Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills NFL Preview and Odds
The Miami Dolphins were in playoff contention a week ago. But after a 37-3 debacle at home against the not-so-great Tennessee Titans, not so much anymore. The Dolphins are now 4-5, two games back in the AFC Wild Card race and fading after two straight losses. They won't have much time for wound-licking as they will go up north to face the Buffalo Bills on Thursday night.
History
Buffalo is coming off a near win against the New England Patriots, but at 3-6, they are now just playing out the string. But if they play as well as they did last Sunday when they went in a 11 point underdog and nearly won on the road, they will give Miami a problem.
The Dolphins-Bills rivalry goes all the way back to the 1960s. Miami dominated the rivalry in the 1970s, at one point winning 20 straight against Buffalo. In the 1990s, the games often had playoff implications, and even sometimes the two met in the playoffs as well. In 1992, the two teams met in Miami in the AFC Championship game which Buffalo won 29-10 to advance to their third consecutive Super Bowl. I was at that game. It was not for children. Several fights broke out in the stands as many Miami fans wore t-shirts with the picture of a dolphin "having its way" with a buffalo.
The rivalry is Buffalo's most bitter rival according to Bills fans. Many Miami fans would likely agree. Others might say it is the New York Jets. The two cities involved could not be more different. Buffalo is cold, snowy, blue collar, tough. Miami is warm, sunny, glitzy, laid back and diverse. But the two teams were put into the same division and have been playing twice a year for nearly 45 years. They do not like each other. Miami leads the all time series 55-36-1. Buffalo has won three of four postseason meetings.
Our Pick
Bodog has the Dolphins at +1.5. Pinnacle has Miami +1 2.040 or 2.080. Buffalo is -1 1.885 or 1.840. Over/under is 46.
This is a tough game to call because these two are so up and down. Both have looked tough at times, and other times have just been terrible. With Miami it is a bit understandable since they are starting a rookie at quarterback. Ryan Tannehill has looked really good some weeks, but he is still no very consistent.
The Bills have a porous defense. But sometimes their offense is able to keep up pretty well. But other times it does not which results in a blowout loss. Both teams have been on the receiving end of some big losses, so it would be no surprise if this game gets out of hand. The problem is, it could happen to either side.
It would be easy to pick the team that played better last week, which would be the Bills. With them being at home, it makes them even more attractive. But we are going to go with the Dolphins straight up. We will also pick the Over.
