Buffalo quiets Miami hype in emphatic win
Stefon Diggs was so elusive on Sunday, the Bills star receiver even came away with two full cups of beer while celebrating the second of his three touchdown catches.
“Yeah, I owe somebody $18,” Diggs joked following a 48-20 win in which the Bills brought the Miami Dolphins unbeaten start to an emphatic end.
As bar tabs go, Diggs' celebration — in which he sprayed a group of people in the corner of the end zone — was the price both fans and the Dolphins had to pay for running into a Bills juggernaut that scored on eight of its first nine possessions, not including a kneeldown before halftime.
Josh Allen threw four touchdown passes and added another rushing as the Bills served a reminder they know a thing or wo about offense — and defense for that matter — after spending much of the week hearing about the Dolphins producing one of the most impressive offensive performances in NFL history in a 70-20 win over Denver.
“We're just trying to wake everybody up and make people talk,” defensive tackle Ed Oliver said. “We want everybody to know that this defense is for real. And we got special guys.”
Although the Dolphins finished with 393 yards of offense, Buffalo held Miami to 3 of 10 on third down and 0 for 3 on fourth down. The Bills also forced two turnovers and sacked Tua Tagovailoa four times. The Dolphins had allowed just one sack in their first three games.
The Bills suffered one major setback when cornerback Tre'Davious White was carted off in the third quarter with what the team said was an Achilles tendon injury. White pulled up while covering Tyreek Hill and was unable to put any weight on his right leg.
Coach Sean McDermott grew emotional discussing White's injury.
“I love him. I mean, to see him on that field, the way he was hurting, is hard. It's hard to watch,” McDermott said of White, who at one point flung his helmet in frustration. “I know that he will rebound. He's just too tough.”
Buffalo (3-1) never trailed and finished with 414 yards of offense. The three-time AFC East champion Bills have won three straight since a season-opening loss at the New York Jets.
The Dolphins (3-1) squandered chances to open a season with four wins for the first time since 1995 and to take a twogame lead over Buffalo in the division.
Buffalo won its eighth straight at home over Miami and improved to 12-2 in the past 14 meetings, including a 34-31 win in the playoffs' wild-card round in January.
“First off, I think the Buffalo Bills proved why they are the team our whole division is trying to beat,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said.
“I would be lying if I was pumped about anything from our team today,” he added.