Can Matt Moore and Reggie Bush Save Tony Sparano's Job as Miami Dolphins Coach?

For weeks, Miami Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano was a dead man walking on the sidelines.

The Dolphins lost seven straight games to start the season, including a narrow defeat at the hands of the sad-sack Cleveland Browns. At the end of October, Sparano was on his way out of Miami, and Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck was practically on his way in.

Luck's likely changed his one-way ticket from Miami to Indianapolis, and a three-game winning streak might let Sparano take his house off the market.

If Miami decides to retain Sparano's services for 2012, he needs to send Reggie Bush and Matt Moore a large gift basket, because they represent the biggest difference in the Dolphins' midseason turnaround.

Outside of a receiving touchdown in Miami's opener against New England, Bush couldn't find the end zone until their game against Kansas City earlier this month. Now, Bush has four rushing touchdowns in November.

Moore came on strong in November as well. Moore took over as the Dolphins' starter in October and threw for fewer than 200 yards per game with only one touchdown to offset his four interceptions.

After their massive upset victory against the Bills, Moore boasts a pair of three-touchdown games, only two interceptions and a 71 percent completion rate.

Moore and Bush can't claim sole credit for the Dolphins' recent win streak, though. Miami's faced a pair of dysfunctional teams in the Chiefs and Redskins, followed by a Bills team quickly crashing to Earth after their 4-1 start.

The Dolphins defense also came on strong in recent weeks. Miami's defense has not surrendered a touchdown since their three-point loss to the Giants on October 30.

But that goes in Sparano's favor as well. With the high-powered offenses in the AFC East, Miami needs a solid defense to keep Tom Brady and a developing Ryan Fitzpatrick in check.

The next two weeks will present a greater challenge for Miami, with Dallas and Oakland on deck before a shot at underachieving Philadelphia.

But a 4-5 finish to the season could show enough improvement to keep general manager Jeff Ireland from going coach shopping next year.