CINCINNATI, OHIO – AUGUST 29: Brian Flores the head coach of the Miami Dolphins against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium on August 29, 2021 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
In Week 2, the Miami Dolphins could make an unexpected splash against 2020 AFC East powerhouse the Buffalo Bills on their home turf.
Last season, the NFL world was all too ready to snatch the AFC East crown from the New England Patriots dynasty and award it to their longtime underdog rival, the Buffalo Bills.
While the Buffalo Bills were certainly the AFC East team to beat last year — they made it all the way to the AFC Championship for the first time in 26 years — their dominance isn’t all that certain with an emerging Miami Dolphins pod.
The Bills are given the benefit of the doubt in hosting the Dolphins at home as they enter the week with a predicted 3.5-point edge over their opposition, but the narrow win could just as easily sway the other way.
Here are five bold predictions that would give 2021’s rising AFC East star a win over last year’s divisional king.
5. Tua Tagovailoa throws for 300+ yards
This prediction is a bold one, as the second-year quarterback only threw for 202 yards against the Patriots last week and averaged 181.4 yards per game last season.
However, Tagovailoa’s NFL record for yards per game is 361 — and it was scored against the Bills in Week 17 last season.
During that game, Tagovailoa 35 passes on a whopping 58 attempts, something he was able to accomplish facing a porous Bills defense. The only other time Tagovailoa racked up 300+ yards in his rookie season was against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 14.
It should be noted that last season, Tagovailoa shared play calling duties with veteran passer Ryan Fitzpatrick, who was benched in favor of the rookie in a shocking mid-season decision. With Fitzpatrick now signed to the Washington Football Team, Tagovailoa has more opportunity than ever before.
It’s also true that Tagovailoa threw for so many yards agains the Bills last year because it was during garbage time in a 56-26 beatdown. However, the 300+ yard Chiefs game was much closer, as the Dolphins only lost by six points.
Tagovailoa’s career completion percentage isn’t great — he’s just averaging 63.7 over NFL 11 games — but if he gets the opportunity for high-volume passing like he did last season, he could potentially go for another 300 versus the Bills this week.