In Week 10 of the NFL season, the Buffalo Bills visited the Miami Dolphins, and what was supposed to be an easy game for the Bills turned into a major upset in the AFC East race. The Dolphins won 30-13, hurting Buffalo’s chances of winning the division.
The lack of explosive plays coming from the offense concerned Bills fans. Despite two touchdowns from Josh Allen, the offense struggled for most of the game. Buffalo had three turnovers and scored zero points until the fourth quarter, when Miami was already dominating. It was a flat, frustrating outing from start to finish, and head coach Sean McDermott appeared visibly frustrated with one of his staff members on the sideline.
Sean McDermott Takes Issue With the Bills’ Offensive Struggles
The Bills showed flashes on offense but couldn’t find consistency, coughing up two costly turnovers inside the Dolphins’ 35-yard line. With coach McDermott focused on the defense, the offense remains fully in Joe Brady’s hands, and Sunday’s performance raised questions about his play-calling and execution.
Still, the unexpected loss had the Bills losing ground in the AFC East. It appears that McDermott is upset with the offensive game plan, and he made no effort to hide his disappointment when talking with reporters after the game.
“We’ve got a great quarterback, and we want to be able to move the ball two-dimensionally. And, you know, we should be able to move the ball with Josh through the air. But it can’t just be one phase of your offense”, McDermott said.
The offense struggled to run the ball against Miami. When excluding scrambles from the quarterbacks, the Bills had, on average, 3.2 yards per carry against the Dolphins, who had one of the league’s worst run defenses before the start of the game.
Brady has a great deal of prestige within the franchise. He joined the team in 2022 as the quarterbacks coach but was promoted midway through the 2023 season after Ken Dorsey was fired. He’s credited with helping their offense turn around the passing game that year.
It will be interesting to see how the dynamic unfolds. With the Bills now holding a 6-3 record, they are two wins behind the 8-3 New England Patriots. However, the Patriots hold a head-to-head victory over the Bills in Week 5. The rivals will meet for a second time on Dec. 14.
According to PFSN’s Playoff Predictor, the Patriots currently hold a 77.40% chance to win the AFC East. Buffalo’s loss to the Dolphins caused a massive 27.20% drop in their chances of competing for the division.
After Week 10, the Bills’ offense is ranked third-best in the league according to the PFSN’s Offense Impact metric. As a result, firing the offensive coordinator midway through the season, for the second time in three years, would be unusual.
Bills lost to Patriots in Week 5, 23-20.
They are not ahead of the Patriots. They are a game and a half behind. Patriots are 8-2.