Orchard Park, New York - The Buffalo Bills had to hang tough to see out their long-time AFC East rivals, the Miami Dolphins, in Week Eight of the 2021 NFL season.

The Bills banded together late to beat the Dolphins 26-11 on Sunday afternoon, getting a gritty win after coming back from a week off of the field to improve their record to 5-2, still leading the AFC East.

Despite the previous matchup in September being an absolute romp for the Bills, they seemed to have an unusually tough time against the one-win Dolphins this time around.

The first half of this game was one of the uglier offensive displays from both teams, especially from the Bills, who usually hit double-digit point totals after two quarters this season.

Both teams went into the half tied at 3-3, but then the Bills finally got some momentum going late in the third quarter with a touchdown to go up 10-3.

The Dolphins finally got into the end zone after another Bills touchdown in the fourth, but then Buffalo scored twice more to put things out of reach for the victory.

It took a while but Bills quarterback Josh Allen (25) finally got into a good rhythm just in the nick of time to spark Buffalo’s offense in taking control of the game.

Last season’s MVP runner-up had a hand in 20 of his team’s 26 points in Sunday’s game.

But you wouldn’t have guessed it at halftime, as he had only racked up 80 total yards passing by that point.

Allen finished the game 29-for-42 passing, 249 yards, and two touchdowns to add to his eight carries for 55 yards and another touchdown on the ground.

This was an important win for the Bills, coming after a tough loss two weeks ago in Tennessee and having to regroup during the Bye Week.

They can hold on to their lead in the AFC as long as their division rivals aren't doing so well. Buffalo has every chance of going on a good run over the next few games, against three teams that currently don’t have winning records.

Next Sunday, The Bills (5-2) are down in Jacksonville to face the Jaguars (1-6) before they take on the Jets and the Colts, while the Dolphins (1-7) are back at home to take on the Texans (1-7).