‘“During a dark time, during the drought, he was one of the bright spots for fans,” said Del Reid, the #BillsMafia co-founder and owner of 26 Shirts, explaining the enduring love for Fitzpatrick. “He had that gunslinger mentality. He was following Trent Edwards, who a lot of people used to call ‘Captain Checkdown’ and used to get frustrated with his conservative play. And maybe that wasn’t Edwards’ fault. Maybe that was the game planning. But when you remove Edwards and you put in place this guy who is not afraid to throw the ball, fans were excited to have any kind of vertical passing action going on with the offense.”’
Archives for September 20, 2020
Scouting Report: Bills’ running game has a chance to get right vs. Dolphins
‘At least in Week 1, the addition of Diggs did exactly what the Bills hoped it would for the offense – opened things up for those around him.’
Bills Mailbag: Is Tyler Bass already on a short leash?
‘They’ll bring him home and give him another chance. It’s been interesting to watch coach Sean McDermott’s reaction to Bass’ struggles against the Jets. You can really tell he’s doing all he can to keep the rookie’s confidence up. The Bills made a big decision to go with Bass over veteran Stephen Hauschka, and they desperately don’t want that to blow up on them. Perhaps converting a pair of chip-shot field goals in the fourth quarter against the Jets got Bass on the right track. Until he comes through in the clutch, though, there are going to be serious questions about what the Bills really have at kicker.’
One-on-One Coverage: Bobby Johnson got ‘creative’ to get Bills’ O-line ready for season
‘“What (the pandemic) did is it forced every coach to be creative,” Johnson said. “That’s where I started making some (video) cutups and I’d say, ‘Hey, you’ve heard me reference this type of block. Here’s a little three-play cutup of three perfect examples of that block.’”’
Do not ask for whom the Bills score. They score for thee.
‘And so today I’ll watch the Bills again. When they score, I’ll play the “Shout” song in my mind. And, for three blessed hours, I’ll do my best not to think about the bells tolling all across the continent, and around the world.’
Some of Josh Allen’s best games in his young career have come against the Dolphins
‘My pick: Bills 26, Dolphins 13.’
Bills elevate two LBs to roster for Dolphins game, add OL Jonotthan Harrison to PS
‘Harrison, 29, was released by the Jets as the team trimmed their roster down to 53-players. Jets GM Joe Douglas referred to the decision as an “excruciating conversation.” Harrison spent the past three seasons in New York and appeared in 40 games (19 starts) playing mostly at center. In addition to being a key contributor on the offensive line, Harrison was one of Sam Darnold’s closest friends on the team.’
Buffalo Bills vs. Miami Dolphins 2020: Preview, odds, predictions for Week 2
‘Bills 24, Dolphins 14.’
Bills at Dolphins Week 2: TV channel, time, live stream information
‘Buffalo may need another strong performance out of Allen as their defense enters the game beat up at the linebacker position. The Bills’ young stars, Tremaine Edmunds and Matt Milano, have both been ruled out of action. Reserve linebacker Del’Shawn Phillips has also been ruled out. Buffalo will rely on A.J. Klein, Tyrel Dodson, Tyler Matakevich, Andre Smith and Deon Lacey to step up in their absence.’
Bills’ use of four, five receiver sets provides WR Davis ample playing time early in rookie season
‘“I knew we were going to throw it in there, just didn’t know how much or what we were really going to do,” said Davis about the Bills’ tendency to deploy four or five receivers sets on Sunday.’
Five things to watch: Focuses heading into Bills’ Week 2 matchup with Miami Dolphins
‘Allen’s involvement in the run game was a major part of the Bills’ gameplan in Week 1 and don’t expect that to change in Week 2 against the ‘Phins, a team that allowed the most rushing yards of any NFL team (217) in Week 1 during their 21-11 loss to the Patriots.’
Mad enough to spit: Dolphins-Bills set to resume AFC East’s nastiest rivalry
‘Consider: The last eight meetings between these teams have featured a helmet-chucking, head-butting, season-ending melee; a vicious blindside hit by Jarvis Landry that effectively ended Aaron Williams’ career; an epic overtime clash on Christmas Eve that helped the Dolphins clinch their only playoff berth since 2008; a 25-point Bills rout on the second-to-last day of 2018 that sealed Adam Gase’s fate; and last year’s inexcusable interaction between McCain and a Bills fan.’
Miami Dolphins using Buffalo Bills as a model for their rebuild. How are they doing it? | Opinion
‘As rebuild models go, the Bills are pretty appealing. General manager Brandon Beane and coach Sean McDermott both moved to Buffalo from the Carolina Panthers in 2017. And all they have done their first three seasons is make the playoffs twice. Now, in Year 4, they are aiming higher.’
