Snap count notes: Buffalo Bills at Miami Dolphins

If you hadn’t heard yet, the Buffalo Bills are in the playoffs after their road win against the Miami Dolphins and a clutch performance by Andy Dalton and the rest of the Cincinnati Bengals to give the Baltimore Ravens a needed loss. With the season in the balance, the Bills didn’t stick precisely to “business as usual” with snap counts this week. Enjoy the ride, everyone!

Offense (67 total plays)

• Our starting lineman didn’t come out unscathed this week, with Jordan Mills coming out of the game following an injury. Seantrel Henderson played in his stead.
• More unsettling to the team was the ankle injury to LeSean McCoy. While it’s possible he’ll be available next Sunday when the Bills travel to Jacksonville to take on the Jaguars, the Bills offense clearly suffered with Mike Tolbert and Marcus Murphy having to carry the entire rushing offense.
• The Zay Jones and Deonte Thompson juggling act changed direction, with Jones seeing 14 more snaps on offense this week. Jones had two catches for 25 yards, with Thompson coming down with two for 23.
• Kyle Williams’s one offensive snap in this game should never be forgotten. The fan favorite came in for one play in what appeared to be a blocking role. Williams was handed the ball for the first touchdown of his career.

Defense (71 total plays)

• The entire secondary and Preston Brown were in the game for every defensive snap. The best news from this come from E.J. Gaines. The contribution from Gaines has been tremendous this year, but injury concerns have been a dark cloud.
• Leonard Johnson saw 90% of defensive plays as the third CB on the field. For this game, this means the Bills almost exclusively used a nickel defense.
• Defensive end Jerry Hughes accomplished the rare feat of being on the field more than tackle Kyle Williams. It’s possible Williams needed a breather after his touchdown run.

Special Teams (24 total plays)

Only three players who hit the field didn’t take at least one special teams snap this week. Tyrod Taylor, Deonte Thompson, and LeSean McCoy were the three players who avoided this phase of the game.

Ramon Humber led the team with 71% of special teams snaps. Right behind him are the core group of Lorenzo Alexander, Lafayette Pitts, Tanner Vallejo, and Shamarko Thomas, who all hit 67% this week. Colt Anderson was activated for this game and was inserted right into special teams play, also playing in 67% of the special teams snaps.