Beating the Bills with strong defense was nothing new, either. This marked the seventh time since the start of the 2000 season the Dolphins held Buffalo under 10 points.
DOLPHINS HOLDING BUFFALO UNDER 10 POINTS (SINCE 2000)
2000 — at Buffalo, Dolphins 33, Bills 6
2001 — at Buffalo, Dolphins 34, Bills 7
2003 — at Miami, Dolphins 17, Bills 7
2003 — at Buffalo, Dolphins 20, Bills 3
2008 — at Toronto, Dolphins 16, Bills 3
2011 — at Miami, Dolphins 35, Bills 8
2014 — at Miami, Dolphins 22, Bills 9
If the score of Thursday night’s game seemed unusual, that’s because it was.
It’s believed to be only the fifth time in NFL history a game has ended in a 22-9 score. It also was the 11th time since the birth of the franchise in 1966 that the Dolphins ended a game with 22 points.
But, as all Dolphins fans, two of those games were the team’s last two appearances on Thursday night, the Buffalo game and the memorable 22-20 overtime victory against the Cincinnati Bengals on Halloween night last year.
The Dolphins have a 9-2 record when scoring exactly 22 points, including the memorable 22-16 overtime victory against the Baltimore Ravens in 2007.
WHEN THE DOLPHINS SCORE 22 POINTS
1975 — at New England (W, 22-14)
1982 — Minnesota (W, 22-14)
1993 — at Buffalo (W, 22-13)
1994 — Indianapolis (W, 22-21)
2000 — Buffalo (W, 22-13)
2006 — at Indianapolis (L, 22-27)
2007 — Baltimore (W, 22-16 (OT))
2009 — New England (W, 22-21)
2010 — Pittsburgh (L, 22-23)
2013 — Cincinnati (W, 22-20 (OT))
2014 — Buffalo (W 22-9
Breaking down the game, the Dolphins came to life offensively in the second half when they scored 19 of their 22 points. But what’s interesting is that the Dolphins actually gained more yards in the first half (174) than they did in the second half (156).