Sunday’s Miami Coverage
Mad enough to spit: Dolphins-Bills set to resume AFC East’s nastiest rivalry (Miami Herald)
Miami Dolphins using Buffalo Bills as a model for their rebuild. How are they doing it? | Opinion (Miami Herald)
Ryan Fitzpatrick seeks bounce-back performance as Dolphins host Bills in Week 2 (South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Who has the edge? Dolphins vs. Bills (South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Here’s how the Miami Dolphins can beat the Buffalo Bills (South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Staff predictions: Miami Dolphins (0-1) vs. Buffalo Bills (1-0) (South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Game time: Fast facts and key info for Buffalo Bills (1-0) at Miami Dolphins (0-1), 1 p.m. (South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Kelly: Dolphins social-impact group makes sure team backs up their video with action | Commentary (South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Line starts here: Parade of mobile QBs will test Miami Dolphins’ defense (Palm Beach Post)
Miami Dolphins are deserved underdogs against Buffalo Bills (Palm Beach Post)
Miami Dolphins: 3 Position Groups of Concern vs. Buffalo Bills (Palm Beach Post)
Auburn’s youngest NFL player aims to keep football fun (Birmingham News)
Preview: (1-0) Buffalo Bills vs. (0-1) Miami Dolphins- Sunday at 1 PM on CBS12 (WPEC-TV)
Countdown to Kickoff | Dolphins vs. Bills (MiamiDolphins.com)
Bills at Dolphins: Sal’s keys, notes and stats
‘In four career starts against Miami, Bills QB Josh Allen has dominated the Dolphins. Here are his numbers: 913 yards passing with 10 touchdowns and 3 interceptions, for a 102.8 passer rating; 318 yards rushing, 10.97 yards per carry and 3 touchdowns, which is all good for 1,231 total yards, 13 total TDs and over 307 yards per game. Allen may have to keep the types of numbers up in this one considering the injuries on defense and Miami maybe having more chances to score, but also because Dolphins QB Ryan Fitzpatrick has played well against the Bills (68.7%, 605 yards) and could always get hot and force the Bills to keep up.’
WKBW Week 2 predictions: Bills travel to Miami to take on the Dolphins
‘I think the Dolphins are better than the Jets, but this may be the second easiest game on the Bills schedule.’
Bills bring in reinforcements at linebacker for Sunday’s game vs. Dolphins
‘Because of that, the Bills called up Deon Lacey and Andre Smith from the practice squad. They now have five healthy linebackers going into tomorrow’s game against the Dolphins with those two in addition to A.J. Klein, Tyler Matakevich and Tyrel Dodson.’
Bills relying on Andre Roberts’ dynamic return skills once again
‘“That’s my job right? Catch the ball and give the offense good field position. Our defense played great, had a lot of three-and-outs and gave me a lot of field to work with so with that defense playing great and our punt return team blocking hard we did a good job to help our offense out and give them good field position,” Roberts said.’
Catching up with the Ferguson brothers before they meet in the NFL for the first time
‘The Dolphins drafted Blake 185th overall in the sixth round of the NFL draft and now they’ll face each other for the first time in the NFL this Sunday as the Bills head to Miami to play the Dolphins.’
Thad’s Three Things: Bills at Dolphins
‘Ryan Fitzpatrick is world famous as being no dummy. He’ll be going after the Bills in the middle (and perhaps on the edge to the non-Tre White side). However, this is not the Chiefs or the Bucs or the Saints with the league’s most dangerous weapons. I like Mike Gesicki a lot. He and I have the same number of 7-catch or 100-yard NFL games. DeVante Parker is hobbled if he even does play. The leading rusher is some guy named Myles Gaskin.’
Next, next, next man up for Bills at linebacker
‘Hall of Fame coach Marv Levy used to say “Depth is a great thing until you need to use it.”‘
Allen’s fumbles are a ‘fundamental issue’
‘On the flip side, he has 24 fumbles through 29 career games.’
No trash talk: Shaq Lawson showers Allen in praise
‘”I’ve respected Josh Allen since day one,” said Lawson. “He’s a dog. He’s gotten better every year, I’ve seen it develop. He’s grown a lot and he’s already looking a lot better than he did last year. Ten times better throwing the ball.”‘
5 Bills-Dolphins players to watch today in Miami
‘9 carries for 30 yards is not the way the Bills second year back wanted to begin the season. Part of the lack of production is on the offensive line that did not give the Bills running backs room to run. Part of the lack of production was on quarterback Josh Allen, who took the ball out of Singletary’s gut on several occasions for RPO runs. But part will go on Singletary for not finding a way to make a play.’
Bills elevate linebackers Deon Lacey and Andre Smith from practice squad
‘Offensive lineman Victor Salako was released from the practice squad.’
5 players to watch | Bills at Dolphins
‘Though he has only played two games against Miami in his Bills career, Buffalo’s speed receiver may as well be called a Dolphins killer.’
Bills at Dolphins Week 2 | How to watch, listen, and stream
‘The Bills have won three straight games against the Dolphins, including a 37-20 victory in Miami during Week 11 of last season. The Bills last won four straight over their AFC East rival from 2006 to 2007.’
NFL analysts | Bills at Dolphins game predictions
‘The Dolphins were handled twice by the Bills last season, have very little continuity and rank below average in every position group outside the secondary. That’s a bad combination against a cohesive Bills squad.’
Inside the mindset of Stefon Diggs
‘”Even though we had a lot of the deck stacked against us per se, he would be the guy in the locker room who was going to give it every ounce of his energy until the clock struck zero,” Locksley said. “That’s where – when I talk about him being the ultimate competitor – that’s where the motivation comes in. That’s just how he is. He’s never going to give in. He’s never going to quit until the clock strikes zero.”‘
Bills Today | Will the Miami receivers cause problems for Buffalo’s secondary?
‘”They’re two really good receivers,” Wallace stated. “Two big-bodied receivers who make a lot of good, contested catches. So, it’s our job on the outside to play as best as we can and execute with the 50/50 balls, and that’s what it’s going to come down to. We have to do our job, it’s not just the matchup between me and Tre’Davious versus them two, its everyone. Against the run, and they have Mike Gesicki as a tight end, he’s a big physical threat as well. So, everyone has to do their 1/11th and execute and we should have good success.”‘