Dolphins-Bills Wild-Card Playoff Complete Observations

Breaking down the key moments from the Miami Dolphins' 34-31 wild-card playoff loss against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium

Here's what caught our eye during the Miami Dolphins' 34-31 wild-card playoff loss against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

-- We'll start with the inactive list, which fortunately did NOT include left tackle Terron Armstead, back in the lineup after missing two games with his wide variety of ailment. The list of inactives DID include QB Tua Tagovailoa, T Kendall Lamm, T Brandon Shell, OL Liam Eichenberg, RB Raheem Mostert, CB Noah Igbinoghene and TE Tanner Conner.

-- Tagovailoa (concussion), Mostert (thumb), Shell (ankle/knee), Eichenberg (hand) and Lamm (ankle) all were on the injury report during the week.

-- WR Cedrick Wilson Jr. will be back after missing the Jets game in Week 18 with a hip injury.

FIRST QUARTER

-- The Dolphins won the toss and deferred, so they started on defense.

-- The first possession of the game started as poorly as it could for Miami, with a defensive holding penalty on Jerome Baker followed by completions of 17 and 14 yards from Josh Allen to Khalil Shakir and Stefon Diggs. Diggs beat Howard on a quick slant.

-- The Bills then did the Dolphins a favor by calling two straight running plays from the Miami 39, and the Dolphins did what they did all season, stopped them for a combined 5 yards.

-- Good hustle by Duke Riley when Allen scrambled on third-and-5, even knocking the ball loose and out of bounds, setting up a fourth-down pass that was off the mark with Kader Kohou in tight coverage against Cole Beasley.

-- The Dolphins went three-and-out on their first possession, a series marred by Jaylen Waddle dropped what should have been a long completion into Buffalo territory.

-- Diggs was a problem again on the second drive with a 20-yard gain when he found a soft spot in the zone and then with a huge 52-yard gain after getting behind Xavien Howard in man-to-man coverage.

-- That play came on third-and-15 after Baker got through the line in a hurry on a blitz and gave Allen no chance on a 7-yard sack.

-- The drive ended with Baker with great coverage against tight end Dawson Knox, but his back was turned to Allen and he never saw the ball go past him before Knox reached out for a great one-handed catch.

-- The Dolphins again ran on first down on their second drive and again with little success with Jeff Wilson Jr. gaining only 2 yards.

-- On second down, Skylar Thompson made a bad mistake when he threw while rolling to his left but failed to spot DB Dean Marlowe in front of Tyreek Hill for an easy pick.

-- After the Bills converted a third-and-1 with a 2-yard run, outside linebacker Melvin Ingram dove inside to get to Josh Allen on a shotgun snap and gave an easy outside lane to James Cook, who took advantage for a 12-yard touchdown run that extended Buffalo's lead to 14-0.

-- The Dolphins FINALLY got a first down on their third possession on a 9-yard completion to tight end Mike Gesicki, but things went south from there.

-- Tackle Terron Armstead was flagged for a false start, the Dolphins' third penalty of the first quarter before Tyreek Hill dropped a perfectly thrown slant on second-and-15.

-- On third-and-15, Waddle got behind Tre'Davious White, but had to wait for a slightly underthrown pass and that allowed White to break it up.

-- The next drive began with a brilliant catch by Buffalo's Gabriel Davis — a stark contrast to the Dolphins receivers — when he snagged a pass barely off the ground. It initially was ruled incomplete, but the Bills wisely challenged.

-- Allen continued the Dolphins' misery on third-and-7 from the Miami 45 with an 8-yard scramble after he stepped up and moved outside.

-- The first quarter ended (mercifully) with Buffalo leading 14-0 and facing a third-and-2 after an 8-yard run up the middle by Devin Singletary.

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SECOND QUARTER

-- Of course, the Bills convert the third down, with Diggs catching a 14-yard pass on a crosser ahead of Howard to top the 100-yard mark on the day. Howard clearly still doesn't look like himself despite the fact he wasn't on the injury report for this game.

-- Good ruling by the replay officials to overturn Knox's apparent touchdown catch because he clearly got help from the ground to make the catch.

-- Good inside pressure on third-and-8 led by Christian Wilkins and Zach Sieler tackling Allen for a 2-yard sack.

-- Tyler Bass' 33-yard field goal made it 17-0 with 12;46 left in the first half.

-- The Dolphins caught on a break on the ensuing kickoff when Bass kicked ball out of bounds, giving them the ball at their 40.

