It’s mostly been a struggle for the Dolphins this season, but Miami has been putting it on Buffalo so far on Sunday.
The Dolphins have a 16-0 lead over the Bills at halftime.
Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa tossed an interception that cut the Dolphins’ first drive short. But on the club’s second possession, Tagovailoa finished a 12-play, 92-yard drive with a 9-yard touchdown to Malik Washington.
With a 7-0 lead, the Dolphins scored again on their next possession after stopping a Buffalo fourth-and-1 play with a pass breakup.
Tagovailoa connected with Jaylen Waddle for a 38-yard score, giving Miami a 13-0 lead. Riley Patterson missed the extra point wide right.
But Patterson came back later in the second quarter to hit a 46-yard field goal, giving Miami a 16-point advantage.
As noted by the CBS broadcast, the Dolphins had not held even a 13-point lead over the Bills since 2016.
Buffalo has looked listless on offense, netting just 90 yards and four first downs in the first half. The club was 0-of-6 on third down.
Josh Allen is 9-of-15 for 73 yards. James Cook rushed seven times for 21 yards, also losing a fumble.
On the other side, Tagovailoa is 10-of-14 for 133 yards with two touchdowns and a pick. De’Von Achane has 64 yards on 12 carries plus five catches for 47 yards. Waddle has four catches for 77 yards with a TD.
Needing a spark, the Bills will receive the second-half kickoff.
The Dolphins’ first drive ended with a Tua Tagovailoa interception.
The club’s second had a much better result.
Tagovailoa tossed a 9-yard touchdown to Malik Washington, giving Miami a 7-0 lead.
That score capped a 12-play, 92-yard drive that took 7:27 off the clock.
The Dolphins faced only one third down on the way to the end zone, with fullback Alec Ingold converting the third-and-1 with a 6-yard run.
Tagovailoa is now 6-of-6 passing for 32 yards with a touchdown and an interception. De’Von Achane has rushed for 40 yards on five carries and caught two passes for 18 yards.
On the injury front, Bills defensive end Landon Jackson has been ruled out with a knee injury.
The Bills are going to be thin at cornerback for Sunday’s game against the Dolphins.
Christian Benford and Taron Johnson are both inactive for the divisional matchup. Benford was listed as questionable with a groin injury while Johnson had the same designation due to a groin injury.
Wide receiver Joshua Palmer is also out with knee and ankle injuries, but defensive lineman DaQuan Jones will play after joining the other three players in the questionable category.
Bills at Dolphins
Bills: WR Joshua Palmer, CB Taron Johnson, CB Brandon Codrington, LB Shaq Thompson, CB Christian Benford, DE A.J. Epenesa, OL Chase Lundt
Dolphins: QB Quinn Ewers, EDGE Chop Robinson, S Ashtyn Davis, CB Rasul Douglas, LB Andre Carter, WR Dee Eskridge, TE Julian Hill
Jaguars at Texans
Jaguars: CB Jourdan Lewis, WR Brian Thomas, RB Cody Schrader, OL Ezra Cleveland, TE Hunter Long, DL Austin Johnson
Texans: QB C.J. Stroud, S Jalen Pitre, K Ka’imi Fairbairn, LB Christian Harris, T Jarrett Kingston, G Ed Ingram, T Tytus Howard
Patriots at Buccaneers
Patriots: QB Tommy DeVito, RB Rhamondre Stevenson, WR Kayshon Boutte, LB Christian Elliss, OL Caedan Wallace, DL Eric Gregory, S John Saunders
Buccaneers: EDGE Haason Reddick, RB Bucky Irving, WR Chris Godwin, DL C.J. Brewer, EDGE Markees Watts, OL Luke Haggard, G Elijah Klein
Giants at Bears
Giants: C John Michael Schmitz, K Graham Gano, CB Paulson Adebo, LB Victor Dimukeje, LB Chauncey Golston, OL Evan Neal, QB Jameis Winston
Bears: WR Jahdae Walker, CB Josh Blackwell, LB T.J. Edwards, TE Stephen Carlson, DE Dominique Robinson, QB Case Keenum
Browns at Jets
Browns: RB Raheim Sanders, WR Isaiah Bond, TE Brenden Bates, G Zak Zinter, T Cornelius Lucas
Jets: WR Allen Lazard, WR Adonai Mitchell, RB Khalil Herbert, TE Jelani Woods, OL Xavier Newman, DL Tyler Baron, LB Kiko Mauigoa
Ravens at Vikings
Ravens: QB Cooper Rush, RB Rasheen Ali, WR Devontez Walker, OL Emery Jones, T Joseph Noteboom, DT Aeneas Peebles
Vikings: RB Corey Kiner, TE Josh Oliver, T Walter Rouse, EDGE Chaz Chambliss, DT Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, S Theo Jackson
Saints at Panthers
Saints: DB Ugo Amadi, CB Rejzohn Wright, T Taliese Fuaga, TE Jack Stoll, DT John Ridgeway, DT Khristian Boyd
Panthers: WR Hunter Renfrow, WR Brycen Tremayne, TE James Mitchell, G Chandler Zavala, DE Jared Harrison-Hunte, DT Cam Jackson
The Bills did not make any trades this week, but it reportedly wasn’t because of a lack of interest in adding to their roster.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that the team tried to make deals with the Dolphins for wide receiver Jaylen Waddle and with the Jets for defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, but ultimately were unable to come to agreements with the two AFC East teams.
Waddle was the subject of a lot of conversation heading into the deadline and word this week was that teams who called about the wideout found that their asking price was too high. Mike Garafolo of NFL Media reports they were looking for a package centered around a first-round pick and that the price for dealing him within the division would have been higher.
Williams was ultimately traded to the Cowboys for a first-round pick, a second-round pick and defensive tackle Mazi Smith.
On Sunday at Miami, Bills coach Sean McDermott will attempt to win his 100th career game, including playoffs. It’s only his ninth season as a head coach.
Via NBC Sports research, McDermott can become only the sixth NFL head coach with 100 or more wins in his first nine seasons, including playoffs.
The others are George Seifert (116), Paul Brown (104), John Madden (103), Joe Gibbs (102), and Mike McCarthy (101).
Yes, McDermott has benefited from the playing of a 17th regular season game, which started in 2021. Regardless, he has 99 wins in nine seasons.
Overall, McDermott has a record of 92-47 in the regular season, and 7-7 in the playoffs.
And the playoffs are ultimately what matters for McDermott. The Bills likely will get there again in 2025. The challenge is to get past the Chiefs, and ultimately to get to the Super Bowl.
In a wide-open conference, Buffalo currently has as good of a chance as anyone.
