Dolphins-Bills Recap- Week 10

Yesterday’s win over the Bills was essentially the Dolphins’ “Super Bowl win” of the year. Everyone—including me—counted them out. The Bills were coming off a great win over the Chiefs, and the Dolphins were (are?) directionless, with no realistic path to the playoffs. They hadn’t played with passion all year long, and they were playing their first game without Jaelan Phillips on the roster in many years. Everyone was predicting a blowout, and they were just watching to see how it would happen.

Until it didn’t. Tua threw a deep-ball interception on third down on the first drive, and Dolphins fans groaned, thinking this was the start of an ugly 60 minutes. But the Dolphins quickly recovered from there, forcing a three-and-out and following it up with a 92-yard touchdown drive. The Dolphins really played their hearts out the entire game despite some mistakes, and it showed up on the field.

There were a few times when the Bills looked like they were going to come back and when momentum felt like it was at a breaking point, but each time that happened, the Bills made a mistake/the Dolphins made a play. I say both of those because they are both true. Josh Allen threw a brutal end zone interception, but the Dolphins also forced two crucial fumbles and recovered them both. Both plays were on their way to continuing the shift of momentum toward the Bills, but the Dolphins made some big plays and stopped them in their tracks.

As I said earlier, I never felt comfortable until late in the fourth quarter because, as much as the Dolphins dominated (primarily on defense), you can never count out Josh Allen, and for most of the game, it was still just a two-possession game. So even with seeing a big fat 0 next to the Bills, I was still nervous—because you’re just one big play away from making it a one-possession game. And with the way the Dolphins and the Bills were playing this year, you just never really felt that the game was out of reach.

Tua finished the game with two touchdowns and two interceptions and less than 200 yards. At times, he looked really good—throwing the ball with conviction and accuracy (and far, too!)—but other times he wasn’t quite as accurate as he usually is when he’s feeling it. I can’t fully blame either of the two picks on him, though, as he got express direction from Mike McDaniel to fling it deep on third down (which he absolutely did) to give his receiver a shot, and worst-case scenario, he throws a pick which is essentially equal to a punt (I’ll make a separate post about that because there’s a lot to debate with that strategy). The real star of the offense was De’Von Achane, who finished with 174 yards rushing on 22 carries to go along with 51 yards receiving on six catches. There are multiple games I can point to where he was not just the main factor on offense—but the only factor. Not quite the case on Sunday, but he absolutely clinched the game for the Dolphins to put the Bills away for good. For all that, I’ll give him the player of the game.

This game left me wondering: if the Dolphins still have this heart in them, where was this the whole season? Why didn’t this come out any earlier? If you compare the performance against the Bills and the performance against the Colts, Ravens, Browns, or whomever else you want to pick, you would not believe that it was the same team! What changed on such short notice? Was it really just extra rest that allowed them to play their hearts out? I’d find that very hard to believe. I won’t believe that Jaelan Phillips had a negative impact on this team, nor will I believe that Chris Grier—the former GM—had any influence on the locker room whatsoever from his place high in the rich-mans booth. Maybe it was Jordan Poyer’s pregame comments? Also hard to believe. Whatever it was, I hope it makes it overseas for next week!

One thing about Josh Allen yesterday: in his early years, he had a big issue with trying to be the savior and making huge mistakes as a result. That was kind of his kryptonite. He would ruin games for his team, sometimes losing them outright by thinking that he was invincible- only to realize too late that he wasn’t. But the past 2–3 years, he fixed that up. I haven’t seen him do that (save for once a season or so) until Sunday in Miami Gardens. It’s like he went back in his progression a few years just to seal the Dolphins’ victory. I wonder what caused him to feel the need to go there again. Maybe he panicked once he realized he was on his way to being on the wrong side of the upset of the season? As much as I hate the Bills, I think Josh Allen has more mental toughness than that. But there was definitely something that made him feel he needed to stretch himself farther than he could go—and he made his team pay for it.

Why did James Cook only carry the ball 13 times when the defense he was up against had allowed the third-most rushing yards in the league, and they had the most rushing yards themselves? Could you get a more lopsided matchup? Yes, you can—but barely. I don’t like the argument that they were playing from behind because, even down 16, why wouldn’t you play your absolute best matchup? I don’t know the answer, and I don’t care. All I know is the Dolphins beat the Bills!! They slay the dragon!!