Bills @ Dolphins
Final Score: Bills 31, Dolphins 10
Senior Writer: Benjamin Haller (@benjaminhaller1 on Twitter)
A dominant performance from the Buffalo Bills on both sides of the ball saw them triumph at a canter against a Miami Dolphins team all too familiar with being on the wrong side of this matchup. Turnovers were key, with the Bills’ defense scoring 24 points off takeaways (and turnovers on downs), including a pick-six from Bills standout Ja’Marcus Ingram on Miami’s first drive of the second half to give the Bills an unassailable 31-10 advantage. The Bills offense never needed to move out of second gear, but running back James Cook had a big night with three scores on limited touches.
Poor quarterback play from Tua Tagovailoa inhibited the Dolphins all night, but the Bills did well to take away Tyreek Hill as a factor and force Tua into scrambling from an offensive line that lost starters through the contest. Trying to force a first down in the third quarter, Tagovailoa took a (clean) hit to the helmet and was almost immediately ruled out with a concussion – not a good sign with his unfortunate head injury history. From that moment on, it was over as a contest. Skylar Thompson showed his (many) limitations, and with Hill and Jaylen Waddle done for the night under coach’s orders midway through the fourth quarter, Mike McDaniels waved the white flag.
Three Up
- James Cook – the key offensive weapon of this team behind Allen in the red zone, Cook had a productive night once again, showing he is one of the league’s higher-upside fantasy backs
- De’Von Achane – the Miami speedster is the go-to guy on the ground, and he got plenty of opportunity to accumulate fantasy points. Achane was still involved even when Hill and Waddle were sat down.
- Dalton Kincaid – after just one catch in Week 1, Kincaid was more of a factor with four first-half grabs, with most coming over the middle of the field. He didn’t see any red zone targets, and the game script went awry for him, but this is trending up.
Three Down
- Tua Tagovailoa – a miserable night all around for the veteran quarterback, who is now labeled with a big question mark as both a regular starter and a fantasy contributor. Disaster!
- Tyreek Hill – totaling just four touches for 36 yards, Hill was a non-factor with Tua on and off the field. The Bills did a great job marshaling him out of contention for targets through the air.
- Bills WR Room – yes, it is only two games, but so far, Allen has thrown for just 371 yards combined with no single receiver hauling in more than 54 yards through the air.
Buffalo Bills
Quarterback
Josh Allen: 13/19, 139 Yards, TD | 2 Carries, 2 Yards, Fumble
A very comfortable night for the Bills quarterback, with his defense mustering up three interceptions. From a fantasy perspective, his 9.76 fantasy points (in Yahoo!) were a complete disaster, and there is a worrying trend of poor fantasy statistics from Thursday Night Football quarterbacks. It is something for managers to think about going forward. Usually a solid contributor on the ground, his two yards rushing were also a kick in the teeth for fantasy managers.
Notes
- Benefitting from an early turnover, the Bills remained aggressive and went for it on 4th-and-3 deep in Miami territory – offensive coordinator Joe Brady dialed up some motion before a lovely disguised reverse pass by Allen to Cook for six put the Bills in control.
- Hardly attempted a pass in the second half with the Bills up big.
Missed opportunities
- Allen, wearing a glove on his hand after sustaining an injury in Week 1, dropped the ball from the snap on a 3rd-and-1 near midfield, negating a promising drive. It didn’t become a big factor due to the Dolphins imploding, but it is something to watch out for in the coming weeks.
Running Back
James Cook: 11 Carries, 78 Yards, 2 TD | 1 Target, 1 Reception, 17 Yards
A big night from a fantasy perspective from the starting running back for Buffalo. Cook took a wide-open route to the end zone with his first touch in the red zone for a 17-yard score. After rookie Ray Davis had done the leg work on the Bills’ fourth drive of the game, Cook entered with the ball at the 1-yard line to easily walk in his second score of the game. He then hit paydirt for the third time in the first half with an explosive 49-yard run for a touchdown directly after the Dolphins turned the ball over on downs. 28.50 fantasy points on just 12 touches is what dreams are made of!
Cookin' up his THIRD TD of the night 🔥#BUFvsMIA on Prime Video
Also streaming on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/hPFdtSTyK8— NFL (@NFL) September 13, 2024
Ray Davis: 9 Carries, 29 Yards | 1 Target, 1 Reception, -1 Yards
With the Bills going ahead big early in the third quarter and Miami waving the white flag, we got to see rookie running back Ray Davis get some extended action. After three straight 1,000+ yard seasons for three different colleges, Davis looks to have an opportunity to carve out a role as Cook’s primary backup. (Note, Ty Johnson is the established third-down back). Davis wasn’t just employed after victory was achieved as he touched the ball four times on the Bills’ fourth drive. He ran well on that drive especially and was hampered later in the contest by low-percentage runs up the middle to burn out the clock.
