The Buffalo Bills will hope to add a win to their record in 2024 in Week 2. The team will visit the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on Thursday.
As usual, it will never be a walk in the park in the NFL. If the Bills (1-0) expect to beat the Dolphins (1-0), there will be a few key things Buffalo will have to focus on against Miami.
It will have to be a full-team effort, make no mistake. But these factors could weigh heavy on whether or not Buffalo leave Miami with a win or loss.
Here are three keys to the Bills pulling out a victory against the Dolphins:
Speed kills–Don’t let it
(USAT)
The Bills know how much speed the Dolphins offense has. At the top of the list are wide receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
Buffalo’s defense will be without nickel cornerback Taron Johnson (forearm) and Cam Lewis is likely to start again. Lewis filled in well in the opener against the Arizona Cardinals but this is a much bigger test. The new-look safety tandem of Taylor Rapp and Damar Hamlin have to be ready, too.
Start better
(Imagn)
While the Bills did comeback after going down 17-3 against the Cardinals… you do not want to be doing that every week. Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott has to correct that. Unfortunately, that was an issue going back to 2023 as well.
The Dolphins would be a much more difficult team to come back against if Buffalo goes into another 17-3 hole early.
Let Josh Cook
(Imagn)
Bills quarterback Josh Allen saves his best games for the Dolphins for whatever reason. Running back Jame Cook can cook any other time, but Allen should be the one doing so this week.
Allen is 10-2 in his career against the Dolphins and one of those losses includes a drop from former Bills tight end Charles Clay early in his career. The other involved sun-level heat on Buffalo’s sideline.
Furthermore, Allen averages 280 passing yards per game and over three scores in these outings. The Bills average 32.9 points-per-game as a team… just unleash Allen.