Dolphins take unexpected lead in third quarter after Josh Allen’s fumble

Josh Allen’s fumble early in the third quarter gave the Dolphins their first lead of the game in the wild-card round.

The Buffalo Bills were a heavy favorite at home over the seven-seed Miami Dolphins, who started third-string quarterback Skylar Thompson in the wild-card game because Tua Tagovailoa and Teddy Bridgewater were out with injuries. But after heading out to an early 17-0 lead, the Bills started playing with their food, allowing Miami to outscore them 17-7 in the second quarter.

And then, with 1:01 elapsed in the second half, the Dolphins crashed through Buffalo’s offensive line, and defensive back Eric Rowe forced a fumble on a sack, which defensive end Zach Sieler returned five yards for a touchdown.

That put the Dolphins ahead, 24-20. The Bills have outgained the Dolphins more than 2-to-1 in this game, but when you’re losing the turnover battle 3-1 as the Bills were after that play, it’s tough to win a game. The Bills need to shape up quickly if they want to avoid a catastrophic upset.