Shawn Nelson (probably would've been Bills starting TE) is suspended 4 games because of violation of the NFL Substance Abuse Policy.
Thing is, people praise Taylor for having some kind of innate deep loyalty to the franchise, being a great person, embodying what it means to be a Dolphin, etc etc. But to me, Zach Thomas is much closer to that description than Jason Taylor. If all the flowery language is just a cover-up for enjoying Taylor's sacks, then that solidifies my view even more.
It may be more important but IMO it can never reach the level of a "must win". "Must win" means that your season is lost (I think that's obvious with the "must" part). I've been watching football too many years and have seen too many instances of teams overcoming a week 1 loss even within the division to ever call a week 1 game a must win.
It is imperative we get off to a good start this season, however my lifelong belief is if you want to be the best, you must beat the best teams and/or beat teams AT THEIR BEST. I would rather we beat the Bills at full strength.
No single team win means that much to me. If somebody told me the Dolphins would win the SB, but that would only happen if they lost game 1 to the Bills (imagine it woke them up or something), then it's an easy choice. In fact, I would even say that if it meant being swept by a division rival. Basically, the SB means more to me than any rivalry.
