MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Confusion led to a breakthrough.

Quarterback Ryan Tannehill threw two second-half touchdown passes — including one from a busted formation — to help the Miami Dolphins defeat the Buffalo Bills 22-9 Thursday night at Sun Life Stadium.

Miami trailed 9-3 until 2:18 left in the third quarter, when backup wide receiver Brandon Gibson caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Tannehill. The score gave Miami a lead it never relinquished.

“I think ‘Gib’ might have heard the formation wrong,” Dolphins receiver Mike Wallace said. “He was just trying to get lined up, and it worked out for him.”

Miami won despite leaky pass protection.

Buffalo, which leads the NFL in sacks, got to Tannehill five times but failed to rattle the Miami quarterback. Bills defensive end Mario Williams was credited with 3.5 sacks.

“It may sound crazy,” Dolphins coach Joe Philbin said, “but I think our overall protection was pretty good. Obviously, there is room for improvement.”

With the win, Miami (6-4) moved into sole possession of second place in the AFC East, while Buffalo (5-5) slipped to third. The New England Patriots (7-2) top the division. The Dolphins also snapped a three-game losing streak in their series against Buffalo.

Tannehill improved to 2-4 in his career against Buffalo.

After Gibson’s touchdown, Miami added a controversial safety late in the third quarter. Bills quarterback Kyle Orton, pressured by Dolphins defensive end Olivier Vernon, was called for intentional grounding from his own end zone. Bills receiver Sammy Watkins was close to the pass down the left sideline, but the ruling gave Miami a 12-9 lead.

“That was the turning point of the game,” Dolphins defensive tackle Jared Odrick said. “It was huge.”

Buffalo had a chance to tie early in the fourth quarter, but Dan Carpenter’s 47-yard field-goal attempt went wide left.

With 11:35 left in the game, Tannehill added an 8-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jarvis Landry to give Miami a 19-9 lead.

Caleb Sturgis kicked a 32-yard field goal with 3:01 left to pad Miami’s advantage.

Tannehill completed 26 of 34 passes for 240 yards.

Orton finished 22-for-39 for 193 yards. Buffalo is 3-3 since switching to Orton as its starting quarterback.

“My job is to put points on the board,” Orton said. “Whatever I’ve got to do to get this offense better, I’m going to do.”

The Bills led 6-3 at halftime, scoring on Carpenter field goals of 33 and 21 yards. Miami got a 38-yard field goal by Sturgis on the game’s first drive but was then shut down before the break.

What the Dolphins said:

“Everyone in this locker room knew we hadn’t beaten them in three games. We had to play football.” — Running back Lamar Miller, on Miami snapping a three-game head-to-head losing streak against Buffalo.

What the Bills said:

“It’s not good enough. … We had two great drives in the first half, and (the fact that they) stalled (and resulted in field goals) is frustrating.” — Quarterback Kyle Orton, on his team’s performance.

What we learned about the Dolphins:

1. The offensive line is still a problem. A 22-9 victory over the Bills is nice, but it doesn’t wipe away the fact that the Dolphins gave up five sacks. The Dolphins played rookie Ja’Wuan James out of position at left tackle after he previously started on the right side all season. Miami also forced Dallas Thomas into the lineup at right tackle, and the Bills’ defensive linemen feasted.

2. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill and running back Lamar Miller are pretty tough. Tannehill, playing despite ankle and shoulder injuries, absorbed five sacks and still came up big with two second-half touchdown passes. Miller, playing despite a shoulder injury, rushed for a game-high 86 yards and an impressive 5.7-yard average.

–CB Brent Grimes had his three-game interception streak snapped. However, Grimes, whose five interceptions rank second in the NFL this season, did a nice job covering explosive Buffalo rookie WR Sammy Watkins, who had three catches for 32 yards.

–DE Cameron Wake had his five-game sack streak snapped. The streak tied his career high. On Thursday, Wake was held to one solo tackle and one assist.

–QB Ryan Tannehill, who played despite ankle and shoulder injuries, was impressive Thursday, completing 26 of 34 passes for 240 yards and two touchdowns. He was not intercepted, and he hung in the pocket despite being sacked five times. His only big mistake was a lost fumble.

–RB Lamar Miller ran 15 times for 86 yards. Playing despite a shoulder injury, Miller averaged an impressive 5.7 yards per carry. He also had a 33-yard run, the longest play from scrimmage in the game.

What we learned about the Bills:

1. Despite Thursday’s loss to Miami, Bills quarterback Kyle Orton has resurrected his career. You can forgive some NFL fans if they forgot about Orton after he was beaten out for Denver’s starting job by Tim Tebow in 2011. After being a victim of the storm that was Tebowmania, Orton spent two considerably more quiet seasons as Tony Romo’s backup in Dallas. Orton then forced his way out of Dallas and signed with Buffalo as the league’s most expensive backup quarterback at $5 million per year. That “backup” designation didn’t last, however, and Orton, 31, is now six games in to his status as starter and is 3-3. Against the Dolphins, Orton completed 22 of 39 passes for 193 yards and no interceptions. While he didn’t make the big mistake, he failed to get his team in the end zone. Nevertheless, Orton figures to get more chances this season.

2. Buffalo cornerback Leodis McKelvin is bad at predictions. Before the game, McKelvin said the Bills would beat the Dolphins “point-blank period.” Not only was he wrong, but he also got hurt, leaving the game in the first half due to an ankle injury.

–QB Kyle Orton entered Thursday’s game against Miami ranked ninth in the NFL with a 65.6 completion percentage. However, in a 22-9 loss to the Dolphins on Thursday, he completed just 56.4 percent (22 of 39) for 193 yards. He didn’t have a touchdown pass and also didn’t make the big mistake such as a fumble or interception. Orton, who is now 3-3 as a Bills starter, ultimately failed to get Buffalo into the end zone. Buffalo settled for three field goals.

–WR Sammy Watkins was held to three receptions for 32 yards Thursday at Miami. He also had one rush for 3 yards. The rookie caught eight passes for 117 yards and one touchdown in his first game against the Dolphins earlier this season.

–DE Mario Williams had 3.5 sacks Thursday, continuing his dominance against the Dolphins. In 11 career games vs. Miami, he has 13 sacks. Overall, this season, he has at least one sack in seven consecutive games.

–DT Marcell Dareus ranks first in the NFL among sacks by a defensive tackle with 10. The next best player in that category is Minnesota’s Tom Johnson with 5.5. However, on Thursday against Miami, Dareus was held to one solo tackle and one assist.