The Dolphins are going to be the biggest Jaguars fans on the planet this afternoon.
Miami had a chance to make the playoffs by beating the Bills on Sunday, but they laid a major egg in Buffalo. Josh Allen threw three touchdowns, Tua Tagovailoa threw three interceptions, and the Bills beat the Dolphins in a 56-26 rout.
The win sews up the No. 2 seed in the AFC for the Bills, but the bigger playoff implications are on the other side. With the Browns and Ravens winning their games, the Dolphins now need the Jaguars to pull off a massive upset by beating the Colts in Indianapolis later on Sunday.
The Bills will know who they host in the first round after all of Sunday’s games are in the books. Miami’s loss also means that the Titans have clinched a playoff spot ahead of their game against the Texans.
The day got off to a good start for the Dolphins when head coach Brian Flores successfully challenged that cornerback Byron Jones picked off Allen before going out of bounds. Miami grabbed a 3-0 lead, but the second quarter belonged to the Bills.
Allen threw all three of his scores and Isaiah McKenzie added a punt return score to open up a big halftime lead. Allen departed at that point and the Dolphins closed within 15 points early in the third quarter, but Josh Norman’s interception return for a touchdown a short time later put the game firmly in Buffalo’s control.
Tagovailoa’s next two interceptions were followed by Antonio Williams touchdown runs that eliminated any hope of a comeback for the Dolphins. Tagovailoa posted 361 passing yards thanks to some late stat padding, but it was a rough day for the rookie that started with a failure to score touchdowns on two first half trips into Buffalo territory
That set the tone for their flop with a playoff berth on the line and now the Dolphins will have to wait to see if their prayers get answered.