ORCHARD PARK, NY — Josh Allen shrugged as he threw two touchdown passes 3-11 apart in the third quarter and leveled the Buffalo Bills to a 34-31 win over the injury-struggling Miami Dolphins in an AFC Wild – Map matchup on Sunday.
Cole Beasley scored the go-ahead touchdown with a 6-yard catch, and Gabe Davis extended the lead to 34-24 with a 23-yard TD reception in a game where Buffalo had an early 17-0 -Leadership wasted.
The Bills defense, forcing six punts and two turnovers, then held on to secure the win as Miami flipped the ball to downs on their last possession.
Rookie Skylar Thompson’s pass for fourth and sixth went just past the fingertips of tight end Mike Gesicki with 2:22 left.
Buffalo was able to time the clock when Devin Singletary prevailed for a 7-yard gain to convert a third-and-7.
It was a sloppy game between two division rivals, and the result settled after Miami and Buffalo split their regular-season streak into games decided by a combined five points. The Dolphins defeated Buffalo 21-19 in Miami in September, while the Bills defeated Miami 32-29 last month.
Allen finished 23 of 39 for 352 yards and three TDs but also threw two interceptions, resulting in the Dolphins scoring 10 points. He also lost a fumble when he was released by Eric Rowe, with Zach Sieler recapturing the ball and returning it 5 yards for a touchdown to put Miami 24-20 ahead just 61 seconds into the third quarter.
“It’s a week-long season, that’s it,” Allen said. “All that matters is surviving and moving forward.”
As the AFC runners-up, Buffalo advances to host either the third-ranked Cincinnati Bengals or fourth-ranked Jacksonville Jaguars in the divisional round. Their matchup will be decided after the Bengals host Baltimore on Sunday night.
A matchup between the Bills and Bengals would come two weeks after their game was canceled when Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest and had to be resuscitated on the field.
Hamlin was with the team in spirit as he live-tweeted during the game from home, where he is continuing to recover. A message Hamlin posted to his Twitter account about an hour before kick-off read: “My heart goes out to my boys as they compete today! … I want nothing more than to be out there with them.”
Hamlin, 24, was discharged from a Buffalo hospital on Wednesday and visited with his teammates at the Bills facility on Saturday.
Source link: https://nypost.com/2023/01/15/bills-survive-dolphins-scare-with-rally-to-win-afc-wild-card-game/
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