2024 NFL Week 2: Key Takeaways from Bills’ Thursday Night Win Over Dolphins

1. The shorthanded Bills defense played well. With cornerback Taron Johnson out, linebacker Matt Milano out, and running back Terrell Bernard (pectoral) out in the second series, the Bills had a challenging situation as they had to handle Miami’s dangerous offense. Plus, the weather was hot and humid, which favored the home team. Despite this, the Bills played brilliantly, making three interceptions of Tua Tagovailoa and stopping three on fourth down.

All players contributed. Cam Lewis, playing in place of Johnson, looked shaky early but played well. Ja’Marcus Ingram had the greatest game of his NFL career, making his first two career interceptions and turning one into a pick-six. Dorian Williams made a stop on third down, then Ed Oliver stopped another Dolphins drive by sacking on fourth down.

The key to the Bills’ game plan was keeping the ball away from Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle; all three of Tagovailoa’s interceptions came while targeting other receivers. By the time Tagovailoa was taken out of the game with a concussion, Hill and Waddle had combined for just seven catches and 65 yards. After a slow start last week, Sean McDermott and Bobby Babich’s shorthanded defense has corrected its mistakes.

2. The Dolphins’ offense struggled before Tagovailoa’s concussion. Tua Tagovailoa was already having a tough game before he left the game with a concussion late in the third quarter. This was the third game of Tagovailoa’s career in which he threw three interceptions, with the last one being a runback for 31 yards as the Bills took a 31-10 lead. His receivers Grant DuBose and Robbie Chozen also had some blame on the first two interceptions, but the pick-six was a poor throw by Tua under heavy pressure. They were also able to sack Tua Tagovailoa four times before the latter was forced to leave the game with an injury The Dolphins also lost offensive tackle Terron.

Armstead and left guard Robert Jones during the game Their offense was already dicey even before that. Penalties plus fourth down halts all too frequently put paid to optimism. On the side of the Ravens, even coach Mike McDaniels play calling looked strange at times. Final Rutgers casualty was running back De’Von Achane who suffered an ankle injury and was substituted later in the game but matched his personal best with 29 touches which was the highest number of touches in the game for Rutgers till that point, but in his previous best he had only managed 22 touches.

Achane was great, but it’s better to say that he was the only exceptional player on the offensive line. But the question was why was he kept on the field until the fourth quarter when the rest of the core players were out of the game? Tagovailoa was under pressure in the game, and it was another disappointing result for him and the Dolphins against the Bills. The biggest question now is how Tua’s health will hold up, especially given his concussion history.

3. Cook set the tone from the start in his hometown. Bills running back James Cook was born and raised in Miami, but he had been quiet in his previous five games against the Dolphins, scoring only three touchdowns and averaging 49.4 yards per game. Cook equaled those numbers this time through the second quarter and then surpassed them. His three first-half touchdowns (two running and one receiving) gave the Bills a 24-7 lead at halftime, and Cook gained 95 yards on 12 touches.

Fourth-round pick Ray Davis also had some nice runs, and Ty Johnson had a beautiful 33-yard catch and run to Miami’s 1-yard line that set up Cook’s second touchdown. The Bills’ O-Line did produce some decent opportunities for Cook, which helps make the job of Josh Allen all the more simpler. Bills did not reach the 40-play mark until mid-way in the fourth quarter as they were already dominant and the defense also did its work nicely.

4. Again this time early, what can be noticed is that Miami’s defense was compromised. In the first half of the week one game against the Jaguars the Dolphins played unanimated football and were a tad shaky on defense but in the second half they were simply brilliant. In any case, the new coordinator Anthony Weaver’s team demonstrated such a focused performance only for the first time. However, this Thursday night’s game went in the exact opposite of that.

A little context: Out of three times entering the first half, Buffalo began its possession inside Miami’s territory. But the Dolphins were pushed to the point of attack and hardly pressed James Cook in the whole match. However, when he had time on his hands he was excellent. The first two quarters weren’t anything special on the Dolphins’ side, especially their pass rush. As for the second half, seeing that Tua Tagovailoa threw a pick-six and had to leave the field, it was impossible to talk about a miracle turn. Now we are seeing more pressure on the defense to make the corrections especially if Skyler Thompson is to replace Tua.

5. Allen did his part in this win, handling the hand injury well. There were concerns about Josh Allen’s left-hand injury, which required him to wear a special glove with two fingers bound together. But it didn’t have much of an impact on the game. Allen threw only 19 passes, completing 13 of them and scoring a touchdown with 139 yards. He also ran only twice, contributing two yards. The best part? There were no turnovers. He had one fumble last week, but after that, they went through seven quarters without relinquishing possession of the ball.

Allen had to use his right hand to continue the running play, but it didn’t make a difference. He hurled a shotgun snap that struck his glove, but it was an imperfect throw. Other than that, though, the running game and defense were key components to a clean game. Although Allen didn’t have a significant impact on the game, it was one of those few occasions when it happened, and the Bills will always consider this victory.

Next Jan Stat: In his twisting run, which led to a 49-yard touchdown, James Cook was at his best and hit a top speed of 20. This was the eighth-fastest ball carrier speed of the game and the highest in his career so far 99 mph. He got more than 42 yards on the run which is even much more than the 42 expected yards.

Also Read: American Swimmer Ali Truwit Wins Silver at Paralympics, Overcoming Shark Attack Injury

NFL Research: The Miami Dolphins have won 20 of the 33 games started by Tua Tagovailoa, and that was before last Thursday’s defeat by the Bills. The Dolphins are 1-4 when Tua has not been part of the team in that stretch.

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