Considering the depth of the AFC, Thursday's battle between the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills almost felt like an elimination game.
It's far too early to know if that's true, but Miami put itself in a much better position to play January football, using a stout defensive effort to earn a critical 22-9 win.
Outside of a pair of fumbles, it was a crisp, comprehensive effort from Joe Philbin's team on a short week. Ryan Tannehill threw for 240 yards and two touchdowns, Lamar Miller ran for 86 yards on 5.7 yards per carry and the defense held Buffalo to just 237 total yards and three field goals.
Despite the victory, Ryan Tannehill still expects more from the Miami offense, via Dave Hyde of the Sun Sentinel:
While the first half featured just nine total points, it was about as clean of a half of football as you'll see. Both teams methodically moved the ball with a strong running game and short, conservative passing game, resulting in just five total drives (not counting Buffalo's one kneel-down) and one punt.
Throw in just four total penalties, and as WGR 550's Joe Buscaglia noted, the half was over in a flash:
The only major difference between the teams? One of Miami's two red-zone trips ended when Jerry Hughes chased down Tannehill and forced a fumble, while both of Buffalo's long drives resulted in field goals.
The crucial play was the latest in what has been a rejuvenating season for Hughes, who struggled to make an impact in Indianapolis.NFL.com's Ian Rapoport and Pro Football Focus' Pete Damilatis touched on that:
No comments:
Post a Comment