The Buffalo Bills are on the road in Week 10, visiting the Miami Dolphins. It's a lopsided matchup, to an extreme. Buffalo's offense is a powerhouse even on an off day, and Miami started this week by selling one of their best players in Jaelan Phillips for a draft pick. The Bills are coming off a solid win against the Kansas City Chiefs, as Miami drops to 2-7 on the season and fires their general manager.
But this is an 'Any Given Sunday' sort of league, and Buffalo still has to know how to beat Miami, then actually execute. The Dolphins may be a weak opponent, but the Bills still have to play them. Attacking these weaknesses is how they win.
Major weaknesses Miami has that Buffalo must attack
The Ground Game
The Miami Dolphins have had plenty of opportunities to sell out against the run. At 2-7, they've had to defend against offenses that want to run the clock often. It's a notable reasons for their dismal 145.6 rushing yards per game allowed, third-worst in the league. But volume is not the sole reason the Dolphins have dismal numbers. They allow 5.0 yards per rush attempt. Miami is always on the back foot when defending the run, which lends to Buffalo's strengths.
James Cook has been one of the NFL's most productive running backs so far this season. Though he cropped up on the Bills injury report, Cook told Kay Adams he was good to go for Sunday. With Cook active and in the mix, there's no reason Buffalo shouldn't bulldoze the Dolphins in the run game. The dual-threat combo of Josh Allen and James Cook is well documented, and they should add to those pages on Sunday.
Pressuring The Pocket
Tua Tagovailoa has a lot of problems. His best receiver is out for the year and probably longer, his other receiver was just shopped by his team at the trade deadline, and the man who penned his massive contract is no longer there. Tua would be dusting off his resume were it not for the simple sunk cost fallacy behind his engorged salary cap hit. He is felling pressure from all angles, but most of all he's feeling it from the defensive linemen.
Teams consistently get to the Dolphins QB, if he isn't already rid of the ball. It's part of why Miami, since the loss of Tyreek Hill, is free falling every week in yards per completion. The team cannot make long plays happen, nor can they break their short plays open for big gains.
In short, running simulated or off-man blitzes, as well as conventional blitz techniques, should pay steady dividends for the Bills. In rushing extra or unexpected players, they can force Tua into stagnant play and force regular punts, if not turnovers.
Hole In The Defense
The Miami Dolphins have recently become sellers, sending one of their premium defensive players to the Philadelphia Eagles at the trade deadline. Jaelan Phillips was a critical piece of the Dolphins defense, as indicated by his high snap count.
Only one player had more snaps on the Dolphins defensive line prior to the trade. With Phillips gone, the Bills have a ready-made point of attack. Buffalo simply has to spot the replacement on the line at either side, and adjust the blocking scheme. By sending a power run play to the newly-weak side of the defensive line, the Bills can push Miami around all afternoon.
Springing the run game has always been the aim this season, but the method is clear as day. Where Jaelan Phillips would have been, follow.