Bills vs. Dolphins Week 3 snap count analysis

How ‘bout them Buffalo Bills? After defeating the Miami Dolphins, 31-21, on Thursday Night Football at Highmark Stadium, the Bills find themselves as the only 3-0 team in the NFL with three extra days of rest heading into Week 4. Buffalo has now won 10 straight games against Miami when playing at Highmark Stadium.

Entering Week 3, three of the previous games in Orchard Park, NY between these teams were decided by three or fewer points, so Miami’s double-digit spread was interesting despite its rough start to the season. And that was evident on Thursday night when Miami scored a touchdown on its first drive and was able to stay in the game until the end because Buffalo was unable to properly execute and pull away.

Another week, another record broken by Josh Allen. The reigning NFL MVP became the fastest quarterback to reach 300 total touchdowns (including playoffs), surpassing Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who achieved the milestone in 129 games. Allen also has 46 games with at least three touchdowns, tying Mahomes for the most in the NFL since 2018.

Much like the first two weeks of the season, Buffalo entered this matchup missing some key pieces due to injuries. Defensive tackle Ed Oliver is still sidelined after getting his foot/ankle stepped on last week during practice, and linebacker Matt Milano picked up a pectoral injury in Week 2’s win over the New York Jets. As a result, practice-squad call-ups in defensive tackle Zion Logue and rookie linebacker Keonta Jenkins received the nods and played in their second consecutive game on a short week.

See the full list of Week 3 inactives here!

O.Torrence G - 60 snaps (100%)
S.Brown T - 60 snaps (100%)
D.Edwards G - 60 snaps (100%)
C.McGovern G - 60 snaps (100%)
D.Dawkins T - 60 snaps (100%)
J.Allen QB - 60 snaps (100%)
K.Coleman WR - 45 snaps (75%)
K.Shakir WR - 42 snaps (70%)
J.Cook RB - 40 snaps (67%)
D.Kincaid TE - 33 snaps (55%)
D.Knox TE - 32 snaps (53%)
J.Palmer WR - 26 snaps (43%)
J.Hawes TE - 26 snaps (43%)
T.Johnson RB - 15 snaps (25%)
E.Moore WR - 14 snaps (23%)
T.Shavers WR - 12 snaps (20%)
R.Gilliam FB - 9 snaps (15%)
R.Davis RB - 4 snaps (7%)
A.Anderson T - 2 snaps (3%)

While I would have preferred to see Allen (100%) sit for a good portion of the fourth quarter due to a blowout, it’s nice to see him log every offensive snap, especially as he deals with a nose injury that forced him to wear a visor for the first time since college. The visor didn’t seem to slow him down, however, as he completed 79% of his passes for 213 yards and three touchdowns, furthering his career record to 12-2 versus Miami.

Running back James Cook (67%) registered his second straight game with at least 100 rushing yards and logged 67% of the snaps, which is tied for his second-highest snap count percentage in a game in his career. Cook has found the end zone four times in three games and is averaging 5.4 yards per carry thus far. His excellence, paired with Buffalo’s inability to put games away, has led to fewer snaps for the likes of Ty Johnson (25%) and Ray Davis (7%), who logged a combined 19 snaps in Week 3. Davis’ four snaps were the second-lowest total of his career thus far.

Well, what’s making the running game work so well? The offensive line is the easy answer, of course, but offensive coordinator Joe Brady’s use of two- and three-tight-end sets has proven to be successful. Dalton Kincaid (55%) looks to be back to full health after a disappointing injury-riddled sophomore campaign, leading all Bills’ pass-catchers in receptions (5), yards (66) and targets (6). The 25 year old has an 81% catch rate and a team-high two touchdowns through three games played.

It’s very possible that Bills general manager found another late-round gem in tight end Jackson Hawes (43%). Hawes’ blocking ability has altered the philosophy slightly for Buffalo’s offense, as reserve tackle Alec Anderson (3%) is no longer needed on the field as often. It showed on Hawes’ first career touchdown catch as he blocked an elite edge rusher in Matthew Judon and proceeded to catch a shuffle pass touchdown from Allen seconds later.

Nine different receivers recorded at least one reception on Thursday night, further bolstering the “everybody eats” mentality. Khalil Shakir (70%) hauled in his first touchdown of the new season while fan-favorite Tyrell Shavers (20%) made an appearance with two receptions for 24 yards, including a third-down reception late in the third quarter. The use of Elijah Moore (23%) in a gadget and Isaiah McKenzie-esque role has proven successful thus far, too, which raises the question of what the Bills will ultimately do with Curtis Samuel, who has been a healthy inactive for all three games this season.

