Bills Central

5 winners & 3 losers, including Josh Allen making history in Bills win vs Dolphins

The Buffalo Bills earned a hard-fought win over the Miami Dolphins. Here are the winners and losers from the Thursday Night Football showdown.
Randy Gurzi|
Buffalo Bills TE Dalton Kincaid celebrates with QB Josh Allen after scoring a touchdown against the Miami Dolphins.
Buffalo Bills TE Dalton Kincaid celebrates with QB Josh Allen after scoring a touchdown against the Miami Dolphins. | Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

The Buffalo Bills are 3-0 after securing a 31-21 win over the Miami Dolphins on Thursday Night Football.

Miami fell to 0-3, but despite their struggles, they gave the Bills a fight. Buffalo's defense struggled with their aerial attack, allowing them to keep this game close. In the end, Buffalo's offense, led by Josh Allen and James Cook, proved to be too much.

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With the game behind us, let's see who stood out as winners and losers for the undefeated Bills.

Winner: Deone Walker, DT

Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Deone Walker looks on after a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Deone Walker looks on after a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

With Ed Oliver out, rookie defensive tackle Deone Walker was in the starting lineup, and didn't disappoint.

Walker delivered a massive hit on the second snap of the game, forcing an early third down. In the third quarter, he did the same thing, forcing a third-and-long after delivering a hard hit on De'Von Achane.

The rookie was even partially responsible for the game-sealing interception. Walker broke through the offensive line and pressured Tua Tagovailoa, forcing him to rush an errant pass that was picked off by linebacker Terrel Bernard.

Loser: Tre'Davious White, CB

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle scores a touchdown against Buffalo Bills cornerback Tre'Davious White.
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle scores a touchdown against Buffalo Bills cornerback Tre'Davious White. | Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

To be fair, Tre'Davious White had a couple of solid plays. The veteran defensive back broke up a pass intended for running back De'Von Achane in the first half and had an impressive tackle for a loss in the second.

Unfortunately, he was also on the wrong end of multiple negative plays. One was the short touchdown reception from Jaylen Waddle at the end of the first half, where White simply gave him far too big of a cushion.

White was also out of position on a fourth-and-four in the third quarter. Again, it was Waddle getting open against White, picking up 15 yards and moving the chains. Three plays later, Miami tied it up at 21 with a Tyreek Hill touchdown.

Winner: James Cook, RB

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook runs against Miami Dolphins free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Buffalo Bills running back James Cook runs against Miami Dolphins free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

For the second straight week, James Cook topped the 100-yard mark on the ground. He carried the offense on his back in Week 2 against the Jets, going for 132 yards and two touchdowns.

This week, he had 19 attempts for 108 yards, and a touchdown. That's three weeks in a row he's found the end zone, which isn't shocking after he had 18 total touchdowns in 2024.

Loser: Matt Prater, K

Bills Matt Prater kicks the ball for the field goal winning the Bills game over the Baltimore Ravens.
Bills Matt Prater kicks the ball for the field goal winning the Bills game over the Baltimore Ravens. | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The hero from Week 1 made his first mistake of the season. Buffalo had a 14-7 lead before a stalled drive led to a 39-yard field goal attempt in the second quarter. That should have been a chip shot for Matt Prater, but he was wide left.

Miami responded with a 16-play drive, resulting in a touchdown. Instead of a 17-7 lead, Prater's miss set the table for the Dolphins, who made it a 14-14 tie at the half. That was his only miscue, but it could have been costly if the offense didn't continue to play at such a high level.

Winner: Dalton Kincaid, TE

Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid scores a touchdown against Miami Dolphins free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid scores a touchdown against Miami Dolphins free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. | Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Dalton Kincaid went into this season with the goal of putting a sophomore slump behind him. He's done that, kicking the season off with 48 yards and a touchdown in their Week 1 win. He added another 37 yards on four receptions.

On Thursday, he continued to add to his hot start, catching Buffalo's first touchdown of the game. Kincaid went full extension to haul in the pass from Josh Allen before breaking two tackles en route to a 20-yard score.

Kincaid nearly had a second touchdown in the first half, but was unable to haul in a pass in tight coverage. Still, he finished with five receptions for 66 yards, both team highs.

Loser: Bobby Babich, Defensive Coordinator

Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Bobby Babich watches as defensive players finish a drill during Bills Training Camp.
Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Bobby Babich watches as defensive players finish a drill during Bills Training Camp. | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The first drive for Miami was tough to watch as they went 47 yards on 10 plays, capping things off with an Ollie Gordon touchdown. Buffalo seemed to have tightened things up with back-to-back three-and-outs. Then, the final drive of the first half proved there are still issues on that side of the ball.

Buffalo allowed Miami to go 71 yards on 16 plays, eating up 5:55. Making matters worse, Miami was 5-of-5 on third-downs during that drive, which ended with Jaylen Waddle scoring a three-yard touchdown to tie things up at the half.

The Bills defense continues to be a concern, and defensive coordinator Bobby Babich will continue to take the heat until they find some consistency.

Winner: Josh Allen, QB

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen passes against the Miami Dolphins in the first quarter at Highmark Stadium.Buffalo Bills
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen passes against the Miami Dolphins in the first quarter at Highmark Stadium. | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Josh Allen entered the game needing just two touchdowns to surpass Patrick Mahomes as the fastest player to reach 300 in league history. He needed just two drives to accomplish this, officially passing Mahomes on a flip pass to rookie tight end Jackson Hawes.

Allen continued to carve up the defense, throwing for 213 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. He added 25 yards on the ground, leading his team to another impressive win.

Winner: Terrel Bernard, LB

Buffalo Bills linebacker Terrel Bernard celebrates with teammates and fans the fumble recovery against the Baltimore Ravens.
Buffalo Bills linebacker Terrel Bernard celebrates with teammates and fans the fumble recovery against the Baltimore Ravens. | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The defense as a whole struggled, but Terrel Bernard was one of a few players who excelled. He was all over the field, making stops against the run as well as in coverage. That said, his biggest play was late in the fourth quarter, when he intercepted a Tua Tagovailoa pass in the red zone.

Bernard led the team with seven tackles, while adding a pass defense, and interception.

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Randy Gurzi
RANDY GURZI

Randy Gurzi is a graduate of Arizona State and has focused on NFL coverage since 2014.