Bills 26, Dolphins 11: 5 observations

The Bills knew Miami's defense was for real. They even knew that after the first game, a 35-0 Buffalo victory in Week 2.

This time, however, that defense put up a much better fight, particularly on the line of scrimmage, to stifle the Bills' running backs.

The result was a 26-11 win for the Bills that included a baffling decision to go for two points after their final touchdown, which came with just 1:14 remaining.

Here are five instant observations:

Curious OL shuffle

With right tackle Spencer Brown out, the Bills made a decision to cover his absence by affecting three positions.

Right guard Daryl Williams moved outside to fill in for Brown, Jon Feliciano shifted from left guard to right guard and Ike Boettger was plugged in at left guard.

Suffice to say this new alignment didn't function at a particularly high level. The Bills struggled with offensive continuity most of the day before finding a rhythm in the second half.

Two-minute meltdown

The Bills went to halftime with just five first downs and 122 yards. Their defense had been on the field for 18:26 of the 30 minutes.

But the two-minute drill they tried to run near the end of the half was a classic team malfunction that won't sit well with this coaching staff, which contributed to it when Sean McDermott decided to leave his offense on the field to try drawing the Dolphins into an offside penalty on fourth-and-4 from the Miami 44-yard line.

The play backfired when Allen thought he drew a Miami defender across the line early with his cadence. But there was no call. And no protection, leading to Allen foolishly grounding the ball as he was being brought down, drawing a penalty.

Miami couldn't capitalize, however, when it turned it back over on a botched play.

Check your head

Allen is one of the most instinctive players in the NFL today and has carried the Bills to many wins because of it. But he has to be made to know that he can't be taking moronic intentional grounding penalties or throwing blind heaves under pressure that are way more likely to be caught by opponents than his receivers.

Such behavior was on display again on Sunday, and it is unacceptable for a franchise quarterback in his fourth year, particularly one who was just handed a $258 million contract extension.

A sack is almost always better than an interception and better than intentional grounding 101 times out of 100.

Until Allen understands this, the Bills likely will never reach the promised land.

Beasley still has it

When Allen hit slot receiver Cole Beasley with a pass 2 yards short of the marker on third-and-14 in the third quarter, it was up to Beasley to beat two defenders who were positioned to get him down without any more yards.

The 32-year-old instinctively backed up a step to avoid an immediate hit and found some wiggle room between Jevon Holland and Nik Needham to get the first down with a yard to spare.

It took the #Bills an entire half to figure out that Miami does not have a single DB that can hang with Cole Beasley but good thing they did #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/2ViTtyQBTj
— MeRk (@Merk256) October 31, 2021

It was the sixth time Beasley caught a third-down pass this season — all good for first downs.

Beasley would leave the game briefly with a minor injury but return to finish with 10 catches for a season-high 111 yards, including another third-and-long conversion that set up a 19-yard TD catch by Stefon Diggs to give the Bills a more comfortable 17-3 cushion in the fourth quarter.

Sweeney delivers

Tight end Tommy Sweeney filled in nicely for the injured Dawson Knox, catching three of four targets for 30 yards. One of them was a crucial first down during a fourth-quarter drive that put the Bills back ahead by two scores.

Nick Fierro is the publisher of Bills Central. Check out the latest Bills news at www.si.com/nfl/bills and follow Fierro on Twitter at @NickFierro. Email to Nicky300@aol.com.