Never forget Thad Lewis helped end Miami Dolphins’ 2013 season
Thad Lewis in his one year as a member of the Buffalo Bills delivered heartbreak to South Beach.
Let’s go back to 2013 when E.J. Manuel was the Buffalo Bills starting quarterback. Good times right? Well… no. In what was a rather forgettable 6-10 season and a last-place finish in the AFC East, there was one bright spot that Bills fans should remember about that year. Until we get to the exact details of how it happened, there needs to be more context to this situation.
Manuel was the team’s first-round draft pick that year out of Florida State. The 6-4, 237lb quarterback was a mountain of a man leading the Bills and led the team to a respectable 2-2 start as a rookie before getting hurt in a loss to the Cleveland Browns. He’d go on to miss the next four games.
Enter our protagonist, Thad Lewis. Lewis was ironically a member of the Browns the year before (irony) and took over for Manuel while he was hurt. Lewis almost got Buffalo a win in an overtime loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. Entering week 7, the Bills were set to face the Miami Dolphins in their first matchup of the year.
It was a 17-14 halftime score, with Miami taking the lead in the third. However, two Dan Carpenter field goals were set up by Lewis driving the team into position (with the help of a Ryan Tannehill fumble late in the 4th quarter). The Bills won, 23-21.
Manuel returns, Thad Lewis goes back to the bench
Manuel returned in week 10 and played another four games until another knee injury in week 14 declared him inactive for the final matchup between these two teams. Miami entered the game at 8-6 and had clinching scenarios possible. If they won, coupled with a Bengals and Ravens loss, Miami would be in the playoffs and get a week to either rest their starters or try to improve their seeding.
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That didn’t happen, as Miami got shut-out and lost the game 19-0 to the Lewis-led Bills and the leg of Campbell once again. In more irony, the Bengals won in a blowout fashion, and the Ravens lost in a blowout fashion as well.
Lewis would be out of the league after that season. Despite his not-so-stellar performances against the Dolphins, he did enough to win. And to this day when you mention the name Thad Lewis to Dolphins fans, it still sends shivers down their spine.