The Five Biggest Storylines of the Dolphins-Bills Week 8 Matchup

Breaking down the biggest sub-plots for the Miami-Buffalo game at Highmark Stadium

As the Miami Dolphins prepare the face the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium, we examine the five biggest storylines for this matchup:

1. Can the Dolphins Avoid Another Buffalo Beatdown?

It's bad enough that the Dolphins have lost six in a row against Buffalo, but the last two final scores were 56-26 and 35-0. Doing quick math, that's 91-26 or an average of 45-13. That's not good, Captain Obvious would say. Sadly, we're almost at the point where simply being competitive against the Bills would represent progress, even if a loss would leave the Dolphins with a 1-7 record.

2. Talking Tua

Nah, nothing really been going on with Tua Tagovailoa this week, right? It will be interesting — fascinating actually — to see what kind of performance he can produce after another week of Watson talk and after he had two good outings the past two weeks and now that he's facing the team that put him on IR in Week 2.

3. O-line Redemption Time

If we're talking about Tua getting knocked out of the Week 2 game, we have to mention the offensive line, which was — how can we put this delicately — pounded by the Buffalo pass rush in that game. The Dolphins offensive line has a new look now, so it'll be interesting to see what it can do in the rematch.

4. Can Gesicki Keep It Going?

Tight end Mike Gesicki has become the biggest weapon on the Dolphins offense, with 15 catches for 200 yards and a touchdown over the past two games, but he had a fairly quiet outing against Buffalo in Week 2. If the Dolphins have any chance of pulling an upset here, Gesicki will need another big game.

5. X Marks the Spot

Another way the Dolphins could beat the Bills would be getting some turnovers on defense, which obviously is where Xavien Howard comes in. And he's certainly had some success in that department against the Bills, with four picks in his last four games against Buffalo. He had an impressive INT in Week 2 at Hard Rock Stadium, even though it didn't lead to any points.