| 1995 Buffalo Bills season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Ralph Wilson |
| General manager | John Butler |
| Head coach | Marv Levy Elijah Pitts (interim) |
| Home stadium | Rich Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 10–6 |
| Division place | 1stAFC East |
| Playoffs | WonWild Card Playoffs (vs.Dolphins) 37–22 LostDivisional Playoffs (atSteelers) 21–40 |
| Pro Bowlers | DEBruce Smith OLBBryce Paup STSteve Tasker |
The1995 Buffalo Bills season was the franchise's 26th season in theNational Football League and the 36th overall. This was the last time the Bills won the division or won a playoff game until2020.
After suffering a losing seasonthe previous season, the 1995 Bills won theAFC East, and made the playoffs for the seventh time in eight seasons. They defeated the Miami Dolphins 37–22 in the Wild Card Game inDon Shula's final game as an NFL head coach. The following week they lost to the eventual AFC Champions, the Pittsburgh Steelers 40–21.
In his first season with the team,defensive endBryce Paup was namedNFL Defensive Player of the Year. Paup led the NFL with 17.5sacks, the fourth-highest single-season total of the 1990s.[1] During the season, head coachMarv Levy underwent successful treatment forprostate cancer; assistantElijah Pitts filled in as interim coach until Levy returned after a three-game absence.[2]
| Additions | Subtractions |
|---|---|
| LBBryce Paup (Packers) | WRDon Beebe (Panthers) |
| NTTed Washington (Broncos) | TEPete Metzelaars (Panthers) |
| DEJim Jeffcoat (Cowboys) | DEOliver Barnett (49ers) |
| SMike Dumas (Jaguars) | |
| LBDarryl Talley (Falcons) | |
| LBMarvcus Patton (Redskins) | |
| NTJeff Wright (retirement) | |
| NTMike Lodish (Broncos) |
| Round | Overall | Name | Position | Expansion team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 9 | Keith Goganious | Linebacker | Jacksonville Jaguars |
| 23 | 46 | Vince Marrow | Tight End | Carolina Panthers |
| 1995 Buffalo Bills draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 | Ruben Brown * | Guard | Pittsburgh | |
| 2 | 45 | Todd Collins | Quarterback | Michigan | |
| 3 | 76 | Marlon Kerner | Cornerback | Ohio State | |
| 3 | 96 | Damien Covington | Linebacker | NC State | |
| 4 | 109 | Ken Irvin | Cornerback | Memphis | |
| 4 | 113 | Justin Armour | Wide receiver | Stanford | |
| 4 | 131 | Tony Cline | Tight end | Stanford | |
| 5 | 144 | John Holecek | Linebacker | Illinois | |
| 6 | 185 | Shannon Clavelle | Defensive tackle | Colorado | |
| 7 | 221 | Tom Nütten | Center | Western Michigan | |
| 7 | 244 | Darick Holmes | Running back | Portland State | |
| Made roster * Made at least onePro Bowl during career | |||||
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Jason Anderson | Wide receiver | Eastern Washington |
| Carey Bender | Running back | Coe College |
| Travis Colquitt | Punter | Marshall |
| Eric Counts | Defensive tackle | NC State |
| Herve Damas | Linebacker | Hofstra |
| Randall Evans | Wide receiver | St. Augustine's (NC) |
| Che Foster | Fullback | Michigan |
| Myron Glass | Cornerback | Northern Iowa |
| Steve Harvey | Linebacker | Kansas |
| Michael Hendricks | Linebacker | Texas A&M |
| Adrian Hill | Wide Receiver | NC State |
| Terry Quinn | Safety | Louisville |
| Mike Sheldon | Guard | Grand Valley State |
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
| Quarterbacks(QB) Running backs(RB) Wide receivers(WR) Tight ends(TE) | Offensive linemen(OL) | Linebackers(LB)
Defensive backs(DB)
Special teams(ST) | Practice squad 53 active, 4 inactive, 2 practice squadReserve
|
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 3 | atDenver Broncos | L 7–22 | 0–1 | Mile High Stadium | 75,157 | |
| 2 | September 10 | Carolina Panthers | W 31–9 | 1–1 | Rich Stadium | 79,190 | |
