Report Card: Bills' win over the Dolphins wasn't flawless, but special teams get high marks

Grading the Buffalo Bills in their 30-27 victory over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday at Highmark Stadium ...

Running game: C+ It was a tough start for the running game.

A second-and-6 carry by James Cook on the Bills second offensive play was stuffed for a 1-yard loss, setting up a third-and-7 that resulted in an incomplete pass.

The Dolphins were all over a quarterback sweep by Josh Allen on a third-and-3 play in the first quarter inside the red zone on Buffalos second drive, stuffing it for a 7-yard loss that caused the Bills to settle for a field goal.

Cook, who finished with 10 carries for 44 yards, had a long run of 13 yards in the second quarter that moved the ball inside the red zone.

Rookie Ray Davis had four carries for 20 yards, while Ty Johnson rushed three times for 23 yards, with a long gain of 17.

Allen scrambled for 14 yards to convert a third-and-13 play in the second quarter.

Later on the same drive, he had a 21-yard scramble for a touchdown erased by a bogus holding penalty against OCyrus Torrence.

The rushing attack was most impressive on Buffalos opening touchdown drive in the third quarter, gaining 39 yards on six carries.

Passing game: B Rookie Keon Coleman made a bad play in the second quarter, letting a Josh Allen pass go through his hands on a slant route.

Had he made the catch, Coleman might have scored a touchdown.

Instead, Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey was there to intercept the ball Allens second interception of the season and second in as many weeks.

Allen was uncharacteristically off, seeming to come up short on several attempts.

Nevertheless, he beat the Dolphins for the 13th time in 15 career starts, improving to 8-0 at home.

In 12 of those 15 games, the Bills have scored at least 30 points.

Miami fans have to feel the way Bills fans felt when Tom Brady was leading the Patriots for all those years.

Allen finished 25 of 39 or 235 yards and three touchdowns, all of which came in the second half.

Injuries loom large at the receiver position, as Amari Cooper missed Sunday's game and Coleman left in the fourth quarter.

Khalil Shakir caught six of his seven targets for 50 yards, while Mack Hollins caught all five of his targets for 30 yards and a touchdown.

Dalton Kincaid was targeted a game-high 10 times but made just four catches for 32 yards.

Safety Taylor Rapp and the Bills defense held Dolphins star wide receiver Tyreek Hill to four catches Sunday.

Run defense: D The Dolphins definitively won the battle in the trenches, rushing 31 times for 149 yards.

Frankly, it felt like more than that, as Miami ball carriers consistently had big holes to run through.

DeVon Achane gained 63 yards on 12 carries and scored a touchdown, and Raheem Mostert added 56 yards on 10 carries.

Mostert, however, had a costly miscue when he fumbled on the opening drive of the third quarter.

Nickel cornerback Taron Johnson forced the fumble and Kaiir Elam recovered the key takeaway.

Safety Taylor Rapp dropped Mostert for a 1-yard loss on a third-and-1 run play in the first quarter, forcing the Dolphins to attempt a 39-yard field goal.

Elam also had a tackle for loss in run support, as did defensive end Greg Rousseau.

The Bills got just one tackle from Ed Oliver and two from Austin Johnson.

Defensive tackles Eli Ankou and DaQuan Jones did not make any tackles.

Linebacker Dorian Williams was active for the Bills with a game-high 12 tackles.

Pass defense: C- It wasn't with the dominance we've become accustomed to around here when the Buffalo Bills play the Miami Dolphins, but Josh Allen and Co.

found a way Sunday thanks to the unlikeliest of heroes.

Bills kicker Tyler Bass made a career-long 61-yard field goal with 5 seconds remaining, giving the home team a wild 30-27 victory on a cool, sunny afternoon at Highmark Stadium.

The Bills got just one sack, from Rousseau, and it came on a play in which Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa dropped the snap.

Tagovailoa threw just three incompletions, going 25 of 28 for 231 yards and two touchdowns, and one of those was a throwaway on a busted play.

Rasul Douglas was credited with a pass defensed in the first quarter on a ball intended for Tyreek Hill.

It ended up being the Bills only pass defensed of the game.

Hill finished with four catches for a game-high 80 yards.

He had receptions of 28 and 27 yards in the third quarter Miamis only 20-plus yard completions in the game.

Given how explosive he is, the Bills did a fair job against him, especially considering cornerback Christian Benford was out of the game.

Elam seemed to hold up pretty well in his first start.

Special teams: A Admit it: You were getting ready for overtime or perhaps worrying about what the Dolphins might do on the final play of regulation before Tyler Bass drilled his 61-yarder.

You wouldnt have been wrong to think that way, given Bass season-long struggles.

Considering those, its one of the more remarkable kicks in franchise history.

Outside of Bass missed extra point, the Bills were good on special teams.

Sam Martins only punt went 49 yards, and Cam Lewis was there to bury Dolphins returner Malik Washington for a loss of 1 yard on the play.

Bass made a pair of field goals in the first half from 40 and 49 yards.

Brandon Codringtons only punt return went for 29 yards.

Coaching: B Sean McDermott lost a challenge in the fourth quarter.

At first glance, it seemed to be a bad idea to challenge the play, as Tagovailoa appeared to easily have gained the necessary 4 yards for a first down on a fourth-and-4 scramble to the Bills 21-yard line.

However, after viewing the replay, McDermotts flag wasnt a bad idea.

Tagovailoa dove forward on the play, and in the NFL, when a runner does that, hes determined to have given himself up.

When that determination is made, the runner is down at that point, regardless of where he is touched by the defense.

Tagovailoas shin appeared to be down very close to the 21-yard line.

The Bills didnt win the challenge, but it was a worthwhile attempt by McDermott.

The Bills did have to use a defensive timeout in the second quarter, and that might have impacted how they approached their final drive of the first half, which ended with a field goal instead of a touchdown.

The Bills were penalized just four times for 40 yards, and at least three of them seemed to be bad calls.

That was a big improvement in that category.

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