3 Takeaways From Dolphins' Week 3 Win vs. Bills

Talk about a statement win for the Miami Dolphins. If they still had any skeptics after their impressive comeback victory over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2, their Week 3 outcome should quiet them.

On Sunday, the Dolphins improved to 3-0 by pulling out a 21-19 win over the Buffalo Bills, which had been impressive while winning their first two games of the year. It's the first time Miami has opened a season with three straight victories since 2018.

Chase Edmonds' second touchdown run of the day gave the Dolphins a 21-17 lead with 10 minutes and five seconds to go in the fourth quarter. And even though Buffalo dominated the time of possession (40:40 to 19:20) and had 497 total yards, Miami eked out the win.

Here are three takeaways from the Dolphins' Week 3 victory.

Things almost fell apart for the Dolphins in the closing minutes.

With 1:33 to go, Thomas Morstead's punt hit off the backside of Miami teammate Trent Sherfield and out of the end zone for a safety, which cut the Bills' deficit to 21-19. Buffalo then took over at its own 23-yard line with 1:25 remaining, only needing a field goal to win.

However, the Dolphins' defense stepped up, even though the Bills had moved the ball at will for much of the day. Buffalo went 36 yards on seven plays, but it ran out of time. Josh Allen's 12-yard pass to Isaiah McKenzie got the Bills to Miami's 41-yard line, but the wide receiver didn't get out of bounds and time ran out.

"I don’t like these shock endings,” Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters. “But I'm just really, really happy for the team because this much I do know: Teams win football games, and if you are going to have success over the long haul, you have to have confidence that whatever phase can win a football game for you, can go ahead and do that."

Allen completed 42 of his 63 passing attempts while throwing for 400 yards and two touchdowns, but he and the Bills didn't score on any of their final three drives. The Dolphins forced a crucial turnover on downs when Buffalo failed to convert on a 4th-and-goal at the Miami 2-yard line with 1:49 to go.

So even if the overall numbers weren't great, the Dolphins' defense came through when it had to.

Edmonds scored two rushing touchdowns, marking the first two times he's gotten into the end zone this season. But that was the only positive for the Dolphins' run game on Sunday.

Raheem Mostert had a team-high eight carries, but he ran for only 11 yards. Meanwhile, Edmonds had only 21 yards on his six rushing attempts. As a team, Miami had 17 carries for 41 yards, which averages out to only 2.4 yards per rush.

The Dolphins are averaging only 64 rushing yards per game. That's the second fewest in the NFL behind only the Los Angeles Chargers (59).

For now, Miami has won games despite not being able to establish its rushing attack. It's helped that the passing offense has put up some big numbers. And on Sunday, the Dolphins also didn't have the ball a ton, so there weren't many opportunities to run.

However, it could help take Miami to another level if it can get Mostert and Edmonds to play up to potential and form a solid two-headed rushing attack that could be difficult for opposing defenses to stop.

It doesn't matter how it looked. The Dolphins picked up a win over the Bills, which were pegged by many as the Super Bowl favorite heading into the season. And Miami is now one of only two 3-0 teams in the NFL, along with the Philadelphia Eagles. (The New York Giants could join them on Monday night.)

The McDaniel era is off to a superb start, as the first-year head coach has yet to lose a game. The Dolphins made some impact additions over the offseason (most notably wide receiver Tyreek Hill), and those moves are paying off on the field.

Over the first two weeks, Buffalo outscored the Los Angeles Rams and Tennessee Titans 72-17 during its 2-0 start. It looked much more beatable Sunday, and sure enough, it suffered its first defeat.

There are still 15 weeks to go in the regular season, and these two AFC East rivals will meet again in Buffalo in Week 15, a matchup that could easily go the other way.

For now, though, the Dolphins are atop the division, and they're proving they're going to be a dangerous team throughout the year.