National Football League
Miami 30, Buffalo 23
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, December 18, 2011
Where: Ralph Wilson Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Temperature: 31°
Head Official: John Parry
Attendance: 60988

Brandon Marshall had a season-long 65-yard touchdown reception and Reggie Bush rushed for a career high 203 yards as the visiting Miami Dolphins downed the Buffalo Bills 30-23 on Sunday.

Todd Bowles won his first game as interim head coach and the Dolphins (5-9) earned the season sweep over the Bills (5-9), losers of seven straight. Bowles replaced Tony Sparano, who was fired earlier this week.

Quarterback Matt Moore found Marshall with a perfect deep pass on the Dolphins’ first possession of the second half. The catch, giving Miami a 20-7 lead, pushed Marshall over 1,000 yards for the fifth consecutive season. He finished with three receptions for 84 yards and a TD.

After Ryan Spiller’s 3-yard scoring pass pulled Buffalo within 23-13 in the fourth quarter, Bush broke free for a 76-yard touchdown run to secure the Miami win.

With his third consecutive 100-yard game, Bush has 973 rushing yards, far surpassing his previous high of 581 yards.

Ryan Fitzpatrick threw a late TD pass and Buffalo recovered the onside kick that led to a 34-yard field goal in the dying minutes to make it interesting, but Miami recovered a second onside attempt to quash the rally.

Miami overcame a 7-0 first-quarter deficit on the opening play of the second quarter. Moore hit rookie Charles Clay for a 30-yard catch and run before finding a wide-open Anthony Fasano for a 22-yard TD.

Moore finished 10 of 20 for 217 yards and two TDs. Fitzpatrick threw for 318 yards but was picked off three times.
Top Game Performances
Rushing
Miami   Buffalo
Reggie Bush Player C.J. Spiller
25 Attempts 12
203 Yards 91
8.1 Avg Yards 7.6
1 Touchdowns 1
76 Long 24
Receiving
Miami   Buffalo
Brandon Marshall Player Steve Johnson
3 Receptions 5
84 Yards 82
28.0 Avg Yards 16.4
1 Touchdowns 0
65 Long 22
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Miami 448 254 194 3 3 3 3.0 1
Buffalo 404 113 291 3 1 0 2.0 3
Upcoming Games
  • Buffalo will play their next game at home against Denver. The Bills have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
  • Miami will play their next game on the road against New England. The Dolphins have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.