Dolphins vs. Bills would’ve been a great playoff game about two weeks ago. The two teams are rivals and play in the same division. They had a competitive 32-29 battle in the snow in Buffalo in Week 17. But now, the two teams are incomparable. The Bills are on a high with the news that Damar Hamilin is safe and recovering from his scary injury in Cincinnati. The Dolphins backed into the playoffs, needing New England to lose to Buffalo. The Dolphins have a slew of injuries–most notably, Tua Tagovailoa has been ruled out of the wildcard game with concussion symptoms. So, obviously, the Bills will run over the Dolphins and convince every Dolphin fan that they should’ve opted-out of the playoffs, right?! Well, that’s why we play the games.
Dolphins have a mess of injuries
Terron Armstead is an old school NFL player. On the injury report for Thursday, his injuries are listed as toe/pec/knee/hip. The Dolphins should’ve really gone with the, “half body injury” obscure designation, ala Bill Belichick. The man though is a “gamer” and as per Barry Jackson’s tweet (see below) is doing everything possible to play on Sunday. As if it was on purpose, Liam Eichenberg was a non-participant in Thursday’s practice as per Dolphinswire. Also, offensive tackle Kendall Lamm and Brandon Shell didn’t participate in Thursday’s practice. Read the rest of the report here.
Terron Armstead receives Dolphins media’s 2022 Good Guy Award. Does he expect to play? “Working around the clock, trying to do everything I can. Been dealing with quite a bit this year. I want nothing more than to be out there with my guys in Buffalo on Sunday.”
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) January 11, 2023
Raheem Mostert, who ran over the Bills in their game in early December, broke his thumb and will not play in the Wildcard round. So the Dolphins have the following players available for the offensive line on Sunday: Greg Little, Robert Jones, Connor Williams, Michael Deiter, Robert Hunt and Robert Jones. Teddy Bridgewater dislocated his pinky finger and can’t throw a football as per Coach Mike McDaniel. Lee McManus wrote in July on our site about how important Bridgewater was to the Dolphins. Read the article here. So Skylar Thompson needs to “trust in his team” as he stated during media interviews before the Jets game as he will probably be the starter.
Bills have momentum on their side
Damar Hamilin, as per the Bills press statement here, was discharged from Buffalo General Medical Center on Wednesday. He has been deemed able to continue his rehab at home and at the Bills practice facility. Nyheim Hines kickoff return at the start of last Sunday’s game against the Patriots was a tremendous boost of momentum to the team’s psyche. I believe if and when they make an NFL Network documentary of their possible Super Bowl run, this will be the perfect dramatic pause in the season review, before the climax (of the dreamy playoff/championship run.)
Josh Allen has practiced fully all week and the Bills are super healthy. The Bills are making their fourth straight playoff appearance and fifth in six years under Sean McDermott. They have lost to the Chiefs in consecutive years with the games being fiercely competitive. If the Bills can make a playoff run, they would be “the perfect story” for TV networks–“A three dimensional storyline cocktail” of playoff history current and historical, team/City unity in the face of adversity and team personalities.
Obvious pick
The Bills will win this game 48-17. Miami is too injured to mount any type of challenge to the Bills. If Mostert, Armstead and Tagavailoa were playing, I’d rate the game as a pick’em. The Dolphins “are onto something” with their dynamic offense and wide receivers. Mike McDaniel is going to be the 5th Dolphins coach to lead their team to the playoffs in his rookie season as per the AP preview. Read that here. The Dolphins wreak of a team that “will be back,” to the playoffs as a good offense wins games in the NFL. The team was able to trade for Bradley Chubb and could sign another defensive star in the offseason to solidify their defense. I think Miami will be where Buffalo is now in a few years. Tua says he wants to come back and play, but that decision is for another blog.
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