COMP: 202 | ATT: 354 | TDs: 20 | INTs: 11
By Mark Malone
Special to ESPN.com
Doug Flutie was lobbying the referees through the media, saying if the officials call the game the way it should be and penalize the Dolphins for all the clutching and grabbing that Terrell Buckley and Sam Madison do, then the Bills will be fine.
The Buffalo-Miami game is one in which Flutie will have to have the confidence to throw the football, even when it looks like players are covered. He needs the confidence that Andre Reed and Eric Moulds, who's a pretty big guy in stature, will be able to physically beat Madison and Buckley. It's not going to be pretty a lot of times; there will be a lot of flags thrown in this game, but I like Flutie in this matchup.
It isn't the Orange Bowl, but the game is in South Florida. Miami has a great defense, but it's also a high-risk defense. It's not what you call a high-efficiency attack. Flutie's completion percentage might not be high, but he will make some big plays in this game, and that kind of embellishes the whole magic aura that surrounds Flutie.
When you play the type of defense Miami does, there's no one in the secondary to make tackles. Those defensive backs all run off on routes in single coverage, so Flutie can be big in this game in terms of running the football as well as throwing it.
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PASS DEFENSE RANKING: Sixth
By Merril Hoge
Special to ESPN.com
Looking at this matchup, you have to add Patrick Surtain in there with Terrell Buckley and Sam Madison because Buffalo likes to run three- and four-receiver sets.
When a team gets to its third receiver, it believes its third-best receiver is better than the other team's third-best cover guy. That's not true against the Dolphins. Surtain, even though he's a rookie, is physical and has the good technique that you need when playing single coverage -- which Buckley and Madison will do.
When they go into a three-receiver set, the Bills will win some matchups, but I believe Miami will win more of those matchups.
Any time you play pressure man-to-man coverage, like the Dolphins, you are taking a chance. You are putting yourself in situations in which you can be beat. But Buckley, Madison and Surtain, with their techniques, footwork and hand work, won't be beat very often.
As a tandem, Buckley and Madison are as good in any in the league. They have 16 interceptions between them. They force you to be great receivers and force the quarterback to make tight throws. If Flutie makes an error, Buckley or Madison will pick it off and run it back the other way.
Mark Malone can jump on the Flutie Flakes bandwagon all he wants, but the reality is Buckley, Madison and Surtain will win this game for the Dolphins.
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AFC: Four on the floor
