Brandon Marshall has not had an overwhelming impact in his first season with the Miami Dolphins. Sure, he leads Miami in receiving yards (709), but it's Davone Bess that leads Miami in catches, and Anthony Fasano in receiving touchdowns. Marshall is having a solid season, with 60 receptions, but his two touchdown receptions have been a disappointment with Miami struggling at the quarterback position.
Even considering his marginally disappointing season, containing Marshall will be a huge key to victory for the Buffalo Bills' fourth-ranked pass defense this Sunday. Marshall has played three times in his career against Buffalo, and has not caught fewer than five passes in any of those games; he has 23 total receptions in those contests. However, the Bills have been able to hold him to fewer than 60 receiving yards twice, including this season's Week 1 loss to Miami. Keeping him in check is a must.
I asked Matt Infante of The Phinsider whether or not he expected Marshall's numbers to improve in Miami's second meeting with Buffalo, or if he expected more of the same in terms of containing Marshall.
"The Bills did a good job of this back in week one," Infante said. "Marshall caught a ton of passes but gained relatively few yards (8 for 53). I expect to see Marshall force fed the football again this week (he was targeted 13 times last meeting), especially with Brian Hartline on IR and Miami's two inexperienced receivers (Roberto Wallace and Marlon Moore) underachieving to the point where the Dolphins had to sign Kevin Curtis just days ago. This time around, though, I have a feeling Marshall is going to have a much bigger day - that is, if Chad Henne can make accurate throws to the big receiver."