Getty Deonte Harty celebrates on the field after a Buffalo Bills win.
Deonte Harty had one of the biggest plays of the Buffalo Bills‘ season on Sunday, returning a punt for a franchise-record 96 yards for a game-tying touchdown against the Miami Dolphins.
The big play helped shift momentum toward the Bills after a mistake-filled first half, pushing them to a division-clinching 21-14 win.
But after the game, an exuberant Harty could not tell reporters exactly what happened on the play.
“I blacked out,” Harty said, WKBW’s Matt Bove on X.
Deonte Harty’s Big Play
Harty’s touchdown came as the Bills were struggling to score points, trailing 14-7 while squandering red-zone trips and losing three turnovers in Miami territory. The Dolphins had taken the ball on a strip-sack on Josh Allen the previous possession, but the Bills’ defense held tight and forced the Dolphins to punt shortly after the start of the fourth quarter.
Deonte Harty’s 95-yarder is the longest punt return TD in @BuffaloBills history
🎥 @NFL
Harty fielded the punt and found an opening down the middle, racing 96 yards for a touchdown that made the score 14-14 with 13:42 left in the game. It was the longest punt return in team history and the team’s first punt return touchdown since the 2020 season finale, a 56-26 win over the Dolphins.
Harty said after the game that the return went by in a blur.
“I can’t tell you what happened,” Harty said, via The Associated Press. “I’d just seen a crease. I hit it. And the next thing you know, I was free.”
Harty’s punt return gave the Bills an important spark. The team held the Dolphins on the next possession then took the lead on an Allen touchdown pass to tight end Dawson Knox. The defense that held the Dolphins scoreless for the second half then iced the game with a late interception of Tua Tagovailoa.
A free agent brought in last offseason to serve as a speedy receiver and return specialist, Harty did not have many contributions this season. The former All-Pro returner had just 14 catches for 138 yards for one touchdown and returned 25 punts for 227 yards, a 9.1-yard average.
Aside from his punt return touchdown, Harty also got involved in the offense on Sunday with a 12-yard reception on his only target.
Bills Travel Home to Host Playoff Game
The win gave the Bills their fourth straight division title, a feat that seemed unlikely just a few weeks ago after the Bills had fallen to 6-6 and the Dolphins held a three-game lead in the division.
The Bills went into the weekend at risk of missing the playoffs entirely with a loss, but a Jacksonville Jaguars loss to the Tennessee Titans earlier in the day guaranteed them a playoff berth, and the win over the Dolphins gave them the No. 2 seed.
The team will return to Buffalo to host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.
After the division-clinching win, Allen shared some praise for the team and the resolve they showed in overcoming adversity.
“So proud of our guys,” Allen said, via The Associated Press. “They battled their tails off. The final couple of drives I felt we found a groove on the offensive side of the ball. The ball was coming out of my hands the best all year.”