Here They Come Again

Buffalo led only 13-3 at the half, and that was thanks to center Kent Hull's blatant hold of Miami linebacker Bryan Cox, which enabled Thomas to zip by and score from 17 yards out. "I did not hold on that play," said Hull. "I clipped."

Fortunately for the Bills, the Dolphins spent most of the game doing their best imitation of a bad restaurant in a hurry to close. Clang! Mark Clayton dropped a gorgeous touchdown pass from Marino. Splat! Tony Martin dropped a splendid spiral inside the Buffalo 10. Ka-doiiinnng! Kick returner Mike Williams started things off in the second half by fumbling away the opening kickoff. Two plays later—Braaaaaannng!—defensive end Marco Coleman decided to pick up a football that was dropped by Thomas and make like Mercury Morris with it. As Coleman rose, the ball chose not to go with him, and the Bills fell on it. Instead of Dolphin ball, end of Buffalo drive, it was merely Bills' ball, first-and-goal at the eight. Shortly, Kenneth Davis scored from about six feet out, and Buffalo led 20-3.

By then Kelly had settled down in a no-huddle, no-muddle offense. He began using a run-and-shoot screen pass that the Bills had learned from the Oilers. He would get the ball to Thomas, who would bust downfield with it as though he were being chased by hired killers. "They hurt us a lot with that screen," said Dolphin coach Don Shula.

No dummies, the Bills used the screen the rest of the day. By garbage time, Buffalo led 26-3. Once again the Buffalo Bills would just like to say those three little words: Thank you, Houston.

And there it was. The Bills had themselves a 29-10 Fish fry and their third consecutive AFC crown. "I can't think of a quarterback who entered a game under more pressure," said Levy. "Hemingway once defined character as 'grace under pressure.' That was Jim Kelly today. I'm just so proud of him. He was unfairly criticized.... Here's a guy who's now taken this team to three Super Bowls. That revolted me. It revolted me."

Said Kelly, "Everybody kept telling me not to worry about it, but it was strange. I felt like I had to apologize for feeling good. Without a doubt this is the sweetest victory I've ever been a part of."

Inside the Bills' locker room a very strange falsetto voice kept screaming the same word: "Awe-some! Aw-aw-aw-some!" The voice belonged to the unkillable, 273-pound Smith, who said his poor ribs no longer hurt when he breathed, only when he laughed. If so, his ribs were going to be hurting him the whole plane ride home. "Bruce Smith has been playing in pain for three, four, five weeks now," said Hansen. "He knows how much we need him."

Not only did Smith sack Marino 1½ times, but he also was close enough to read the washing instructions on Marino's jersey on a half dozen other plays. Smith was so menacing that the Dolphins had to double-team him with their center, Jeff Uhlenhake, which made it the easier for other Buffalo bruisers like Hansen to turn Sunday into just one more miserable day for a Miami-area Italian-American quarterback. At one time Marino lay on the ground, cursed as he pounded the grass and said, "My receivers just don't want to get open!"

But Thomas was open—all day. When he wasn't open, he would get to where he had elbow room. "I know Thurman was playing in a lot of pain," said Bill offensive coordinator Tom Bresnahan. "That's why Kenneth Davis became unbelievably valuable."

Said Thomas, graciously, "I want to thank Kenny. Without him, I couldn't have played [as much as I did]." Between the two of them, one way or another, they ate up 279 monster yards.