Picture the normally raucous Buffalo Bills fans, affectionately known as “Bills Mafia,” frothing with playoff madness. Now combine that passion with one of the best stories the NFL has ever seen in the recovery of Bills safety Damar Hamlin, and you get an almost unfathomable wave of electricity for Sunday’s wild-card game.
In other words, Highmark Stadium, which hosts Sunday’s 1 p.m. playoff between the Dolphins and Bills, is going to be crazy.
Expect noise, expect energy, expect a super-charged, highly-emotional environment.
This is what awaits the Dolphins and rookie coach Mike McDaniel, who are two-touchdown underdogs in the franchise’s first playoff appearance since the 2016 season.
It’s been an emotional few months in Buffalo among a supermarket mass shooting in May, a December snowstorm that left more than two dozen dead, and the Hamlin incident, which has grabbed national attention. Amid all of that was a November blizzard that caused the Bills to move a home game against the Cleveland Browns to Detroit.
Fans, some of whom might have been around in the 1990s when the Bills lost four consecutive Super Bowls, want to release their pent-up emotion in a loud, positive, enthusiastic, butt-kicking way.
Victory was already going to be tough for the Dolphins, who snuck into the playoffs with a 9-8 record. They’re starting rookie quarterback Skylar Thompson, the seventh-round pick from Kansas State, against the powerhouse Bills (13-3), the AFC’s second seed and a Super Bowl favorite.
But add the emotion of Hamlin, who was given CPR on the field a few weeks ago in Cincinnati and recently discharged from the hospital, exciting the entire nation, and, well, the Dolphins are facing some tough sledding.
Tough, but not impossible.
Odd as it sounds, the Dolphins do have a path to victory for what would be one of the biggest playoff upsets in recent memory, regardless of the sport.
If the Dolphins could get a few big plays from All Pro wide receiver Tyreek Hill (119 receptions, 1,710 yards, seven touchdowns this season) and fellow wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (75 receptions, 1,356 yards, eight touchdowns), and a few big plays from the defense, they could pull off the upset.
This is a big-play offense.
The Dolphins have nine passing touchdowns of 29 or more yards, and 36 passing plays of 25 or more yards. Hill and Waddle are the big-play artists. Waddle has 16 plays of 25 or more yards, and Hill has 14 plays of 25 yards or more. So they are possible, if not likely.
Defensively, big-play opportunities should be there, too.
After all, Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen has 15 interceptions this season, tied for No. 2 in the league. Additionally, his 13 fumbles were No. 2 in the league, and his five lost fumbles were tied for second in the league.
McDaniel didn’t endorse the big-play strategy. All he’d say is the Dolphins have to play the Bills as a team, as opposed to trying to outscore their defense or limit Allen.
“I think it’s kind of a dangerous game if you try to start chasing points on the road with a juiced up crowd and a defense that thrives on turnovers, so it’s a balance,” he said.
“But the bottom line is if you’re trying to compete with a with a team like that, that’s earned their home-field advantage in the playoffs, you have to try to compete with them as a team and not phases. Otherwise, you’ll end up wishing the existence you’re trying to avoid.”
The Dolphins defeated Buffalo, 21-19, at Hard Rock Stadium in September, and lost a hard-fought game at Highmark Stadium in December, 32-29.
Of course, the Dolphins had quarterback Tua Tagovailoa for both of those games, and Tagovailoa will miss Sunday’s game while still in the concussion protocol.
And that’s just the start of an injury list that has knocked running back Raheem Mostert (thumb) out of the game and could claim as many as three starting offensive linemen, including Pro Bowl left tackle Terron Armstead (toe/pectoral/knee/hip).
Still, there’s hope, albeit slim hope.
One of the Dolphins’ main paths to victory is limiting Allen, the Bills Pro Bowl quarterback, which, of course, is extremely tough.
“Their offense kind of revolves around him and obviously they’ve got other pieces that can hit you with the home run as well,” Dolphins linebacker Jaelan Phillips said, “but being able to contain Josh is going to be a huge part of our game plan, for sure.”
Regardless, the big picture key for the Dolphins will likely be keeping the game low-scoring, controlling the time of possession by effectively running the ball, playing sound defense, and being strong in special teams.
If that sounds familiar, that’s because it’s what the Dolphins did in last week’s 11-6 victory over the New York Jets.
Whatever strategy the Dolphins use, they’ll be battling a spirited crowd at Highmark Stadium. The juice derived from Hamlin’s improving outlook, big playoff expectations, and some fairly good weather (high temperature of 33 degrees with one inch of snow) figure to provide one heck of a home field advantage.
The Dolphins experienced a highly charged Highmark Stadium last month on a snowy Saturday night that featured fans pelting the Dolphins with snowballs throughout the game. The Dolphins are expecting an even more charged situation Sunday.
“The last time we were up there was a great atmosphere, so I would expect it to be some of the same,” defensive line coach Austin Clark said, before adding, “Hopefully no snowballs this time.”
