Buffalo Bills

Buffalo Bills vs. Dolphins: Top Fantasy Football Performers

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Oct 23, 2016; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor (5) throws a pass during the first half against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

The Buffalo Bills couldn’t come home with a victory on Sunday vs. the Dolphins, but at least we learned what our weakness is — playing without McCoy.

Each week, I showcase the Buffalo Bills‘ top three fantasy football performers for that week. Up to this point, we’ve seen a similar trend regarding who those top-three performers are.

Coming into this game vs. Miami, it was known that LeSean McCoy was battling a hamstring injury — something he’s been struggling with for quite some time now. Although he was listed as a game-time decision and would later start for the Bills, I didn’t expect much from him this game.

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And that’s exactly what we got from him. He finished the game with 8 carries and just 11 yards, meaning he clearly wasn’t himself. Seeing the reactions from Bills’ fans after the game, many of us were wondering why he played to begin with. It seems we would’ve been better off giving Mike Gillislee a chance to control the game with his running ability.

All in all, the team decided to give McCoy a chance on Sunday and it came back to haunt us. I’m not saying it’s the only reason we lost, but he does a great job of taking the pressure off Tyrod Taylor and also keeping the offense on the field — more importantly, letting the defense get some rest on the sidelines.

Their 28-25 loss definitely should’ve been a victory on our part, especially considering we had a 17-6 lead at one point. We even had a 17-14 lead at the start of the fourth quarter. However, we let the Dolphins run all over our defense and failed to move the ball when we needed it the most.

Looking back at last week’s top fantasy performers vs. the 49ers, we started to see that Tyrod Taylor, LeSean McCoy and the Bills’ defense/special teams were consistently the top-three performers. So yes, missing one of those chips — LeSean McCoy — would definitely be a setback for the Bills.

What hurt us even worse was the defense, which tallied their worst fantasy performance this season. They ended the game with -5 fantasy points, which was the first time they hit negative all year long. It was also the first time all season that the defense didn’t force/recover a fumble.

Neither the Bills’ D/ST or McCoy finished as a top-three performer for Buffalo, which means we — for some reason — didn’t stick to the gameplan that got us four straight wins. With that being said, who took their place on the top-three performers list?

We start with the third best fantasy performance.

Oct 23, 2016; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Buffalo Bills running back Reggie Bush (22) warms up before the game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

RB Reggie Bush

Buffalo Bills Fantasy Football

Next, we have the second best fantasy performance from the Bills.

Oct 9, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Buffalo Bills wide receiver Marquise Goodwin (88) celebrates with wide receiver Robert Woods (10) after a touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams in the second half during the NFL game at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

WR Marquise Goodwin

Buffalo Bills Fantasy Football

Lastly, the Bills’ top fantasy performance vs. the Dolphins goes to…

Oct 23, 2016; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor (5) throws a pass over Miami Dolphins defensive tNdamukong Suh (93) during the second half at Hard Rock Stadium. The Dolphins won 28-25. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

QB Tyrod Taylor

Buffalo Bills Fantasy Football

23A lot of people have been bashing Tyrod Taylor this year and I can understand the frustration. However, at the same time I’m a little confused at the criticism because he isn’t having as bad of a year as a lot of people are saying. His numbers aren’t comparable to the best in the league, but that’s not what we expected from him. We expect a mobile QB that can make plays when we need it — remember, we are a run-first team. So far this season, he has 9 TD and 2 INT on the throwing end (although the yards aren’t really there) and 271 yards/2 TD on the rushing end. The only problem I have with him this season is his fourth-quarter play, which definitely needs improvement. Other than that, he’s having a fairly good year and deserves a little more credit. That’s now 6 TD and 0 INT in the past four games and he is ready to continue that streak vs. the Patriots.