The Buffalo Bills surprisingly didn’t flinch during the preseason while everyone else was wondering if their Super Bowl window had closed.
The Bills’ season ended with another crushing playoff loss. Then they traded Stefon Diggs, a four-season Pro Bowler in Buffalo, and made no major moves to replace him. Other longtime veterans were let go as the Bills sorted out their salary cap. The general reaction was that the Bills were in for a rough season.
On Thursday night, they still looked like a Super Bowl contender.
The Bills have dominated the Miami Dolphins since drafting Josh Allen and that didn’t change in Week 2. Buffalo got three touchdowns from James Cook, another touchdown from the defense and moved to 31-10. They are 2-0 to start the season.
The Bills still have a good defense that unnerved Tua Tagovailoa, who ended up leaving the game due to a concussion after a scary hit. Buffalo intercepted Tagovailoa three times, including an interception for a touchdown that pretty much ended the Dolphins’ chances. And Buffalo still has Allen at quarterback. That’s enough to keep them one of the most dangerous teams in the NFL, or at least it seems that way after two weeks.
Bills get off to an impressive start
The Bills started the season slowly. In the first game, they trailed the Arizona Cardinals 17-10 at home at halftime. Over the next five quarters, Buffalo outscored Arizona and Miami by a combined score of 55-21.
Thursday night started off great for Buffalo, but not so great for Miami. Cook scored on a beautifully designed play that left him open on fourth down, caught Allen’s pass and went 17 yards into the end zone. Tagovailoa threw two interceptions in the first quarter, the first time he had done so in his NFL career. Both turnovers appeared to be mistakes by receivers Grant DuBose and Robbie Chosen, players who didn’t have a single target between them in Week 1.
Cook scored a pair more rushing touchdowns, giving him a hat trick before halftime. His third touchdown came after a magnificent third-and-12 pass on the move from Allen to Ty Johnson down to the 1-yard line. At that point, everyone was checking to see if they would face Cook in their fantasy football matchup this week.
In the third quarter, the game spiraled out of control and the focus of the game changed as well. Tagovailoa was under pressure and threw blindly on third down. It turned into an easy interception and touchdown return by Bills cornerback Ja’Marcus Ingram. That made it 31-10.
The night got much worse for the Dolphins. Tagovailoa ran and got a first down on fourth-and-four, and since it was fourth down, he didn’t want to slide too early. He lowered his head and hit Bills safety Damar Hamlin, went down hard, and couldn’t get up right away. He was ruled out shortly after with a concussion.
Tagovailoa said he had considered retiring after suffering multiple concussions during the 2022 season. The concern for him after Thursday night is not just when he might return from this concussion, but his long-term health.
The Bills get a resounding victory
Since the Bills selected Allen in the 2018 draft, they are 12-2 against the Dolphins, including one playoff win. Given the uncertainty surrounding Tagovailoa, the Dolphins might not be a factor in the AFC East race this season.
It seems like the Bills are looking for more than just one more division title. They’ve had a few playoff losses that were unlucky, but they’re still a team that can compete for a championship. Most of that is due to Allen, though the players around him on offense are contributing. It doesn’t seem like they’ll miss the veterans they had to let go this offseason. Von Miller had a horrible 2023, but he’s making an impact early this season as he looks healthy, and his resurgence would be huge for the Bills’ defense.
The Bills and Dolphins came into Thursday night’s game and it looked like we were going to find out a lot about the pecking order in the AFC East. Even before Tagovailoa left due to his latest concussion, the Bills made it clear that the Dolphins were still far behind them.
Maybe the Bills aren’t as problematic as you might have heard this offseason.
