ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — One of the most explosive offenses in the NFL stayed on brand Saturday night against the Buffalo Bills, with a 67-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to Jaylen Waddle on the Miami Dolphins‘ first drive of the second half.
On third-and-4 from his own 33-yard line, Tagovailoa found a wide-open Waddle, who hit a top speed of 21.11 mph on his way to the end zone, per NFL Next Gen Stats. Waddle pushed his game totals to 114 receiving yards on three catches.
The Dolphins’ 2-point conversion attempt failed and they trailed the Bills 21-19.
He was GONE when his feet hit the ground! 🐧 @D1__JW
📺: #MIAvsBUF on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/OppdDaKY2o pic.twitter.com/tdhvjv5Y2i— NFL (@NFL) December 18, 2022
But Tagovailoa wasn’t finished as he found Tyreek Hill on a 20-yard touchdown pass that was made possible by a roughing-the-punter call against Buffalo. The Dolphins finally had their first lead of the game 26-21.
Waddle’s touchdown marked Tagovailoa’s third TD pass of 60 or more yards in his past three games. He tossed a 75-yard strike to Trent Sherfield in Week 13 and a 60-yard score to Hill in Week 14.
Miami is tied for the NFL lead with six passing plays of at least 50 yards this season. The Bills’ defense had not allowed a pass of 50 or more yards entering Week 15.
The long touchdown answered what has been a strong game for Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who threw three TD passes in the first half.
Cheetahs also thrive in the cold? @MiamiDolphins LEAD! @cheetah #FinsUp
📺: #MIAvsBUF on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/OppdDaKY2o pic.twitter.com/nJPej29pOD— NFL (@NFL) December 18, 2022