The second week of NFL action is in the books, which means that it is now also time for the second AFC East Report of this year’s regular season — and to look back at what happened in the New England Patriots’ division over the weekend. So, without any further ado, let’s dive straight in.
1. Buffalo Bills (2-0)
Week 2: 31-28 win against the Miami Dolphins, in Miami Gardens FL
Two weeks into the season, only one AFC East team remains unbeaten: as opposed to the other three clubs in the division, the Bills were able to leave Week 2 with a victory after defeating the Dolphins in Miami by three points — a game that was close through three quarters but eventually saw Buffalo pull away late to secure its second victory in a row.
The game started with the two teams exchanging punts before Bills quarterback Josh Allen led his unit on a massive 11-play drive that covered 97 yards and ended with a 1-yard quarterback pass to fullback Reggie Gilliam. Buffalo’s defense, however, was unable to prevent Miami from tying the game on the very next series. The Bills responded with the game’s first turnover: following a 38-yard catch-and-run, tight end Dawson Knox lost the football with the Dolphins recovering. This time, however, Buffalo’s defense held and forced a punt after just three plays.
While the field position battle was developing in Miami’s favor at that point, Allen and company again answered in style by going on an 84-yard drive that included a 46-yard pass to Isaiah McKenzie and was capped by a 22-yard scoring pass from Allen to Stefon Diggs. One drive later, the Bills increased their lead to 10 points thanks to a Tyler Bass field goal. The first half not yet over, however, Miami was able to add three points of its own after the two teams again traded punts.
Quarter number three began for the Bills with a defensive series that lasted all but two plays before the game was suspended for 36 minutes due to lightning in the area. When play resumed, unit allowed Miami to drive to another field goal. Buffalo’s offense, meanwhile, failed to build on its previous momentum and had to punt the ball back with the defense then allowing Miami to drive all the way up to its 1-yard line. What followed was an impressive goal line stand and a turnover on downs.
The Bills, however, were not able to keep the Dolphins out of the end zone for good: the home team took a 20-17 lead on its next possession. Despite being down three points midway through the final period, Buffalo was able to take control of the game at that point: back-to-back scoring drives capped by Josh Allen touchdown passes — one to Gabriel Davis, the other to John Brown — put the club up 31-20 with only three minutes left.
While the Dolphins were able to add another touchdown plus two-point conversion to their total, Micah Hyde recovering the ensuing onside kick sealed the deal for the Bills.
To watch highlights of the game, click here.
2. New England Patriots (1-1)
Week 2: 35-30 loss against the Seattle Seahawks, in Seattle WA
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To watch highlights of the game, click here.
t-3. Miami Dolphins (0-2)
Week 2: 31-28 loss against the Buffalo Bills, in Miami Gardens FL
One week after losing in New England, the Dolphins played another solid overall game but eventually were unable to hang with one of the AFC’s top teams at the end: the Bills visited Hard Rock Stadium and beat Brian Flores’ squad by a field goal — forcing Miami to start the season 0-2 for the second year in a row.
The game did start well for Flores’ team, at least initially: it forced a quick punt on the opening drive. However, Ryan Fitzpatrick and the offense failed to do any better which in turn set up the first touchdown of the day when the Dolphins’ defense allowed the Bills to drive 97 yards in 11 plays — including two conversions on third down. Miami was able to fight back, however, and scored a touchdown of its own when Fitzpatrick capped a 75-yard series with a 2-yard pass to DeVante Parker.
The very next play saw momentum shift even further the Dolphins’ way when Kyle Van Noy forced a fumble that was recovered by first-round rookie Noah Igbinoghene. Unfortunately, Miami’s offense was able to make just three plays and a punt out of the takeaway. To make matters worse, the defense then allowed the Bills to a) drive 84 yards in just five plays to retake the lead, and b) add three more points one possession later.
When Fitzpatrick got the ball back after a series of punts, only 33 second were left on the clock in the first half. The veteran quarterback made the most out of them, however, and drove his team 41 yards in five plays to set up a 52-yard Jason Sanders field goal.
Coming out of the half down seven points, Miami ran two plays before the aforementioned lightning delay. After the break, the team picked up where it left off in the first half by moving the ball well but eventually having to rely on Sanders to put points on the board — something that the team failed to do on its next possession despite having four plays to punch the football in from the 1-yard line. Two runs for no gain and two incomplete passes doomed the series.
Miami had more luck after a quick three-and-out: starting in Buffalo territory, the team drove 44 yards in 10 plays to take a 20-17 lead when Jordan Howard broke the plane from two yards out. The lead lasted only four minutes, though, before the Bills scored another touchdown to go up 24-20. This time, the Dolphins failed to respond and instead had to watch their rivals add another touchdown with only three minutes left in the game.
Fitzpatrick did drive the Dolphins down the field in a hurry, but there were only 54 seconds left when he hit Mike Gesicki for an 8-yard touchdown to cut the lead to five points. The ensuing successful two-point try increased Miami’s chances to eventually tie the contest after all, but Buffalo recovering the onside kick that followed ended the game.
To watch highlights of the game, click here.
t-3. New York Jets (0-2)
Week 2: 31-13 loss against the San Francisco 49ers, in East Rutherford NJ
The Jets may have lost their season opener in Buffalo, but at least they played some competitive football at time — something that cannot be said about their first home game of the season: despite the 49ers being getting hit with major high-profile injuries across the board, Adam Gase’s team was never able to hang with the reigning NFC champions. Instead, New York was blown out, with the first play of the game a sign of things to come.
Following the Jets’ kickoff and a return to the San Francisco 20-yard line, the team’s defense lined up to stop 49ers running back Raheem Mostert. It couldn’t. Mostert took the football 80 yards for a touchdown to give his club a 7-0 lead with only 17 ticks off the clock. New York, meanwhile, was unable to get going before putting three points on the board itself late in the first quarter on a 41-yard Sam Ficken field goal — a point at which the visitors had lost two of their starting defensive linemen to season-ending injury.
And yet, the 49ers rolled along no problem. While they had a 67-yard rushing touchdown called back because of penalty, they eventually did increase their lead to 14-3 early in the second period. New York responded by driving into San Francisco territory but coming up short on 4th-and-1. San Francisco, meanwhile, marched 80 yards in 13 plays to increase its lead to 18 points before the end of the first half.
The second period started with Sam Darnold and the Jets offense going three-and-out, before making way for a 49ers offense led no longer by Jimmy Garoppolo but — because of an ankle injury suffered by the starter — backup Nick Mullens. The change in quarterback did not result in a change of momentum, however, and San Francisco went on another scoring drive that included a 55-yard run on 3rd-and-31 and ended with a field goal to put the team up 24-3.
It took for Mullens to throw an interception to Jets linebacker Pierrre Desir for the home team to finally get in position to add points to the scoreboard again: five plays after the pick, Ficken’s second field goal of the day decreased the home team’s deficit to 18 points. The game, however, was very much over at this point anyway with New York’s offense struggling and the defense unable to make plays against a decimated opponent.
With 10:30 left in the contest, San Francisco scored another touchdown. New York then turned the football over on downs before the two clubs exchanged punts. Then, finally, with 1:33 left in the ballgame, Sam Darnold hit ex-Patriot Braxton Berrios for a 30-yard touchdown — probably the highlight of the Jets’ day.
Sitting at 0-2, however, the team might still be the worst in the NFL at this point in time.
To watch highlights of the game, click here.