-- Thompson had his best series of the game, with a completion of 20 yards to Durham Smythe and 19 yards to Tyreek Hill after the play broke down. The completion to Hill converted a third-and-19.

-- For the first time in the game, the Buffalo pass rush became a problem and Thompson was sacked twice on the series.

-- Oh, and it wouldn't be a Dolphins possession without a dropped pass, this one by running back Jeff Wilson Jr. The only consolation there was that it came on third-and-16 and he wouldn't have come close to the first down anyway.

-- Jason Sanders ended the drive with a 40-yard field goal to cut the Dolphins deficit to 17-3.

-- Buffalo moved close to midfield on its next possession before Allen went for a deep shot to John Brown. Xavien Howard got the ball instead and his 49-yard return gave the Dolphins the ball at the Buffalo 49.

-- Josh Allen and Christian Wilkins did some shoving on the INT return before Buffalo players intervened. A penalty was called on each team.

-- The Dolphins took a gamble on fourth-and-7 from the Bills 46, and Jeff Wilson made it pay off when he took a check-down pass and made All-Pro linebacker Matt Milano in the open field on his way to a 13-yard gain.

-- A false-start penalty on Robert Jones helped the drive stall before Jason Sanders kicked a 48-yard field goal to make it 17-6.

-- The Dolphins defense then produced a three-and-out after Wilkins and Sieler split another sack and Shakir dropped what should have been a long completion on third down.

-- Cedrick Wilson Jr. then came up with the first long punt return of the season for the Dolphins to put them at the Buffalo 27.

-- The Dolphins had to settle for a 37-yard field goal to make it 17-9 after a false start by Robert Hunt and a bad throw outside by Thompson on third-and-2. While there's no issue here with the decision, at some point the Dolphins aren't going to have to stop settling for field goals.

-- The defense came up with another huge play when Kader Kohou tipped a pass intended for Cole Beasley and Jevon Holland came up with the interception.

-- The Dolphins cashed in the turnover with a 7-yard TD pass to Mike Gesicki, followed by Thompson zipping a pass to Tyreek Hill for the two-point conversion.

-- And, just like that, the score was tied 17-17.

-- Buffalo came right back, with Gabe Davis getting behind Keion Crossen and catching a 33-yard pass from Allen.

-- Another pass to Davis, this one for 17 yards with Allen on the move, put the Bills in field goal range.

-- Bass hit a 39-yard field goal to give Buffalo a 20-17 halftime lead. While it was disappointing to give up the late field goal, the Dolphins very much are in this game after looking like they were going to get blown out.

THIRD QUARTER

-- The second half begins with a quick three-and-out for the Dolphins offense, with back-to-back incompletions partly as the result of pressure on Thompson.

-- On the first play of Buffalo's first drive of the second half, the Dolphins take the lead when safety Eric Rowe comes in free on a blitz and forces an Allen fumble. Zach Sieler picks up the ball inside the 10-yard line and gets into the end zone and suddenly the Dolphins are up 24-20.

-- A 13-yard run on the next possession gives Buffalo the ball at midfield, but Jevon Holland does a great job to break up a pass on second down and Christian Wilkins got in the passing lane to force an overthrow on third down.

-- The Dolphins get the ball back with a chance to build on their four-point lead, but instead go three-and-out.

-- On first down, Waddle is unable to make a catch on another deep pass after safety Dane Johnson gets his hand on the ball. It's a tough catch, but one that wasn't impossible.

-- On third down, linebacker Tremaine Edmonds gets his fingertips on a deep throw over the middle to Mike Gesicki, who can't adjust as the ball goes right through his arms.

-- Jaelan Phillips comes up with a great sequence on Buffalo's next drive to force a three-and-out.

-- On first down, Phillips sets the edge and drops James Cook for a 5-yard loss on a running play. On second down, his pressure force Allen to check down to Knox for only a 3-yard gain.

-- The Dolphins again get the ball back with a chance to pad their lead, but this drive is even worse than the previous one.

-- Salvon Ahmed is dropped for a 2-yard loss on first down and then Thompson is sacked for minus-7, making it third-and-19 from the Miami 8.

-- This might be the time to play it conservatively, but instead Thompson throws downfield down the left sideline for Trent Sherfield. The pass is into coverage and cornerback Kaiir Elam jumps in front of him to make the pick and give Buffalo the ball at the Miami 33.

