Miami thoroughly controls the game and embarrasses Bills. by Steve Saslow Dec. 3, 2000 In a game that was a must win for the Bills, they were dominated thoroughly from the outset as Miami crushed Buffalo 33-6. The loss officially eliminates the Bills from the division title hunt and it puts a dagger in the heart of their playoff chances. There is not much to right about in this game. Miami took the opening kickoff and moved 74 yards with ease to a 6 yard touchdown pass on a screen that gave Miami a quick 7-0 lead. That was just the start of what would be a very long day for the Buffalo Bills. Miami offensively had little trouble moving the ball at will against the overmatched, banged up Bills defense. Lamar Smith had success on the ground early running right at Corey Moore. Later in the first half Jay Fielder had success through the air, constantly burning the defense with misdirection screen passes mixed in with long passes. The Miami offense built a 24-0 lead in the first half based on success in the red zone and had three easy touchdown drives. They also had a field goal sandwiched in between the touchdowns that was setup by one of two Rob Johnson interceptions. His other pick was in the Miami end zone on the Bills opening drive that was suppose to answer Miami's quick drive to start the game. Johnson had his worst game as a pro throwing for only 44 yards before giving way to Doug Flutie late in the third quarter. Flutie had no success either as the Bills were held to a paltry 36 yards passing for the entire game. The running backs picked this game to come alive as the Bills gained 160 yards on the ground but were forced to abandon the running game because of the huge early deficit. Shawn Bryson was one of only two bright spots for the Bills as he had a Bills season high 88 yards rushing. The other bright spot was the two sacks by Marcellus Wiley. This was as bad a loss as you can get. The Bills had to have this game and were flat. The injuries hurt but they weren't the difference as they were dominated on both sides of the ball. It was one of the worst home losses in the past 15 years. How they could come out with no fire, and be outplayed like that in such an important game is beyond comprehension. The Bills will need to sweep their last three games and get lots of help just to have a chance at the playoffs at this point. The way they played today they don't deserve to be there. When Christmas hits and the Bills season is over we will be able to look back and see a team that has grown over the year and built a stepping stone for the future. This week however, they took a major tumble backwards. Gameballs Goats Really the whole team deserves goats, but some were worse than others, so besides a goat for the whole team, here's some individual goats: Player Of The Week Positional Breakdown and Grades NFL.com Gamebook - Complete stats including play by play (requires Acrobat Reader) Dolphins Game Preview 2000 Gameday Section 2001 Gameday Section Back to Bills Daily main page 2000 Articles Index |