Ty Johnson: 1 Carry, -1 Yard | 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 33 Yards
The veteran back showed smarts to flush out of the check down option and find space downfield on a third and long, with Allen finding him with a pass that he ended up hauling in for 33 yards, just falling short of a touchdown. He was on the field for all (meaningful) third-down plays.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Khalil Shakir: 5 Targets, 5 Receptions, 54 Yards
As the only receiver to have ever caught a pass from Allen in the receiver room to start the season, Shakir looked to be the favored option anytime Allen looked between the numbers. He was brave on a number of occasions and was hit helmet-to-helmet on a key 21-yard grab that tacked on 15 yards after the penalty with the drive resulting in a Buffalo score to give them a 10-point lead midway through the second quarter. The talented wideout has not led the Bills in receiving for two weeks straight but the ceiling isn’t very high right now. Last week was a shootout and this week was a blowout but on both occasions opportunities for wideouts were thin.
Dalton Kincaid: 4 Targets, 4 Receptions, 33 Yards
The smile on this fantasy manager’s face when Allen connected with Kincaid on his first two pass attempts of the game for 17 yards was sizeable after seeing the young, exciting second-year player catch just one ball last week. However, as with the rest of the pass-catchers, Kincaid suffered from a negative game script and caught just two more balls the rest of the way. What was positive was the clear attempt to get him involved more from the start, and with the Bills devoid of a clear secondary option behind Shakir, Kincaid has plenty of opportunity knocking.
Curtis Samuel: 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 3 Yards
The free agent signing from the Commanders saw a red zone target down the left sideline in the second quarter but couldn’t haul the throw in. He was well covered and the ball actually was slightly underthrown.
Keon Coleman: 1 Target
The first-round rookie was a total afterthought in this contest and saw just one target. Despite his draft capital, this was always on the cards for a team that will not throw the ball if they don’t need to. Allen completed just 13 passes all night. Confidence is low in this wideout group, and the volume will never be quite enough to warrant fantasy conversation beyond Shakir.
Mack Hollins: 1 Target
Marquez Valdes-Scantling: 1 Target
Miami Dolphins
Quarterback
Tua Tagovailoa: 17/25, 145 Yards, TD, 3 INT, Sack | 2 Carries, 17 Yards
It was a disappointing night for the Miami signal-caller in what felt like a tone-setting game for the Dolphins in 2024. However, a number of mistakes from the entire offense compounded to put the home team down big by the half. Apart from a 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drive early in the game, Tua struggled to move the chains and connect with his receiving corps. His usually electric connection with Hill was snuffed out constantly by double teams from the Bills and Tua couldn’t click with his secondary reads.
The only receiver who seemed on the same page was Waddle, and even he was limited with just four targets all contest. Robbie Chosen, a late add to the roster prior to the season started, saw one more target than Waddle but the two just had no chemistry at all. To make matters worse, a troubling hit to the head when scrambling for a first down in the red zone at a pivotal moment in the third quarter ruled Tua out with yet another concussion. It was a clean tackle but the way his helmet twisted and the power of the impact resulted in his extremities reacting in line with severe concussion symptoms.
Tua takes a hard hit. He appears to be concussed. #BUFvsMIA pic.twitter.com/SwBpjQQaM1
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) September 13, 2024
Notes
- A horrible overthrow of Chosen on first down under no pressure on his own 29-yard line resulted in an easy pick for Christian Benford. It didn’t look like there was confusion on the play call, just a bad throw. This was something Tua was focused on stamping out in the big games.
Missed opportunities
- The first turnover wasn’t on Tua, who threw a dime down the seam to depth receiver Grant DuBose. However, DuBose wasn’t ready for the ball and it ricocheted off his shoulder pad into the arms of Bills defensive back Ingram.
- Took a sack on 4th-and-2 at midfield just prior to the half after confusion on the offensive line. The turnover was costly as the Bills took the very next play to the house for a 49-yard score.
