The Buffalo Bills used takeaways to overtake the Miami Dolphins.
By forcing five turnovers, Buffalo caught the Dolphins on the scoreboard and moved ahead of them in the AFC East standings with a 47-34 victory Sunday.Super Bowl losers three years in a row, the Bills appear intent on giving the NFL title game another try.
"If it makes everybody mad that Buffalo is still in the hunt, well, good," tight end Pete Metzelaars said.
Buffalo assumed sole possession of first place in the AFC East at 10-4 with two games left in the regular season. Stunned Miami, which had the league's best record just three weeks ago, fell to 9-5 with its third consecutive loss.
Once again, the Dolphins crumbled against their biggest rival. The Bills have won 13 of their past 16 games against Miami, including seven of eight at Joe Robbie Stadium.
This time Miami squandered a 17-9 lead in the highest-scoring NFL game this season. The Bills took advantage of four turnovers to score 31 points in 71/2 minutes, turning the showdown into a blowout.
Buffalo's defense scored on Mickey Washington's 27-yard interception return and Nate Odomes' 25-yard fumble return. The Bills led 47-20 after striking for three touchdowns in the first six minutes of the second half, with each score resulting from a turnover.
"All of a sudden, we started to play like Santa Claus," Miami coach Don Shula said.
It's been seven years since an opponent scored so many points against the Dolphins. They lost even though Scott Mitchell and Steve DeBerg combined to throw for 429 yards.
Mitchell, who had missed the past four games with a dislocated shoulder, threw touchdown passes of 14 yards to Mark Ingram and 16 yards to Jackson as Miami went up 17-9. But Mitchell was benched following his second interception in favor of DeBerg.