NFL
By: Charlie Gross
The Buffalo Bills face the Miami Dolphins Saturday night in Orchard Park, NY. Buffalo and Miami will face off in vastly different weather conditions than their first meeting in Miami. Several inches of snow are expected and the temperature is expected to be almost 100 degrees colder than the previous meeting in Miami. The Dolphins have suffered back-to-back losses which might take some of the lusters off this matchup with the Bills. However, this is a must-win for Miami if they want to keep their hopes of winning the AFC East alive. While Buffalo fans hold hatred in their heart for New England, old-school fans like me have always hated the Dolphins more.
When The Bills Have The Ball
Miami’s defensive line created problems for the Bills in the last meeting between these teams. Buffalo’s offensive line will have its hands full with the likes of Jaelan Phillips, Bradley Chubb, and Christian Wilkins. The aforementioned Wilkins has been playing at an All-Pro level this year and is a nightmare matchup for Rodger Saffold and whoever takes Ryan Bates’s spot at right guard. If Cole Beasley can play and provide a reliable safety blanket for Josh Allen, that should help the Bills’ offensive line handle Miami’s lethal pass rush. Given the expected weather, getting the ground game going will be important for the Bills as well. Devin Singletary has been solid all season and rookie James Cook has been inconsistent but has been playing better as of late. No matter what happens the focal point of the Bills’ offense is Josh Allen. We may see more designed runs than usual for Allen which is something the Bills have tried to limit. However, a snow game screams “QB Power” to me. If there is snow on the ground, those conditions usually favor the offense, so this will be a tough task for the Dolphins’ defense.
When The Bills Are On Defense
Under ideal conditions, Miami has speed at the skill positions that no one on the Bills’ defense can match. Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle are tough assignments. The good news for Buffalo is that they are a lot more healthy than the last time they played the Dolphins. Both Jordan Poyer and Tre White are back for Buffalos defense. It’s no secret Von Miller is out but the defensive line has answered the challenge so far. Buffalo will need another big game from Greg Rousseau, Ed Oliver, Shaq Lawson, and A.J. Epenesa. Tua struggles under pressure, so being able to play with the same intensity as last week vs the Jets will be important. Miami loves to challenge the middle of the field in the passing game so players like Tremaine Edmunds, Matt Milano, and Jordan Poyer will be key. Flooding the deep middle and forcing Tua to throw outside the numbers will be a key to victory. The Dolphins’ rushing attack has been up and down. Miami wants to run wide zone but doesn’t really have the personnel to make that happen, so the Bills should expect runs up the middle.
Prediction
This is Miami’s 3rd road game in a row and the Dolphins defense has played 80 or more snaps in both those games, which were on the west coast. Now the task is to come up to Buffalo on a short week in the cold and beat the Bills. Buffalo is mostly healthy, Josh Allen is getting his confidence back, the Bills running game has been better and Buffalo have added weapons that Josh Allen trusts. I’ll pick the Bills to win 27-13
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