The Miami Dolphins will look to improve their record to 3-5 when they take on the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium in a crucial game when it comes to their playoff ambitions.

The Dolphins suffered a disappointing 28-27 loss to the Arizona Cardinals when Tua Tagovailoa returned to the lineup. The Bills are 6-2 after a 31-10 win over the Seattle Seahawks last weekend at Lumen Field.

The Dolphins will look to beat the Bills for just the second time since the start of the 2019 season.

Here are the five biggest storylines for this Week 9 matchup.

The only common denominator in the Bills' recent dominance against the Dolphins and in the AFC East is quarterback Josh Allen, who should be one of the leading candidates for NFL MVP through the first eight weeks of the 2024 season. Allen's numbers against the Dolphins are borderline insane, and although he only managed 139 yards in the Week 2 matchup at Hard Rock Stadium, his passer rating was 107.1. Allen threw his first pick of the season last week against Seattle, and it would be a big boost to the Dolphins' hopes if they could get one on him in this game.

Here's a completely crazy statistic when you think about it: In the last three meetings between the Dolphins and Bills, the Dolphins haven't had a single pass longer than 24 yards. This happened in the 2023 season finale through a duel between Tua Tagovailoa and Cedrick Wilson Jr. The longest completion in the first matchup of 2023 in Week 4 in Buffalo was 23 yards to fullback Alec Ingold. And the longest in Week 2 this year was a 21-yarder to Jaylen Waddle. That just won't give the Dolphins much of a chance to win. What the Dolphins need are long connections like Tua had with Waddle in each of the games in 2022 – 45 yards in Miami and 67 yards in Buffalo. Tyreek Hill didn't manage a single catch of at least 25 yards in eight regular-season games against Buffalo, so this would obviously be a good time to change that.

Maybe the Dolphins don't need a big play in the passing game, but that would likely be the case if the running game can produce big numbers AND get some first downs down the stretch. The Dolphins rushed for at least 150 yards in each of their last three games, but they were 1-2 in those games because the passing game failed against Indianapolis and because the defense couldn't hold the lead against Arizona after the offense failed to run at the end the clock out. Raheem Mostert and De'Von Achane each had a big game against the Bills in the last two seasons, and Jaylen Wright also has the talent to break up a long game.

The Dolphins will need contributions from all groups if they want to pull off the upset, and something like Cedrick Wilson Jr.'s 50-yard punt return in the 2022 playoff game would help. The Dolphins also can't afford a missed field goal from Jason Sanders, as they will operate with a low margin of error.

This should probably be listed above, but we'll save it for last. This is an opportunity for a standout game for Tagovailoa, who was impressive overall against Arizona last weekend but was still the second-best quarterback on the field that day. The Dolphins gave Tagovailoa his massive contract extension in July because they felt he was the guy who could get them where they wanted to go. Well, this is the type of game the Dolphins need to win and where Tua needs to be the best QB on the field that day. Plus, a big performance from Tagovailoa would likely make a lot of “salty” fans forget his “sit on your couch and eat chips” comments.