over.”

The matchup pitted the Jets' No. 2-ranked pass defense against Tagovailoa, the NFL's most accurate passer, and Miami's No. 9-ranked pass defense against the four-time MVP Rodgers who has had a subpar season.

Both quarterbacks were strong and the teams played rather evenly at first, with each scoring on their first three possessions. The first punt of the game was on Miami's first drive of the second half, and the Jets scored on their first five possessions.

Tagovailoa had just three incompletions in the first half and was 3 for 3 on Miami's final drive of the second quarter, moving the Dolphins into field goal range in 45 seconds to set up a 57-yarder by Sanders, which tied the kicker's career best.

Sanders also made kicks of 39 and 24 yards, and De'Von Achane had a 2-yard touchdown run on Miami's opening possession.

Rodgers moved the Jets inside Miami's 20 three times in the first half. Isaiah Davis ran for a 17-yard score, and Carlson made field goals of 28 and 30 yards.

Wilson caught seven passes for 114 yards.

Jets: RT Morgan Moses injured his wrist during pregame warmups. He started, but was replaced during the game by Max Mitchell. ... WR Irvin Charles left with a knee injury.

Dolphins: LT Terron Armstead left early after apparently tweaking the knee that sidelined him this week in practice. ... WR Dee Eskridge (knee) and LB Anthony Walker Jr (hamstring) were also injured.

Jets: At Jacksonville next Sunday.

Dolphins: At Houston next Sunday.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

New York Jets place kicker Anders Carlson (18) kicks a field goal during the first half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

New York Jets cornerback Brandin Echols (26) goes after Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Miami Dolphins linebacker Chop Robinson (44) tackles New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson (5) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Miami Dolphins running back De'Von Achane (28) scores a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

New York Jets wide receiver Davante Adams (17) scores a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) and New York Jets wide receiver Davante Adams (17) celebrate a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (17) and wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) celebrate a touchdown and a two-point conversion during the second half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami Dolphins place kicker Jason Sanders (7) kicks a field goal to tie the game during the second half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) aims a pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) and New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) talk at the end of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) aims a pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Miami Dolphins tight end Jonnu Smith (9) celebrates after scoring a touchdown in overtime during an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami Dolphins tight end Jonnu Smith (9) scores in overtime as New York Jets safety Tony Adams, back left, defends during an NFL football game in Miami Gardens, Fla., Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (Al Diaz/Miami Herald via AP)

Miami Dolphins tight end Jonnu Smith (9) celebrates a touchdown in overtime during an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cristeta Comerford, a longtime White House executive chef who recently retired after nearly three decades of preparing meals for five presidents and their guests, says first families are “just regular people” when they're at home in the private living areas of the executive mansion.

“It's not what you see on the news,” she told The Associated Press in an interview.

Preparing the first families' meals was among Comerford's many culinary responsibilities. Meals mostly would be prepared in the main kitchen, then finished off in the residence kitchen on the second floor.

“At the end of the day, when you do the family meals upstairs, they're just regular people at home. They just want a good meal. They want to sit down with their family,” she said. "If they have children, they eat together. And just to see that on a daily basis, it's not what you see on the news.

“It's the other side of them that we get to see," she said.

Comerford, who hung up her apron and chef’s toque in July 2024 after nearly 20 years as top chef and nearly three decades on the kitchen staff, is the longest-serving chef in White House history. Her tenure spanned the presidencies of Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

Each of the five families she served approached food differently, Comerford said at a recent White House Historical Association symposium on food and wine. She was asked whether she'd describe any of the presidents as “real foodies.”

The Clintons liked healthier meals, Comerford said. Then-first lady Hillary Clinton hired the first American executive chef, Walter Scheib, and had the kitchen avoid serving heavy sauces and creams.

She said, “I learned so much” about Southwestern cuisine from Bush, the former Texas governor who liked Tex-Mex food. “We made thousands of tamales for Christmas,” she said of the popular Mexican meal of stuffed corn dough wrapped in a corn husk and steamed until cooked.

Comerford got ideas from the vegetable garden Michelle Obama started when she was promoting healthy eating, primarily for children. "We used the garden as kind of like our backbone for our menu development,” she said.

