The Dolphins got another huge win on Sunday. Getting those back to back division wins was great but unfortunately the Jets also won against the Colts. The Jets win moved Miami very close to the playoofs but it kept them with a slim lead in the division. The next 3 games are very very critical. You
can not under estimate their importance. If Miami manages to win them they will have a first round bye, host a team coming off a wildcard game and a victory will send them to the AFC championship game. But, if Miami loses even one game, the bye week is in serious doubt and more important than that the Jets will have a chance to win the division.
The Dolphins hold a one game lead on the Jets but the Jets swept Miami therefoe they have the tiebreaker edge. They only need one Miami loss to move them to the division lead. The Jets play at Oakland, Detroit and at Baltimore, certainly taff games. Whatever happens the Dolphins just want to stay away from the Jets come playoff time...
QB - Fiedler was 13 of 21 for 214 yards and 3 TDs. All of the TDs came in the first half and the game was over by the second half. Fiedler didn't throw an INT and had two long balls to Martin (39 yards) and Shepherd (40 yards). He looked healthy and played very well. A-
RB - Lamar Smith was back and it showed. He had an even 100 yards on the day, on 28 carries. His carries in the second half became predictable and it drove down his average. Smith also caught a TD among the 4 catch 23 yard game. In short he played very well, although he fumbled once. B+
WR - The WRs had a very good game. They weren't asked to do much but when they did they made big plays. Shepherd led the way with 3 catches for 67 yards and a TD. Gasden had 3 catches for 43 and a TD. He also took a the ball out of the sky one handed for a beautiful catch. Martin had a long reception and OJ caught one ball. Good game. A-
OL - The also played well. Fiedler had time to throw and Smith found running room early in the ball game. Buffalo's 2 sacks are misleading in one occasion Fiedler just fell down. B+
DL - Taylor had 3 sacks and Trace got 2. Bromell playing for the injured Owens got his first sack of the year. Johnson was rushed all day long and Flutie's fate was no different. It's not the first time teams go through 2 QBs against Miami. The down side is that Buffalo ran very well and had big runs almost the entire day. Something to worry about come the Alstot-Dunn Buccs. B+
LB - The Bills' running is a concern. They handled Riesmera well along with the secondary. The Bills scored 1 TD at home, that tell it all. B
Secondary - What more can they do ? 3 INTs and a few coverage sacks. 2 good QBs, on the road. The Bills' QBs threw 8 completed passes... A+
Special teams - Very good game. Mare was solid making his 3 FGs, the coverage team was good and we knew this is an area where the Dolphins should dominate the weak Buffalo unit and they did. A
Coaching - Second game on the road against a division rival. Too bad the Jets beat the Colts. The Dolphins will probably have to win the rest of the way (to win the division and even a high seed and a bye week) which sounds taff but could you have guessed they will be after week 14 at 10-3 after 2 straight wins at Indy and at Buffalo ? A-
