Buffalo Bills crush Dolphins and get their fifth consecutive victory over Miami

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Buffalo Bills pulled out another win over the Miami Dolphins on Thursday night, thanks to three first-half touchdown runs by James Cook and two interceptions by Ja'Marcus Ingram to defeat the Dolphins 31-10 at Hard Rock Stadium.

The loss wasn't Miami's biggest concern, though, as quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered a concussion late in the third quarter. Tagovailoa was immediately ruled out after a night in which he threw three interceptions, one of which Ingram returned for a touchdown in the third quarter. Now the Dolphins face an uncertain future as they evaluate Tagovailoa, who has had concussion issues in the past.

Here are the most important things for both teams to know from Thursday night:

For much of Josh Allen's career, he has been the Bills' primary provider of rushing touchdowns. That wasn't the case Thursday night in a decisive AFC East victory.

While Allen dealt with a left hand injury suffered during a touchdown run (or, more specifically, a jump) in Week 1, Cook had a career night, as his three touchdowns helped lead the Bills to a decisive win over the Dolphins. In just one game, Cook matched his rushing touchdown totals from last season and the season before (two in each).

Cook’s first touchdown of the night came on the game’s opening drive, following Ingram’s first of two interceptions, on a 17-yard touchdown pass from Allen. The second was a 1-yard rushing touchdown in the second quarter, and the third came on Buffalo’s next offensive play, when Cook ran untouched 49 yards into the end zone to put the Bills up 24-7. Since ESPN began tracking yards before contact in 2006, Cook is the seventh player with an untouched rushing touchdown of 49 yards or more. All of his touchdowns came in the first half.

The team finished with 108 yards rushing, with Cook accounting for the bulk of it as he finished with 11 attempts for 78 yards, plus one reception.

Offensive coordinator Joe Brady continues to place an emphasis on running the ball, while Allen finished the game completing 13 of 19 passes for 139 yards and a touchdown.

There's a new cast of characters around Allen in the wide receiver room, but this offense has shown from the start that it can score points and take advantage of opportunities.

The most surprising performance: The Bills have had success with defensive backups in the past, but Ingram has made a clear mark in the first two games of the season. Coach Sean McDermott said Ingram would have been ruled out for health in Week 1 if defensive end Dawuane Smoot hadn’t been injured, but instead Ingram played in the team’s 10-pack after nickel cornerback Taron Johnson injured his forearm and Cam Lewis switched to nickel and defended the game-ending play. Against the Dolphins, Ingram (an undrafted free agent from the University of Buffalo in 2022 who spent the previous two seasons on the Bills’ practice squad) put on a show with two interceptions, including an interception for a touchdown. Even when Johnson returns, Ingram should get even more opportunities.

Fundamental play: On the Bills' fourth offensive drive, the team really began to pull away, taking a 10-7 lead. On third-and-12 from the Miami 34-yard line, Allen waited in the pocket, then ran to his right and threw a 33-yard pass to running back Ty Johnson. The impressive pass set up a 1-yard rushing touchdown by Cook on the next play, giving the Bills a double-digit lead that the team never relinquished.

Describe the game in two words: Statement. Any doubt about whether the AFC East was still being played out in Buffalo, New York, was eliminated with this decisive road win. The victory puts the Bills at 20-5 against the division since 2020 and improves Allen’s record against the Dolphins to 12-2. Thursday also marked the Bills’ fifth straight win, including the postseason, over Miami.

Promising trend: Defense limits big plays. The Bills have made it a point on defense to try to prevent offenses from making big plays down the field, which was especially noticeable Thursday when facing the speed the Dolphins present. They have done so successfully in the first two games of the 2024 season. Tagovailoa was 0-for-4 for 15-yard passes down the field and 2-for-8 for 10-yard passes down the field. In Week 1, Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray was 0-for-6 for 10-yard passes. –Alaina Getzenberg

Next game: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (7:30 p.m. ET, Monday, Sept. 23)

A nightmare.

There's no other way to describe the Dolphins' loss to the Bills.

Not only did they lose for the 10th time in their last 11 matchups with their AFC East rival, they potentially lost their quarterback for an indeterminate period. Tagovailoa suffered a scary concussion late in the third quarter after a hit to the helmet kept him on the ground for several minutes as players knelt around him.

Thankfully, he was able to walk off the field and eventually make it to the locker room under his own power. Aside from a collective gasp as Tagovailoa writhed on the ground after the hit, Dolphins and Bills fans were stunned at an eerily quiet Hard Rock Stadium.

Tagovailoa’s concussion history — two concussions diagnosed during the 2022 season — will likely mean he and the team will be monitored over the next 10 days with intense scrutiny. What happens if he clears the NFL’s concussion protocol in time for Miami’s game against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 3? Would 10 days be enough for the Dolphins to feel like they’re playing with their newly crowned franchise quarterback after another head injury?

Maybe the Dolphins will sideline him for longer, perhaps a stint on injured reserve? Even longer than that? At the risk of sounding overly dramatic, nothing is off the table as the Dolphins’ 2024 season has taken a serious turn in just two weeks.

Worrying trend: For the second time in two weeks, the Dolphins' offense made a mistake in the first half. Tagovailoa threw his first interception of the season on Miami's first offensive drive and threw his second two drives later. This might be the biggest hole in the Dolphins' game plan because on both interceptions, Tagovailoa was targeting receivers he's not used to throwing to: Grant DuBose and Robbie Chosen. The only thing that kept the crowd from going home at halftime was a 78-yard performance by running back De'Von Achane. Miami did just about everything wrong it could have done in a game against a team it couldn't afford to make mistakes against.

Describe the game in two words: A total disaster. The crushing loss was painful enough for the Dolphins to endure, but the fact that Tagovailoa suffered the third diagnosed concussion of his career potentially puts the rest of this season in jeopardy. Considering the events of the 2022 season, the team will likely be put under a microscope as it decides how to handle its franchise quarterback.

Prediction for next week: The only bright spot from Thursday's loss was Achane's performance. He took on a prominent role in Raheem Mostert's absence, accounting for 96 yards on 22 carries and Miami's only touchdown. Regardless of Mostert's health next week, Achane is expected to have a prominent role in Week 3 against the Seahawks, especially if Tagovailoa doesn't play. –Marcel Louis-Jacques

Next game: At Seattle Seahawks (4:05 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 22)