| 3 | September 17 | Indianapolis Colts | W 20–14 | 2–1 | Rich Stadium | 62,499 | |
| 4 | Bye | ||||||
| 5 | October 2 | atCleveland Browns | W 22–19 | 3–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 76,211 | |
| 6 | October 8 | New York Jets | W 29–10 | 4–1 | Rich Stadium | 79,485 | |
| 7 | October 15 | Seattle Seahawks | W 27–21 | 5–1 | Rich Stadium | 74,362 | |
| 8 | October 23 | atNew England Patriots | L 14–27 | 5–2 | Foxboro Stadium | 60,203 | |
| 9 | October 29 | atMiami Dolphins | L 6–23 | 5–3 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 71,060 | |
| 10 | November 5 | atIndianapolis Colts | W 16–10 | 6–3 | RCA Dome | 59,612 | |
| 11 | November 12 | Atlanta Falcons | W 23–17 | 7–3 | Rich Stadium | 62,690 | |
| 12 | November 19 | atNew York Jets | W 28–26 | 8–3 | Giants Stadium | 54,436 | |
| 13 | November 26 | New England Patriots | L 25–35 | 8–4 | Rich Stadium | 69,384 | |
| 14 | December 3 | atSan Francisco 49ers | L 17–27 | 8–5 | Candlestick Park | 65,568 | |
| 15 | December 10 | atSt. Louis Rams | W 45–27 | 9–5 | Trans World Dome | 64,623 | |
| 16 | December 17 | Miami Dolphins | W 23–20 | 10–5 | Rich Stadium | 79,531 | |
| 17 | December 24 | Houston Oilers | L 17–28 | 10–6 | Rich Stadium | 45,253 | |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bills | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Broncos | 3 | 9 | 0 | 10 | 22 |
atMile High Stadium,Denver, Colorado
| Game information | ||
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The Bills first game in Denver since1977
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bills | 10 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 22 |
| Browns | 7 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 19 |
atCleveland Municipal Stadium •Cleveland, Ohio
| Game information | ||
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| Scoring summary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Starting QBs -> New York Jets:Boomer Esiason / Buffalo Bills:Jim Kelly
Vegas Line:Buffalo Bills −9.5 /// Over/Under:38.0 (over)
Thurman Thomas becomes the 11th player all-time to go over the 9,000 career rushing yard mark in this game.
Boomer Esiason was knocked out in the second quarter byBruce Smith, thus puttingBubby Brister into the game. On his first snap in the game, he fumbled the ball and turned it over to Buffalo.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jets | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| • Bills | 3 | 13 | 3 | 10 | 29 |
| Scoring summary | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jets | Passing | Bubby Brister | 13/23, 112 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Rushing | Adrian Murrell | 14 carries, 33 yards | |
| Receiving | Wayne Chrebet | 7 receptions, 74 yards, 1 TD | |
| Bills | Passing | Jim Kelly | 9/22, 101 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Rushing | Thurman Thomas | 27 carries, 133 yards, 1 TD | |
| Receiving | Russell Copeland | 5 receptions, 67 yards |
| Statistics | Jets | Bills |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 14 | 22 |
| Plays–yards | 53–173 | 67–318 |
| Rushes–yards | 21–51 | 45–220 |
| Passing yards | 122 | 98 |
| Passing:comp–att–int | 17–32–2 | 9–22–1 |
| Time of possession | 31:49 | 28:11 |
Elijah Pitts was theBuffalo Bills head coach for this game asMarv Levy was recovering from illness.
Starting QBs: Buffalo Bills:Jim Kelly vs Indianapolis Colts:Jim Harbaugh.
In this game,Jim Harbaugh started, but midway through the first quarterPaul Justin was put in by coachTed Marchibroda as Harbaugh was injured. This wasn't the end for the Colts QB situation, as Justin was hit byBryce Paup knocking him out of the game. Harbaugh came in briefly after Justin was knocked out, however,Craig Erickson came into the game to finish it out.
