What to like and dislike from Miami Dolphins loss to Bills

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ORCHARD PARK, NY – DECEMBER 17: Tua Tagovailoa #1 of the Miami Dolphins scrambles out of the pocket during the third quarter of an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium on December 17, 2022 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images) /

Like: Both Tua and the Miami Dolphins answered some questions.

The narrative going into Saturday’s game was how Tagovailoa had crashed back to earth after two bad games on the west coast and the Dolphins couldn’t handle playing in the cold. Despite the loss, it felt like Miami had righted the ship a little bit.

Tagovailoa played well. He wasn’t the same quarterback he was during the five-game winning streak, but he played a good game when it seemed like the football world had descended upon him. He finished 17-of-30 for 234 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions with a passer rating of 104. Tagovailoa got back into a groove throwing the ball, completing passes to seven different wide receivers and averaging 7.8 yards per pass. He was able to get his best weapons, Hill and Jaylen Waddle (more on him later), involved early and often and they combined for 12 catches for 183 yards and two touchdowns. Miami doesn’t need Tagovailoa to be Dan Marino, but rather for him to just run the offense.

For the Dolphins as a whole, it was easy to think a warm-weather team would be able to handle the cold of West New York. Stories of having bench heaters on the sideline in Los Angeles the week prior didn’t help with perception. Tagovailoa came into this game 0-4 in his coldest NFL starts and he even had to jokingly defend himself, explaining how it snows in Alabama too. Despite all the noise, Miami played like a physical team, rushing for more yards and averaging more yards on the ground than Buffalo. With one last potential cold-weather game at New England in week 17, the Dolphins have to feel better about playing in the cold now than they did this time last week.

ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 17: Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills looks to pass against the Miami Dolphins during the second quarter at Highmark Stadium on December 17, 2022 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Bryan M. Bennett/Getty Images) /

Dislike: Miami continues to struggle against mobile quarterbacks

Coming into Saturday’s game, Miami had allowed 6.3 yards per carry to quarterbacks this season. Games against Allen, Chicago’s Justin Fields, and Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson exposed a weakness to quarterbacks that can make plays with their legs, and it happened again against Allen.

Outside of a strip sack, Allen played about as great of a game as a quarterback could play. He finished 25-of-40 for 304 yards and four touchdowns and a passer rating of 119.2, but it was his running that was the difference. The 6-foot-5, 237-pound Allen moved like a graceful bowling ball, crashing through defenders or blowing by them for long runs. He finished with 10 carries for 77 yards, including a 44-yard scamper on a designed quarterback draw to set up the game-tying touchdown. After Buffalo scored the touchdown to cut the lead to 29-27, Buffalo elects to go for the 2-point conversion, and it was Allen again on a quarterback draw making the big play. He dives over the pile and gets the nose of the football just over the goal line.

The Dolphins’ defense has had its moments this season, but the inability to slow down quarterbacks that can move could come back to bite them. If the playoffs started today, the dolphins would face Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. Mahomes doesn’t rack up the yardage like the other mobile quarterbacks Miami has faced, but he is more than capable of extending plays with his feet.

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