This isn’t your Father’s Buffalo Bills/Miami Dolphins rivalry, that’s for sure. The fire that once fueled one of NFL history’s most red hot rivalries was bound to fade given both team’s inability to field winning teams for the better part of the last decade. In fact, while Buffalo has 0 playoff appearances in the new millennium, Miami only has 3, and haven’t been since they lost the AFC wildcard game to Baltimore in 2008. The football gods seem to have it out for the Fins, too.
I’ve been living in South Florida for 3 years now, and have witnessed the dysfunction of the Dolphins up close and have got to say, they’ve had it just as bad in that time as the Bills have. They finished 6-10 last season after firing Joe Philbin mid season, which was probably the right move. But after almost 10 years of mediocracy and unfulfilled expectations, you can say the Fins have probably been one of the most disappointing teams of late. Every year it seems Miami assembles a good looking roster on paper while fans and media pencil them in for wildcard spot. Yet, this is how they fared of late:
2015: 6-10
2014: 8-8
2013: 8-8
2012: 7-9
2011: 6-10
2010: 7-9
2009: 7-9
2008: 11-5
2007: 1-15
Ryan Tannehill hasn’t been good enough after showing strong promise earlier in his career. Recent big name signings like Mike Wallace, Brent Grimes, and Ndamukong Suh, either didn’t work out or seem to be looking that way. Through 6 games, Mario Williams has been a letdown as well with just 1 sack and 8 tackles. So yeah, the Dolphins have been as much a mess lately as the Bills.
In my 3 years in Florida, I’ve gotten to see in person the Bills rack up a 2-1 record vs the fins in Miami Gardens. 2013 was the thick of the Thad Lewis era, and the team ground out an ugly 23-21 win. 2014 was a Thursday Night game, and like most times they play for the whole country, the Bills embarrassed themselves in a 22-9 loss. I believe Fred Jackson was hurt and the Bills counted on Boobie Dixon and Kyle Orton to carry the load, which predictably didn’t end well for Buffalo. Last year was a glorious win for the Bills, trouncing the Dolphins 41-14 in one of the most complete team games Buffalo has had in their entire playoff drought.
Let me also give a shout out to the 98% of Dolphins fans with class. 3 game I’ve attended as a fan of the visiting team and I can count on one hand the number of home fans who gave me any trouble. I’m sure the tension in the crowd would be more fierce if the tension on the field was. That said, the struggle is real for Miami and their fans. I’ve seen the frustration and shame in their eyes first hand, very similar to that of Bills fans. Rivals or not, I can’t help but empathize with them. But I digress.
Fast forward to this Sunday, where the Bills look to make it 3 wins out of the last 4 at Hard Rock Stadium (formerly Sun Like Stadium). The Bills should be the clear favorite, and really have no excuse for losing this game. Miami did however impress last week in a win over Pittsburgh, so this weekend will help determine if that was a fluke for them or not. Their offense churned out a good day on the backs of Jay Ajayi (204 yards, 2 TDs!), Jarvis Landry and MarQueis Gray (remember him, Bills fans?).
If Buffalo can take care of business on the road, they’ll be coming back to Orchard Park hot to face New England with a 5-2 record and about as much momentum as possible in professional football. That said, it’s very important the Bills do not get ahead of themselves and fall into a “trap game” in Miami. That goes for coaching too. Rex and co. have been very sharp on the sidelines though this 4 game win streak, and fans and critics have found very little to complain about on that front. You just have to hope they aren’t due for a game of bad clock management and questionable play calls. As long as the Bills don’t beat themselves, this game should be a lock. Buffalo has the better team.
So what will it take to reignite this stagnant rivalry? It’s not going to happen overnight, that’s for sure. In hockey, a rivalry can sometimes be born (or more often, reignited) by a single game full of hits, fights, and trash talk. I think about the February 2007 line brawl between the Sabres and Senators (Chris Neil, Chris Drury, Andrew Peters fighting a goalie, Lindy climbing over bench…you remember.) That stirred the pot big time and made for a very entertaining rivalry for the next few years, which unfortunately has faded quite a bit of late. Football really doesn’t work like that. So for the Bills and Dolphins, it’s going to take winning, and winning by both of them. Until each team views the other as a legit threat to their season or playoff hopes, it will continue to be more or less just another Sunday when they square off. Of course, some trash talk and violent hits as a throwback to the 90s rivalry may help speed that process up.
There are a few storylines that play into this being a potentially heated game. For one, Mario Williams. He’s in aqua and orange now and it will be interesting to see if he gets his motor running against his old team and coach. Then there’s the whole Richie Incognito thing, heading back to Miami and the epicenter of his bullying scandal. Yes, he already played Miami twice last year as a Bill and yes, he’ll claim he’s not thinking about it, but how could he not? New Bills WR Justin Hunter had a brief stint in Miami earlier this season before getting cut, so you can bet he’ll be looking to continue his solid play and stick it to his former coaches. Lastly, #thelegendofkikoalonso. He was almost invisible last year when his Eagles played the Bills, finishing with just 2 tackles for himself. Will he play with any extra fire on Sunday?
This rivalry once saw Miami assert complete domination in the 70s with 20 straight wins before Bills fans stormed the Rich Stadium field on September 7, 1980 after a 17-7 win. This rivalry once saw Miami linebacker Bryan Cox flip off the Buffalo faithful as he walked onto the field after saying he would “retire from football if I was ever traded up there.” This Rivalry also saw slugfests between some of the most dynamic QBs to play the game in Jim Kelly and Dan Marino, Buffalo winning 3 straight postseason games over Miami in the early 90s, and countless memorable moments in between. More recently, it’s seen the likes of Chad Henne, J.P. Losman, Kendall Langford, Chris Kelsay, and many other unexciting players take the field. And that’s about where we stand today.
I made the difficult decision to forgo my annual trip to the Buffalo/Miami game, instead opting to enjoy the game from my couch on our local CBS affiliate, a rarity around these parts. Here’s to hoping we witness a classic AFC East showdown and this once epic rivalry can offer a glimpse of its former self and make me regret that decision!
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