MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – The Buffalo Bills picked up another victory over the Miami Dolphins on Thursday night, beating the Dolphins 31-10 at Hard Rock Stadium with three first-half touchdowns from James Cook and two interceptions from Ja’Marcus Ingram.

The loss wasn’t Miami’s biggest concern, however, as quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered a concussion late in the third quarter. Tagovailoa was immediately ruled out after throwing three interceptions on the night – one of which Ingram returned for a touchdown in the third quarter. Now the Dolphins face an uncertain future while they evaluate Tagovailoa, who has had issues with concussions in the past.

Here is the most important information for Thursday evening for both teams:

Josh Allen has been the Bills’ primary supplier of rushing touchdowns for much of his career, but that wasn’t the case Thursday night in a decisive AFC East victory.

While Allen was dealing with an injury to his left hand in Week 1, sustained on a touchdown run – or more accurately, a jump – Cook had the best night of his career, as his three touchdowns helped the Bills to a decisive victory over the Dolphins. In just one game, Cook matched his total of rushing touchdowns from last season and the season before last (two each).

Cook’s first touchdown of the night came on the first drive of the game — after the first of two Ingram interceptions — on a 17-yard touchdown pass from Allen. The second touchdown was a 1-yard rushing touchdown in the second quarter, and the third came on Buffalo’s next offensive play when Cook sprinted 49 yards untouchable into the end zone to give the Bills a 24-7 lead. Since ESPN began counting yards before contact in 2006, Cook is the seventh player with an untouchable rushing touchdown of 49 yards or more. All of his touchdowns came in the first half.

The team finished the game with 108 yards on the ground, with Cook doing most of that with 11 attempts for 78 yards and one pass catch.

Offensive coordinator Joe Brady continues to place a heavy emphasis on running the ball, while Allen finished the game completing 13 of 19 passes for 139 yards and a touchdown.

A new lineup has formed around Allen at wide receiver, but this offense has shown early on its ability to score points and capitalize on opportunities.

Most surprising performance: The Bills have had success with defensive backups in the past, but Ingram made a clear statement in the first two games of the season. Coach Sean McDermott said Ingram would not have sat out Week 1 if defensive end Dawuane Smoot hadn’t been injured. Instead, Ingram played in the team’s dime package after nickel corner Taron Johnson injured his forearm and Cam Lewis moved to nickel and defended the game-winning play. Against the Dolphins, Ingram – an undrafted free agent from the University of Buffalo in 2022 who spent the last two seasons on the Bills’ practice squad – had a great performance with two interceptions, including a pick-six. Even if Johnson returns, Ingram should get more chances.

Decisive game: The Bills’ fourth drive was 10-7 when the team really started to pull away. On third-and-12 from the Miami 34-yard line, Allen waited in the pocket, then ran to his right and threw a 33-yard toss across his body to running back Ty Johnson. The impressive throw set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Cook on the next play, giving the Bills a double-digit lead that the team never relinquished.

Describe the game in two words: Meaningful. Any doubts about whether the AFC East still ran through Buffalo, New York, were put to rest with this decisive road win. With this victory, the Bills are 20-5 against the division since 2020 and improve Allen’s record against the Dolphins to 12-2. Thursday was also the Bills’ fifth consecutive win, including in the postseason, against Miami.

Promising trend: Defense limits big plays. The Bills’ goal on defense is to prevent the offense from making big plays down low, which was especially evident on Thursday against the speed of the Dolphins. They’ve done that successfully in the first two games of the 2024 season. Tagovailoa completed 0 of 4 passes for 15 yards and 2 of 8 throws for 10 yards. In Week 1, Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray completed 0 of 6 passes for 10 or more air yards. — Alaina Getzenberg

Next game: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (7:30 p.m. ET, Monday, September 23)

A nightmare.

There is no other way to describe the Dolphins’ loss to the Bills.

Not only did they lose to their AFC East rival for the 10th time in their last 11 meetings, they may also be losing their quarterback indefinitely. Tagovailoa suffered a severe concussion late in the third quarter after a blow to the helmet left him on the ground for several minutes while players kneeled around him.

Fortunately, he was able to walk off the field and eventually to the locker room under his own power. Aside from a collective gasp as Tagovailoa writhed on the ground after the hit, both Dolphins and Bills fans were stunned in an eerily silent Hard Rock Stadium.

Tagovailoa’s concussion history — two diagnosed concussions during the 2022 season — will likely mean he and the team will be monitored closely for the next 10 days. What happens if he passes the NFL’s concussion protocol in time for Miami’s Week 3 game against the Seattle Seahawks? Would 10 days be enough for the Dolphins to allow their newly crowned franchise quarterback to return to play after another head injury?

Maybe the Dolphins have him out of action for an extended period of time, maybe a stint on the injured list? Even longer? At the risk of sounding overly dramatic, nothing is out of the question, as the Dolphins’ 2024 season has taken a serious turn after just two weeks.

Worrying trend: For the second time in as many weeks, the Dolphins offense made a first-half mistake. Tagovailoa threw his first interception of the season on Miami’s opening drive and threw his second two drives later. This may prove to be the biggest hole in the Dolphins’ game plan, as both interceptions were aimed at receivers he isn’t used to throwing to – Grant DuBose and Robbie Chosen. The only thing keeping the crowd from going home at halftime was a 78-yard performance by running back De’Von Achane. Miami did just about everything wrong that you could do wrong in a game against a team you couldn’t afford to make mistakes against.

Describe the game in two words: An absolute disaster. The loss was painful enough for the Dolphins, but Tagovailoa suffering the third diagnosed concussion of his career potentially puts the rest of this season in jeopardy. Considering the events of the 2022 season, the team will likely be under a lot of scrutiny as it decides how to handle its franchise quarterback.

Forecast for next week: The only bright spot from Thursday’s loss was Achane’s performance. He stepped into the role in Raheem Mostert’s absence, rushing for 96 yards on 22 carries and Miami’s only touchdown. Regardless of Mostert’s health next week, expect Achane to play a major role in Week 3 against the Seahawks – especially if Tagovailoa doesn’t play. — Marcel Louis-Jacques

Next game: at the Seattle Seahawks (4:05 p.m. ET, Sunday, September 22)