Sunday’s Miami Dolphins vs. Buffalo Bills game features two division rivals who find themselves in dramatically different situations. The Bills come in at 4-2 off their bye following a Week 6 loss in Tennessee. The Dolphins, on the other hand, are losers of six straight games. At 1-6, the remainder of Miami’s 2021 season is simply about the evaluation of the players, the coaching staff, and the front office. Let’s take a look at the current NFL odds, the TV channel, how to live stream this Week 8 matchup, and a Dolphins vs. Bills prediction.
Miami Dolphins vs. Buffalo Bills prediction and odds | Week 8
[bet-promo id=”149453″]- Spread: Bills -14 (-105)
- Moneyline: Bills -850, Dolphins +575
- Over/Under: 48.5 (Over -110, Under -110)
Odds from DraftKings sportsbook
The Dolphins have not covered the spread in their last four games while the Bills come in 4-2 against the number. Additionally, the Bills have covered the spread in each of their last five games against teams with losing records. The Bills are also 7-2 against the spread in their last nine games against Miami at home.
The game total for this matchup is on the low end of the spectrum for the Bills. However, it is tied for the highest project total of the season for a Dolphins game. That said, the Dolphins have seen the over cash in each of their last five games against teams with winning records. The over has also cashed in six consecutive games when these two teams have met in Buffalo.
Dolphins vs. Bills prediction
The Dolphins enter their latest matchup against the Bills as two-touchdown underdogs — and that may be a bit conservative. Miami has lost eight of their last nine games against Buffalo, including each of their last six games by an average margin of 20 points. In addition, the Dolphins have only held the Josh Allen-led Bills to under 30 points one time in seven games. For his career, Allen has 22 total touchdowns (passing and rushing) and a passer rating of 108.1 against the Dolphins.
Despite two relatively strong games from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa since returning in Week 6 from a rib injury, the Dolphins have suffered two final-play losses at the hands of bad football teams. It has been perhaps the best two-game stretch of Tua’s young career, as he’s completed 74% of his passes for 620 yards, 6 touchdowns, and a passer rating of 102.7. He also finished as QB12 and QB4, respectively, in PFN’s Offensive Value Metric the past two weeks.
Unfortunately for Miami, it’s been their defense that continues to disappoint in 2021. The unit allowed 30 points and 6.3 yards per play to Atlanta last week after surrendering 23 points and 6.4 yards per play two weeks ago against Jacksonville. That’s just par for the course for this unit in 2021.
Miami’s defense ranks 26th in yards per play allowed, 31st in points per game allowed, and 32nd in yards allowed per game. That is less than ideal for a head coach whose background is on the defensive side of the ball and whose seat grows warmer by the week.
The Bills could go nuclear against the Dolphins
It will not help head coach Brian Flores that the NFL’s second-ranked scoring offense awaits his defense on Sunday. The Bills are averaging 33.8 points per game in 2021, trailing only Dallas. Additionally, Buffalo is fifth in Expected Points Added per play.
Back in their Week 2 matchup, it was the ground game that dominated. The Bills ran for 143 yards en route to a 35-0 beatdown in Miami. Josh Allen was not particularly sharp in that game, barely completing over 50% of his pass attempts for just 179 yards. But since then, Buffalo’s offense has kicked into high gear. The team has gone over 400 yards of offense in each game since Week 2, averaging 38 points per game in the process.
While the Buffalo offense gets all the headlines, their defense has also played well in 2021, including a dominating performance against Miami in their first meeting. In that game, the Bills got to Tagovailoa very early, sacking him twice and knocking the quarterback out of the game with fractured ribs on the Dolphins’ second offensive series. Backup Jacoby Brissett didn’t fare any better. He was sacked 4 times, hit an additional 4 times, and pressured on over 25% of his dropbacks in relief of Tua.
While Miami’s offensive line may not be as putrid as it was in Week 2, it’s not significantly better. It will likely be another long day for Tagovailoa and the offense, especially if they are unable to get the ground game going. Buffalo’s offense, meanwhile, should continue to roll against what appears to be a listless Miami defense that may have already mentally checked out of the 2021 season.
Dolphins vs. Bills Prediction: Bills 31, Dolphins 13
How to watch and listen to Dolphins vs. Bills this week
- Start time: 1 PM ET
- Channel: CBS
- Live stream:
- Hulu + Live TV
- fuboTV
- YouTube TV
- Paramount+
- DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket
- Listen:
- Miami Dolphins Radio Network
- Buffalo Bills Radio Network
- TuneIn Radio
- Sirius XM Radio
Check with your streaming service to confirm the availability of specific channels.