There are two intriguing National Football League games in week two where both teams made the playoffs a year ago. On Thursday night, the Miami Dolphins are hosting the Buffalo Bills, and then in the early slate of games on Sunday, the Detroit Lions are hosting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In both games a team from the northeast portion of the United States is playing a team from Florida.
How did these four teams finish last year?
The Bills and Dolphins had identical records of 11 wins and six losses in 2023. Buffalo won the division as they beat Miami twice in the regular season, 48-20 on October 1, and 21-14 to close out the year on January 7. In the playoffs, the Bills won the AFC Wildcard game as they beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-17, before losing to the Kansas City Chiefs 27-24 in the AFC Divisional Round. Meanwhile, the Dolphins lost to the Chiefs 26-7 in the AFC Wildcard.
The Lions and Buccaneers both won divisional titles. The Lions won the NFC North at 12 wins and five losses. The Buccaneers won the NFC South at nine wins and eight losses. In the postseason, the Lions beat the Los Angeles Rams 24-23 in the NFC Wildcard and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-23 in the NFC Divisional Round before losing 34-31 in the NFC Championship. The Buccaneers’s playoff win was a 32-9 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wildcard.
All four teams are 1-0
The Bills defeated the Arizona Cardinals 34-28 despite a slow start which saw the Cardinals take a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter and a 17-3 lead in the second quarter. The turning point seemed to come late in the first half as Josh Allen pulled the Bills within a touchdown on a seven yard major score. It was the Bills that dominated the second half as they outscored the Cardinals 24-11.
The Dolphins beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 20-17 in an all-Florida battle. Dolphins starting quarterback Tua Tagovailova had 338 yards passing, Tyreek Hill had 130 yards receiving, and Jason Sanders made two key fourth quarter field goals. His 37 yarder tied the game at 17 with 4:22 left, and on the final play of the game, Sanders made a 52 yard field goal to give Miami the win.
The Lions beat the Rams 26-20 in overtime in week one. The top Lion was wide receiver Jameson Williams, who had 121 yards receiving. Meanwhile, the Buccaneers beat the Washington Commanders 37-20 thanks to four touchdown passes by Baker Mayfield.
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