Trump and first lady Melania Trump are “very, very classic eaters,” she said. Mrs. Trump “loved Italian food, so we tend to do the pastas, but light ones.” Comerford didn't comment on President Trump's food choices, but he is known to like a well-done steak served with ketchup and fast food.

Jill Biden was the first Italian American first lady, and the kitchen did “a lot of Italian food, as well, because she loved Italian food.”

Overall, “it's different for each family,” said Comerford, "but my job as the chef is to execute their style, their likes and their preferences.”

A black-tie state dinner is the highest diplomatic honor the U.S. reserves for its close allies.

Comerford presided over 54 of these opulent affairs, including for France and Australia during Trump's first term. Sometimes, guest chefs were brought in to help.

State dinners give presidents the opportunity to bring together hundreds of guests from the worlds of government, politics and other industries for an evening in which the three-course meal, decor and entertainment are designed to help foster relations by dazzling the visiting foreign leader.

The first lady's staff and the social secretary typically have about two months to pull one together.

Comerford said her team started by researching the visiting leader's likes and dislikes, then she used the information to create a menu using the best of American food while incorporating nuances from the country being recognized.

She'd develop at least three different menus. Then came tastings for the first lady to make a final decision.

Comerford, 62, started her career tending a salad bar at a Chicago airport hotel before working as a chef at restaurants in Austria and Washington. Scheib, then the White House executive chef, hired her in 1994 for a temporary gig preparing a state dinner for Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s newly elected president.

Scheib then hired her as an assistant chef in 1995, and she succeeded him a decade later, becoming the first woman and first person of color to permanently hold the executive chef’s position. Comerford is a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in the Philippines.

Her husband, John Comerford, is a chef, too, and she credits him with sacrificing his career to be present for their daughter so she could thrive in hers. Their daughter is a pastry chef.

When Comerford retired, assistant chef Tommy Kurpradit, whose parents are from Thailand, was named interim executive chef. Melania Trump, who worked with Comerford in the first Trump administration, has not named a successor.

Comerford said she managed everything with “a lot of prayers,” often said during her hourlong, early morning drive into the White House, but also by being versatile, humble, able to handle chaos and having faith in herself and her team.

“One thing with cooking at the White House, you don't just do fine dining meals,” she said. “You have to know how to cook eggs and breakfast. You have to know to cook a smashburger.”

It also helps to remember that the job is about the family.

“There's no ego in it,” Comerford said.

White House culinary history includes chefs from China, Japan, the Philippines, South Korea and Thailand, as far back as the 19th century, according to Adrian Miller and Deborah Chang, co-authors of a new book, “Cooking to the President's Taste: Asian Heritage Chefs in White House History."

Most sharpened their skills through service in the U.S. military.

Before Comerford, Pedro Udo, a Filipino trained in the U.S. military, was the first Asian heritage chef to run the White House kitchen after he was promoted from meat chef to head chef in June 1957, according to the book. He prepared meals for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip later that year, and for Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in September 1959 during the Cold War.

But his stint ended after less than four years when the new first lady, Jacqueline Kennedy, hired acclaimed French chef René Verdon in early 1961.

Miller said the book offers a “unique window" on the presidency.

“We get a look at the presidents, but also the presidents got a look at Asian American life in maybe ways that they hadn’t before,” he told the AP in an interview. "And I think, you know, for the presidents that decided to open that window and find out more about the people who were providing, comforting them through amazing food, I think our nation is better for them.”

FILE - Tables are decorated during a press preview at the White House in Washington, April 9, 2024, for the State Dinner for Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

Former White House exec chef Cristeta Comerford speaks during an interview with the Associated Press at Decatur House, Thursday, May 8, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rick Gentile)

FILE - White House executive chef Cristeta Comerford shows the main course during a preview in the State Dining Room of White House in Washington, Sept. 24, 2015, for the state dinner of the visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

Former White House exec chef Cristeta Comerford speaks during an interview with the Associated Press at Decatur House, Thursday, May 8, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rick Gentile)

FILE - White House executive chef Cris Comerford, holds dishes as she speaks during a media preview for the State Dinner with President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Nov. 30, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)