Buffalo takes care of Miami: Start season on fire
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Josh Allen, star quarter of the Buffalo Bills, led the charge of the Bills takedown of the Miami Dolphins last week.
The Buffalo Bills had one of the more polarizing offseasons of any National Football League (NFL) team this summer. From trading star wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans to lackadaisical replacing him, the Bills were a love-it-or-hate-it team in terms of their positioning coming into the 2024 NFL season. Despite all the trouble the Bills went through this offseason, they are certainly still in contention for the hottest team in the NFL through week two.
The Bills had a persuasive end to their regular season last year after making Joe Brady their offensive coordinator right before their week 11 matchup against the New York Jets. From week 11 on, under Brady, the Bills went six to one down the stretch, with their one loss coming in overtime, and they even got a wildcard win before losing to the back-to-back Super Bowl champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, in a three-point loss.
During the offseason, Buffalo did a notably lackluster job giving their superstar quarterback, Josh Allen, big-time weapons for the upcoming season. It seems still that the central aspect of their offense remained constant: Their run game. James Cook had a fantastic second-year campaign, and it seemed like he would be a focal point of this offense, especially after his high usage and lack of stars added to this offense. Thus far, this unremarkable approach has worked out for the Bills, and it doesn’t seem like Buffalo will be slowing down anytime soon.
The Bills cruised past the Miami Dolphins on Thursday, Sept. 12, in a 31-10 winning effort. Notable performances from Buffalo consisted of running back James Cook, who erupted for 95 total yards and three touchdowns. Safety Damar Hamlin led the team with ten total tackles and a few key plays in the red zone, and cornerback Ja’Marcus Ingram had two interceptions, returning one for a pick-six. The win was never really in doubt for Buffalo, having the lead from the early second quarter onward after breaking a seven-to-seven tie. The main takeaway from viewers alike this outing was that the Bills look extremely comfortable in their new regime.
The offense deserves a ton of credit for the Bills’ win on Thursday, however, their defense has been stellar, too. The defense was not left out of Buffalo’s list of struggles in the offseason, having plenty of question marks in their lineup. Surprisingly, the Bills went and released a key corner in Tre'davious White and let star safety Jordan Poyer walk into free agency. These two were huge pieces of Buffalo’s impressive lead in the American Football Conference (AFC) East for the past couple of years, so it was not only surprising but a bit concerning that the Bills were watching a handful of the superstars take their talents elsewhere.
The Bills had a clear identity that they wanted to take on this season: develop young players and play more conservatively. Their conservative running style led to two touchdowns on the ground, with their young defensive players doing a fantastic job in slowing down one of the fastest offenses in the NFL. Buffalo will look to keep their perfect season alive in Highmark Stadium this upcoming Monday, Sept. 23, as they face the Jacksonville Jaguars.