Vegas Line:Indianapolis Colts −4.0
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Bills | 10 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| Colts | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
| Scoring summary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 7 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| • Bills | 7 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 23 |
Starting QBs -> New York Jets:Boomer Esiason / Buffalo Bills:Jim Kelly
Vegas Line:Buffalo Bills −6.5 /// Over/Under:37.0 (over)
Boomer Esiason throws a last second hail mary TD pass toAdrian Murrell, however, failed on the 2-pt conversion to send the game into OT.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Bills | 7 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 28 |
| Jets | 3 | 0 | 10 | 13 | 26 |
| Scoring summary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bills | Passing | Jim Kelly | 22/37, 316 yards, 2 TD |
| Rushing | Thurman Thomas | 18 carries, 43 yards, 1 TD | |
| Receiving | Bill Brooks | 7 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TD | |
| Jets | Passing | Boomer Esiason | 24/43, 312 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT |
| Rushing | Adrian Murrell | 9 carries, 36 yards | |
| Receiving | Johnny Mitchell | 5 receptions, 87 yards, 1 TD |
| Statistics | Bills | Jets |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 20 | 17 |
| Plays–yards | 73–373 | 65–351 |
| Rushes–yards | 36–88 | 22–74 |
| Passing yards | 285 | 277 |
| Passing:comp–att–int | 22–37–0 | 24–43–2 |
| Time of possession | 31:12 | 28:48 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Bills | 7 | 14 | 14 | 10 | 45 |
| Rams | 10 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 27 |
| Q1 | 8:59 | BUF | Bill Brooks 23 yard pass fromJim Kelly (Steve Christie kick) | BUF 7–0 |
| Q1 | 5:29 | STL | Todd Kinchen 6 yard pass fromMark Rypien (Dean Biasucci kick) | Tie 7–7 |
| Q1 | 3:15 | STL | (Dean Biasucci 28 yard field goal) | STL 10–7 |
| Q2 | 7:52 | BUF | Thurman Thomas 1 yard pass from Jim Kelly (Steve Christie kick) | BUF 14–10 |
| Q2 | 5:29 | BUF | Darick Holmes 1 yard run (Steve Christie kick) | BUF 21–10 |
| Q2 | 0:00 | STL | (Dean Biasucci 37 yard field goal) | BUF 21–13 |
| Q3 | 6:29 | BUF | Steve Tasker 6 yard pass fromJim Kelly(Steve Christie kick) | BUF 28–13 |
| Q3 | 4:34 | STL | (Dean Biasucci 51 yard field goal) | BUF 28–16 |
| Q3 | 1:08 | BUF | Steve Tasker 28 yard pass fromJim Kelly(Steve Christie kick) | BUF 35–16 |
| Q4 | 6:52 | STL | (Dean Biasucci 25 yard field goal) | BUF 35–19 |
| Q4 | 6:40 | BUF | Darick Holmes 38 yard run (Steve Christie kick) | BUF 42–19 |
| Q4 | 3:54 | STL | Jessie Hester 5 yard pass fromMark Rypien,Johnny Bailey pass fromMark Rypien | BUF 42–27 |
| Q4 | 1:10 | BUF | (Steve Christie 28 yard field goal | BUF 45–27 |
| AFC East | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| (3)Buffalo Bills | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 350 | 335 | L1 |
| (5)Indianapolis Colts | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 331 | 316 | W1 |
| (6)Miami Dolphins | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 398 | 332 | W1 |
| New England Patriots | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 294 | 377 | L2 |
| New York Jets | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 233 | 384 | L4 |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dolphins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 22 |
| Bills | 10 | 14 | 3 | 10 | 37 |
atRich Stadium,Orchard Park, New York
In Buffalo's first playoff game since losingSuper Bowl XXVIII two seasons earlier, the Bills handled Miami easily by a score of 37–22 at Rich Stadium. Although Dolphins quarterbackDan Marino completed 33 out of 64 passes for 422 yards and two touchdowns, the Bills jumped to a 27–0 lead going into the fourth quarter, and rushed for an NFL playoff-record 341 yards, led by Thurman Thomas's 25 carries for 158 yards. The Bills forced four turnovers, including intercepting Marino three times, in the victory.[10] It was the final game of Don Shula's coaching career with the Dolphins.
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bills | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| Steelers | 7 | 16 | 3 | 14 | 40 |
atThree Rivers Stadium,Pittsburgh
Running backBam Morris scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter as the Steelers stopped the Bills from pulling off a comeback. Pittsburgh jumped to a 20–0 lead by the second quarter with running backJohn L. Williams's 1-yard touchdown, quarterbackNeil O'Donnell's 10-yard touchdown pass to wide receiverErnie Mills, and two field goals by Norm Johnson. However, Buffalo running backThurman Thomas scored a 1-yard touchdown run with 45 seconds left in the first half. But Johnson made a 34-yard field goal with eight seconds left to give the Steelers a 23–7 halftime lead. In the third quarter, Johnson added a 39-yard field goal before Bills tight end Tony Cline caught a 2-yard touchdown reception. With 11:23 left in the game, Thomas scored on a 9-yard touchdown reception to cut the lead to 26–21. In response, Pittsburgh drove 76 yards to score on Morris' 13-yard touchdown run. LinebackerLevon Kirkland then intercepted a pass to set up Morris' 2-yard score with 1:58 remaining to clinch the victory.[11] Bruce Smith was inactive for the game because he had the flu.[12]
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| Franchise | |
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| Lore | |
| Rivalries | |
| Division championships (15) | |
| Conference championships (4) | |
| League championships (2) | |
| Wall of Fame | |
| Media |
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| Current league affiliations |
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