Skylar Thompson: 8/14, 80 Yards, Sack | 1 Carry, 4 Yards
Stepping in for Tua, backup Thompson was inefficient in three drives which all ended up with turnovers on downs. Twice he could not orchestrate the ball into the endzone from the red zone. Taking over with 1st-and-goal at the Buffalo 6-yard line, Thompson failed to convert on two passing attempts, taking a seven-yard sack on fourth down from Von Miller. He was also working without Hill and Waddle for the majority of his time on the field after McDaniels took them out of the action, and he mainly targeted tight end Jonnu Smith over the middle for easy completions for short yards.
He showed no sign he can lead this team to productive drives, and if Tua is to remain sidelined, then Miami surely needs to look elsewhere for a viable option at quarterback.
Running Back
De’Von Achane: 22 Carries, 96 Yards | 7 Targets, 7 Receptions, 69 Yards, TD
Coming into this contest under an injury cloud, Achane showed no limitations with his initial touches. He converted on a couple of short-yardage opportunities before breaking off a nice 14-yard run into Buffalo territory on an outside zone run. He finished off that same drive with a 5-yard receiving score after a swing pass from Tua to the right that saw the Bills defender lose his footing trying to deal with Achane’s nifty footwork and speed.
Tua. Achane. Tie game.#BUFvsMIA on Prime Video
Also streaming on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/BspX8Yhq4A— NFL (@NFL) September 13, 2024
Achane was the lone bright spot for the Dolphins in this game and amassed a massive 29.50 fantasy points on a career-high 22 carries. What is also encouraging is his usage out of the backfield with 14 targets over his first two games and he’s caught all of them at an average of 10.4 yards per catch. That is what fantasy managers dream of at the running back position.
Jeff Wilson Jr.: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 12 Yards
Jaylen Wright: 5 Carries, 4 Yards
The rookie was a healthy scratch in Week 1 but with Raheem Mostert inactive, Wright saw the field for the first time as a pro. He had a powerful run for 10 yards through the middle called back due to a hold on the offensive line in the first half. Otherwise, it was slim pickings on limited opportunities.
Alec Ingold: 2 Carries, 2 Yards
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Jonnu Smith: 7 Targets, 6 Receptions, 53 Yards
After being a non-factor in Week 1, Smith tied for the lead in targets in this blowout loss. With the Bills taking away the deep ball with two-high-safety looks, Smith found some room underneath for short gains. He saw the majority of his targets after Tua had left the field, acting as a security blanket for an overwhelmed Thompson at quarterback. Still, for fantasy managers looking for a serviceable tight end, he’s a decent option. There isn’t much potential for a touchdown, however, Smith only had three all of last season in Atlanta.
Jaylen Waddle: 4 Targets, 4 Receptions, 41 Yards
Waddle went over 100 yards last week and started on fire with a couple of nice grabs in the first quarter. He burned his man on a 17-yard slant to take a catch-and-run down to the 1-yard line on a drive that resulted in a touchdown for Achane. However, as Tua faltered and the game slipped away from Miami, Waddle was not targeted in an attempt to get back into the contest. As the crowd moaned about the dink-and-dunk approach from McDaniels prior to the half, which resulted in a field goal, Waddle was visibly frustrated despite executing his routes well on that drive. He took a short pass from Tua for 21 yards on a key third down play at the start of the second half but was inexplicably ignored for the rest of the drive.
Waddle wasn’t targeted by Thompson and sat glum on the bench in the fourth quarter as he and Hill were pulled from the game to prevent any further injury risks.
Tyreek Hill: 6 Targets, 3 Receptions, 24 Yards
Yikes! This is the last thing fantasy managers wanted to see going into their weekend matchups. It is hard to blame Hill for this output after Tua’s indiscretions and the fact that he was sat down in the fourth quarter. It doesn’t make his 6.60 fantasy points any easier to swallow, however. With the Bills tracking Tua’s deep runs, there wasn’t much for the speedster to go on and his most productive plays were short throws that he picked up extra yards on running to the outside – they were never going to be big plays though. There was one deep ball in the first half that Tua overthrew Hill on but looking at it on replay, Hill was clearly running into the middle of the field whereas Tua threw the ball to the outside. A bad throw.
Grant DuBose: 3 Targets, 1 Reception, 13 Yards
DuBose was responsible for the first Miami interception after turning late to grab a ball that was thrown on a dime to him. Instead, the ball bounced off him and into the air to be picked off. As much as it was clearly his fault, the game plan on throwing to him, Chosen, etc… was a flawed one.
Durham Smythe: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 8 Yards
Robbie Chosen: 4 Targets, 1 Reception, 5 Yards
Julian Hill: 2 Targets
Braxton Berrios: 1 Target
Photo by Peter Joneleit/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@justparadesigns on Twitter/X)