In an extraordinary day of awesome drama, the Miami Dolphins made a major stride nearer to the playoffs with their 34-31 additional time win against the Buffalo Bills. By Sunday night, it’s possible that they could be in the playoffs if Denver loses at Kansas City.
Thoughts on the game
1. Play of the Game I
Jay Ajayi ran 57 yards down the sideline to put the Miami Dolphins in winning position late in the extra time. The Dolphins continued running the ball to the Bills’ 10-yard line, where Andrew Franks kicked the triumphant 27-yard field goal. Wild ox won the coin flip, brought the ball down the field and Dan Carpenter missed a 45-yard field goal.
2. Play of the Game II
Andrew Franks’ 55-yard field goal with six seconds left to send the game into additional time was a line-drive shocker on a couple fronts. In the first place, it was his vocation long kick, and the Miami Dolphins were so uncertain of his leg they’d left behind field goals of that length this season. Secondly, he’d hit the upright on a 46-yard field goal that would have given the Dolphins a 10-point lead in the final quarter. Those two endeavors in this game made him 7 of 13 on kicks more than 40 yards in his profession.
Here’s the thing: Franks is 10 of 10 on his field goals somewhere around 30 and 39 yards and 35 of 36 on additional points (missing against Arizona). So in close, he’s programmed. However, from separation? Calculate all that with the playoffs hanging in the balance and it goes down as one of the more sensational field goals in Dolphins history. Garo Yepremian’s kick to end The Longest Game in 1971, obviously, claims the top spot.
3. Play of the game III
On fourth down, Charles Clay 7-yard touchdown pass from Tyrod Taylor with 1:20 remaining in the game. The Miami Dolphins had sent it to a fourth down when backup linebacker Neville Hewitt and backup safety Baccari Rambo tackled a scrambling Taylor. In any case, this touchdown presented to Buffalo the distance back for its first lead of the game. The 10-play, 89-yard drive was one that may sit a while with the defense.
4. The playoff situation
The Miami Dolphins are in if
1) Denver loses at Kansas City on Sunday night or one week from now against Oakland, or 2) The Dolphins beat New England at home one week from now. There are different situations that place them in, however, those are the most straightforward and clear ones. They could even get the fifth seed, which means they’d play the AFC South champ instead of the AFC North victor of Pittsburgh or Baltimore.
5. The Miami Dolphins returned to a running game that started the beginning of this triumphant extend yet hadn’t been impactful of late. At the half, Jay Ajayi had 15 carries for 81 yards. That is a larger number of yards than he had the past in six games. After the game’s end, he had 196 yards rushing. Toss in Kenyan Drake’s 45-yard highlight-reel run and the running game had returned to demonstrating the sort of effect it had before in the year. Besides, it was the running backs that appeared to make the plays more than the line. Drake kept running into a wall amidst the line, skipped outside and made his touchdown run. Ajayi broke two handles behind the line on his 2-yard touchdown run.
6. Second-guess of the game
The end of the primary half appeared to make tracks in an opposite direction from what the Miami Dolphins truly needed to do. They had a first down at the Bills’ 36 with 1:11 remaining and tossed three of four plays. The main exemption was an 11-yard keep running by Ajay. Considering how well they were running the ball, they ought to have continued running and, at more awful, kicked a field goal. Be that as it may, Gase is forceful in everything – a great quality more often than not. Yet, you could second guess the call to toss deep on third-and-4 in extra minutes, furthermore tossing in this end-of-the-half circumstance. On second down from the Bills’ 25 with 42 seconds left, Moore tossed a block attempt at last zone. Run a couple times; take a couple time outs – even under the least favorable conditions leave with a field goal to make it 17-7 at the half.
7. The Miami Dolphins’ defense made to critical stands
Holding the league’s top surging team on fourth-and-1 on the Dolphins’ 39-yard line and afterward holding Buffalo on the first-and-goal right on time in the final quarter. Other than that, it was extreme for a defense as LeSean McCoy and Sammy Watkins had their direction. One of the riddles of this season is the way cautious facilitator Vance Joseph held the defense together without security from Reshad Jones. Cornerback Byron Maxwell missed Saturday with lower leg harm. In Saturday’s second from last quarter, safety Isa Abdul-Quddus went out with a reported neck injury. Toss in linebacker Jelani Jenkins out hurt and his backup, Spencer Paysinger, hurt amid the game and you can see why the defense battled against Buffalo.
8. Cameron Wake set up one more day to express his case for the Comeback of the Year grant. His sack of Tyrod Taylor close to the Bills’ goal line in the principal half gave him 11 1/2 for the year. With a game left, that ties his high of the previous four seasons with his 2014 aggregate. Given how little Wake was utilized as a part of September, it’s anything but difficult to state he’s playing his best football at age 34 and after last year’s Achilles tear. His opposition for the honor appears like it will originate from Green Bay recipient Jordy Nelson, who entered this end of the week with 12 touchdowns and 81 catches. Nelson has two or three things going for him, as well – Aaron Rodgers and Green Bay’s greater platform.
9. Kenny Stills‘ enormous year has given the Miami Dolphins a fascinating contract circumstance. He has bloomed for the current year, either as a result of Adam Gase’s offense or it’s the last year of his agreement. Possibly both? He got his eighth touchdown pass on a clever, 6-yard play on an intersection course. His 18.6-yard average per catch additionally entered the end of the week second in the league. The Dolphins presumably might want to sign Stills some place in the range of the three-year, $15 million Rishard Matthews got a year ago. It doesn’t improve the situation that youngster Leonte Carroo hasn’t demonstrated what he can do this rookie season.
10. One week from now
Patriots at Miami Dolphins. The playoffs could be hanging in the balance for the Dolphins. New England secured the home-field advantage through the playoffs on Saturday with its win against the Jets. We’ll need to perceive how Bill Belichick plays this one. He played rope-a-dope for the main half in a similar finale against the Dolphins a year ago when he didn’t have the home-field advantage.
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