-- On third-and-8 at the Miami 18, the Bills catch the Dolphins off guard with a quarterback draw. By the time Phillips recognizes the play, Allen already is past him on his way to a 12-yard gain and a first-and-goal at the 6.

-- On first-and-goal, Allen throws a quick pass to Cole Beasley in the slot in a sea of rub routes and it turns into an easy touchdown and a 27-24 Buffalo lead.

-- The Dolphins' next drive fizzles with three straight incompletions after a first down and the Bills muff the ensuing punt, though they're able to recover the loose ball.

-- After a first down, the Dolphins get the Bills in a third-and-6 from their 48, but Beasley easily beats Kader Kohou in the middle of the field with a quick hesitation move and he YACs the play for a 29-yard gain.

-- On the next play, Gabe Davis gets behind Rowe and Allen hits him with a perfect pass in the corner of the end zone for a 23-yard touchdown and a 34-24 lead.

-- It's looking now like the Bills are about to run away with the game.

-- Thompson throws a nice pass to the sideline for a 12-yard completion and one play later White is flagged for DPI to bring the ball to midfield.

-- The quarter ends with an incompletion that will leave the Dolphins facing a second-and-10.

FOURTH QUARTER

--  The quarter begins with a 14-yard completion to Cedrick Wilson Jr. and is followed by two big plays by Salvon Ahmed on short passes, one he turns into a 12-yard gain, the other into a 20-yard pick-up after Thompson gets sacked.

-- Waddle makes his first big play of the game when he takes an end-around 8 yards to the 1-yard line, setting up Jeff Wilson Jr.'s 1-yard touchdown.

-- After the 11-play, 75-yard touchdown drive, the Dolphins are very much still in it now down 34-31.

-- The defense builds on the touchdown with a three-and-out, thanks to great coverage by Kohou deep on Gabe Davis on first down and Zach Sieler bringing down Allen for a sack on third down.

-- With their chance to take the lead, the Dolphins do nothing on their next drive after a run for no gain by Wilson, an incompletion and a 5-yard completion to Waddle.

-- Facing fourth-and-5 from the Miami 38, head coach Mike McDaniel makes the decision to punt. While we'd sometimes advocate being aggressive, this is the right call.

-- Starting at their own 10, the Bills move to midfield when Allen throws a 31-yard completion to Shakir on third-and-1. It's a great catch by Shakir, who also might have gotten away with a little push-off on Kohou before making the over-the-head catch.

-- The defense stiffens, though, with Elijah Campbell tackling Allen in the open field for a sack on second down and Bradley Chubb bringing him down for a 9-yard sack on third down. Allen fumbles on the second sack, but the Bills are able to recover.

-- The Dolphins get the ball back at their 14 for what will be their final shot.

-- Two incompletions leave the Dolphins in a third-and-10, which they convert when Thompson throws a pretty pass near the right sideline to Waddle for a 25-yard gain to the 39.

-- But that play comes after the Dolphins call their third timeout of the half to avoid a delay-of-game penalty. This will become huge very shortly.

-- On first down, Robert Jones commits the fourth false-start penalty of the game by the Dolphins.

-- After an incompletion, Thompson throws to Waddle over the middle and he turns a short gain into a 14-yard pick-up, setting up a third-and-1.

-- It's a very long 1 yard to pick up, and the Dolphins decide to have Ahmed run up the middle even with Buffalo having 10 defenders in the box. Ahmed does a good job of trying to slither through an opening in the middle, but comes up just short of the first down.

-- It's now fourth-and-1 (less than a yard actually) and the game hangs in the balance.

-- Even with the officials resetting the play clock after it had reached 16 seconds, the Dolphins still run out of time — which actually is a blessing in disguise because Ahmed is thrown for a loss on the play that didn't count.

-- The problem now is that it's fourth-and-6 and quick pressure from Boogie Basham after he gets past right tackle Robert Hunt flushes Thompson out of the pocket. Rolling to his right, Thompson doesn't get much on his throw and Elam breaks up the pass intended for Mike Gesicki.

-- The ball goes over to Buffalo on downs, and the best-case scenario for the Dolphins because they're out of timeouts becomes getting the ball back again with about 30 seconds left deep in their own territory — if they can get a three-and-out.

-- This looks like it's about to happen when they have the Bills in a third-and-7, but a group of defenders can't bring down Devin Singletary after they initially stop him and his push gets him the first down, which leaves Josh Allen to take a knee to end the Buffalo victory.

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