The Miami Dolphins‘ miserable start to the 2025 campaign continued in Week 3, as they suffered a 31-21 defeat at the hands of the Buffalo Bills on Thursday Night Football. While the Dolphins gave the Bills a run for their money, they simply could not get out of their own way in their quest to pick up their first victory of the new season.
During this game, there was a controversial play that caught fans’ attention at the time, and ended up becoming heavily scrutinized after Miami lost. When addressing the incident, Dolphins’ head coach Mike McDaniel said that he will be meeting with the league to discuss what happened on the play.
Dolphins Will Discuss Controversial Play with NFL
this is a live ball Josh Allen tossed to the ref
watch it again
Heading into this game, the Bills were largely expected to destroy the Dolphins. Simply put, Buffalo looked like one of the most dominant teams in the league over the first two weeks, while Miami looked like one of the worst teams in the league. And yet, after scoring a touchdown right at the end of the first half, the Dolphins sent the game to halftime with the score tied at 14 points apiece.
With two seconds left in the first half, and the ball at their own 30-yard line, the Bills lined up to take a knee and send the game to halftime. However, quarterback Josh Allen fumbled the snap, and it appeared as if he never actually took a knee while possessing the football. Still, he got up, flipped the ball to the referee, and the first half was declared over.
The play appeared a bit strange at the time, but the officials ruled that while Allen was not on the ground, he clearly gave himself up to the defense, leading to the play being blown dead and the half ending. However, McDaniel doesn’t think that’s what should have happened, and he’s set to meet with the league to further discuss the play.
Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said the team will ‘be in talks with the league’ over the way the first half ended in the team’s Thursday night game against the Buffalo Bills,” Saad Yousuf of The Athletic reported.
Mike McDaniel, Dolphins Turn Attention to Week 4
GettyMike McDaniel, head coach of the Miami Dolphins, watching on ahead of Thursday night’s game against the Buffalo Bills on September 18, 2025
The problem for Miami, truth be told, is that it has bigger fish to fry right now. While the team has shown improvement after getting destroyed by the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1, they still haven’t found a way to get into the win column, and with tons of rumors swirling around the team, it feels like the only thing that can be done to stop the situation from spiraling is to win a football game.
The Dolphins will have an extra-long week to prepare for their Week 4 contest, as they won’t be back in action until they square off against the New York Jets on Monday Night Football. Considering how the Jets are having their own problems, particularly at the quarterback position, the Dolphins should have a shot to prevail in this game. First, Week 3 needs to conclude, but you can bet McDaniel and company have already begun devising a game plan for New York.
Dolphins to Meet With NFL After Questioning Strange Play in Bills Game