The Miami Dolphins remain alive and well in the AFC East. The Buffalo Bills can't say the same.
Bills vs. Dolphins 2014 final score: 3 things we learned from Miami’s 22-9 win
Miami broke open a field goal contest with a pair of second-half touchdowns, pulling away and bolstering its playoff hopes.
Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
The Bills' chances of ending their NFL-worst 14-year playoff drought took a hit on Thursday night as they fell, 22-9. Now 5-5, Buffalo faces a daunting climb if it hopes to catch the 7-2, AFC East-leading New England Patriots, though they still have realistic wild card hopes if they can turn things around.
The Dolphins overcame first-half red zone struggles to punch the ball into the end zone twice in the second half, pulling away after going into the intermission down, 6-3. Buffalo's offense, meanwhile, gained just 237 yards and continued to waste trips inside the 20. Kyle Orton went 22-of-39 for 193 yards and a running game missing Fred Jackson gained just 54 yards on the ground.
Ryan Tannehill had a bounce-back week for the Dolphins, throwing for 240 yards and a pair of second-half scores. Miami improves to 6-4 and gets another shot at New England in Week 15.
Here’s what we learned from the game:
1) Miami fought through its red zone struggles, the Bills didn’t.
Coming into the game, the Bills and Dolphins were two of the worst three teams in the NFL in red zone scoring ... and they both played like it for a half. Both offenses made it inside their opponent's 20 twice in the first half, but combined for three field goals and a turnover (a Tannehill fumble). It took 14 combined plays inside the red zone before the Dolphins scored the game's first touchdown -- a 7-yard pass from Tannehill to Brandon Gibson with under three minutes remaining in the third quarter.
That touchdown ignited the Miami offense. On the team's next offensive drive, the Dolphins marched 63 yards in six plays, capping it off with Tannehill's second scoring pass. That one was an 8-yarder to rookie Jarvis Landry, who made up for a fumbled punt just minutes earlier.
2) Things got weird at the end of the third quarter.
Just after the Dolphins took their first lead of the game, the Bills were backed up deep in their own territory. On third-and-24 from his own 6-yard line, Orton threw the ball out of bounds. Refs flagged him for intentional grounding, which resulted in a safety because he was standing in his own end zone when he released the ball.
Sammy Watkins was close to being in the area of the ball, but the refs maintained the pass was illegal.
On the ensuing punt return, Landry coughed up the ball, giving the Bills' struggling offense a short field and a golden opportunity to retake the lead. But Buffalo stalled again and Dan Carpenter missed a 47-yard field goal. The Bills wouldn't mount another serious threat the rest of the night.
3) Miami's O-line may survive without Branden Albert.
Looking at the five sacks the Dolphins allowed, you would think that their injury-riddled offensive line is in serious trouble. But they actually held up pretty well considering they were playing against the league's best pass rush without two starting offensive linemen, including Pro Bowl left tackle Branden Albert. Albert tore his ACL and MCL last week, causing major shuffling along the front. Complicating things further was the absence of starting right guard Daryn Colledge, who missed his third consecutive game with a back injury.
The resulting ragtag group impressed for much of the game. Rookie Ja'Wuan James, who hadn't played left tackle since high school, was stellar after being moved from the right side to replace Albert. Converted guard Shelly Smith was beaten badly by Mario Williams a few times (twice for a sack) but there aren't many lineman in the league that can stand up to Williams. If those two can continue to play at the level they showed on Thursday, the Miami O-line won't see the drop off we all expected.
It’s worth nothing that in Tannehill’s six career games against the Bills, he’s been sacked at least twice in every game.
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