The Buffalo Bills put on their weakest display of the season Sunday, getting rolled by the lowly Miami Dolphins who came into the game with just two wins in nine games. But the Dolphins simply dominated and embarrassed the team that entered the season as Super Bowl co-favorites, completely shutting out an offense led by reigning league MVP Josh Allen through three quarters, 16-0.
Then, in the fourth quarter when the Bills attempted to mount some semblance of a comeback scoring 13 points, the Dolphins scored 14 to put away the 30-13 win.
Penalties Cost Bills More Than 100 Yards
So, what happened? Obviously numerous factors go into such a total system failure, but on Sunday the Bills repeatedly hurt their own cause with six penalties. Not only were they penalized for 67 yards, the penalties ended up wiping out gains of 46 more yards, “meaning that flags set the Bills back over an entire field of yardage,” according to SB Nation Bills analyst Skarekrow (a pseudonym).
“Right tackle Spencer Brownâs holding call wiped out 15 yards on an Allen scramble, tight end Jackson Hawes negated 16 yards of a return by running back Ray Davis, and defensive end Javon Solomon erased another 15 on cornerback Maxwell Hairstonâs interception return,” the SB Nation analyst recounted.
But it was another penalty by Brown that appears likely to draw the attention of the NFL league office, which often levels further disciplinary action at players who engage in violent acts such as shoving, slapping or punching after a play has concluded.
That is exactly what Brown did in an exchange with Dolphins edge rusher Matt Judon after a play with 4:09 remaining in the fourth quarter and the Bills trailing 30-6.
Brown Scuffles With Dolphins’ Judon
The penalty came after a four-yard pass from Allen to wide receiver Khalil Shakir that gained four yards, taking Buffalo to the Miami 20 yard line. The flag for unnecessary roughness wiped out those four yards and set the Bills back another 15, to the Miami 39.
Brown, a Bills 2021 third-round draft pick, got into a minor scuffle with Judon following the play, and ended the altercation by driving a hand directly into the Dolphins linebacker’s face, causing Judon’s head to snap backward.
The NFL Operations Office says it reviews each play from every game, whether it received a penalty call in real time or not, but while there is often no predicting what the league officials will decide, Brown’s strike to the face appears to a be prime candidate to draw a fine.
Range of Potential Fine Varies
As Brown’s first roughness penalty of the season, the fine could set the 6-foot-8, 311-pound offensive tackle back as little as $12,172 if the league judges the call to be for “Striking/Kicking/Tripping/Kneeing,” or as high as $40,686 in case NFL officials decide to classify Brown’s offense as “fighting.”
Brown should be able to afford the price tag. Before this season, the five-year veteran out of Northern Iowa signed a four-year, $72 million contract extension with the Bills. With base salary plus bonuses, Brown is set to earn about $8.2 million this season.
If, indeed, Brown is hit with a fine for the offense, it would be the fifth time in his career that he has been assessed a financial penalty by the league.
Brown was hit with two fines of $11,255 each last season for a facemask call in a December 13 game against the Los Angeles Rams, and a taunting penalty on November 15 when the Bills faced the Indianapolis Colts.
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