C.Bishop S - 61 snaps (100%)
C.Benford CB - 61 snaps (100%)
T.Bernard LB - 61 snaps (100%)
T.Rapp S - 61 snaps (100%)
T.White DB - 61 snaps (100%)
J.Bosa DE - 53 snaps (87%)
D.Williams LB - 46 snaps (75%)
D.Jones DT - 42 snaps (69%)
G.Rousseau DE - 40 snaps (66%)
T.Johnson CB - 40 snaps (66%)
T.Sanders DT - 36 snaps (59%)
Z.Logue DT - 25 snaps (41%)
S.Thompson LB - 21 snaps (34%)
A.Epenesa DE - 21 snaps (34%)
D.Walker DT - 19 snaps (31%)
C.Lewis DB - 14 snaps (23%)
J.Solomon DE - 9 snaps (15%)

Leave it to the Bills’ defense to make the struggling Dolphins offense look elite again. While the drive wasn’t pretty by any means, Miami drove down the field on its first possession of the game and took the early 7-0 lead. It was a normal day at the office for Buffalo, as it allowed Miami to convert multiple 3rd & Long attempts and go 10-for-15 on the night.

Considering Buffalo got to quarterback Justin Fields often in Week 2 and Miami’s offensive line was both banged up and among the worst units in the league, rarely getting home on Thursday night is noteworthy. Edge rusher Joey Bosa (87%) logged 53 snaps (his most in a game since 2022) and was the only pass rusher to log a quarterback hit on the night.

Defensive tackle DaQuan Jones (69%) continues to lead the interior line in snaps with Oliver on the shelf. Rookie T.J. Sanders (59%) out-snapped Deone Walker (31%) by a much bigger margin than the previous two weeks, but it was Walker who pressured quarterback Tua Tagovailoa on his game-sealing interception in the fourth quarter. The two rookies were just one snap apart in Week 2, but perhaps it’s time to give more snaps to Walker, who has clearly outplayed Sanders thus far.

Linebacker Terrel Bernard (100%) recorded his sixth career interception, ultimately sealing the game for Buffalo. With Milano nursing a pectoral injury, linebacker Dorian Williams (75%) logged his most snaps in a game this season. Veteran Shaq Thompson (34%), who has also been nursing injuries, suited up for the first time this season, recording four solo tackles and a huge hit in the backfield on a screen pass. After logging just over half of the snaps in his first game in Bills’ colors, cornerback Tre’Davious White (100%) was on the field for every snap in Week 3, which should be the case until rookie Maxwell Hairston is back in the mix.

It was nice to see nickel cornerback Taron Johnson (66%) back in action. The Bills have operated out of nickel personnel quite a bit over the past few seasons, but something has changed this season, and it’s resulted in fewer snaps for Johnson. Buffalo ran its base 4-3 defense for just 37 total early down snaps in 2024, but it’s become more frequent this season, running it 20 times already entering Thursday night’s matchup. That was the case again against Miami, as Thompson got quite a bit of run and left Johnson on the sideline watching, which could be a blessing in disguise considering his frequent injury woes.

R.Gilliam FB - 23 snaps (88%)
J.Andreessen LB - 20 snaps (77%)
S.Franklin DB - 17 snaps (65%)
J.Solomon DE - 17 snaps (65%)
C.Lewis DB - 17 snaps (65%)
J.Ingram CB - 15 snaps (54%)
D.Hamlin S - 10 snaps (38%)
T.Shavers WR - 9 snaps (35%)
D.Strong CB - 15 snaps (58%)
A.Epenesa DE - 15 snaps (58%)
K.Jenkins LB - 13 snaps (50%)
M.Prater K - 12 snaps (46%)
D.Walker DT - 11 snaps (42%)
C.Johnston P - 9 snaps (35%)
R.Davis RB - 9 snaps (35%)
R.Ferguson LS - 9 snaps (35%)
B.Codrington CB - 8 snaps (31%)
T.Johnson RB - 7 snaps (27%)
D.Williams LB - 7 snaps (27%)
R.Van Demark T - 6 snaps (23%)
A.Anderson T - 6 snaps (23%)
D.Dawkins T - 6 snaps (23%)
D.Edwards G - 6 snaps (23%)
O.Torrence G - 6 snaps (23%)
S.Brown T - 6 snaps (23%)
J.Hawes TE - 4 snaps (15%)
C.Benford CB - 3 snaps (12%)
T.Bernard LB - 3 snaps (12%)
G.Rousseau DE - 3 snaps (12%)
D.Jones DT - 3 snaps (12%)
C.Bishop S - 3 snaps (12%)
T.Sanders DT - 3 snaps (12%)

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