1995 Buffalo Bills season

Last updated

1995 Buffalo Bills season
Owner Ralph Wilson
General manager John Butler
Head coach Marv Levy
Elijah Pitts (interim)
Home field Rich Stadium
Results
Record10–6
Division place1st AFC East
Playoff finishWon Wild Card Playoffs
(vs. Dolphins) 37–22
Lost Divisional Playoffs
(at Steelers) 21–40
Pro Bowlers DE Bruce Smith
OLB Bryce Paup
ST Steve Tasker

The 1995 Buffalo Bills season was the franchise's 26th season in the National Football League and the 36th overall. This was the last time the Bills won the division or won a playoff game until 2020.

Contents

After suffering a losing season the previous season, the 1995 Bills won the AFC East, and made the playoffs for the seventh time in eight seasons. They defeated the Miami Dolphins 37–22 in the Wild Card Game in Don 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 end Bryce Paup was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Paup led the NFL with 17.5 sacks, the fourth-highest single-season total of the 1990s. [1] During the season, head coach Marv Levy underwent successful treatment for prostate cancer; assistant Elijah Pitts filled in as interim coach until Levy returned after a three-game absence. [2]

Offseason

AdditionsSubtractions
LB Bryce Paup (Packers)WR Don Beebe (Panthers)
NT Ted Washington (Broncos)TE Pete Metzelaars (Panthers)
DE Jim Jeffcoat (Cowboys)DE Oliver Barnett (49ers)
S Mike Dumas (Jaguars)
LB Darryl Talley (Falcons)
LB Marvcus Patton (Redskins)
NT Jeff Wright (retirement)
NT Mike Lodish (Broncos)

1995 Expansion Draft

Buffalo Bills selected during the Expansion Draft
RoundOverallNamePositionExpansion Team
59 Keith Goganious Linebacker Jacksonville Jaguars
2346 Vince Marrow Tight End Carolina Panthers

NFL Draft

1995 Buffalo Bills draft
RoundPickPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
114 Ruben Brown  *  Guard Pittsburgh
245 Todd Collins   Quarterback Michigan
376 Marlon Kerner   Cornerback Ohio State
396 Damien Covington   Linebacker NC State
4109 Ken Irvin  Cornerback Memphis
4113 Justin Armour   Wide receiver Stanford
4131 Tony Cline   Tight end Stanford
5144 John Holecek  Linebacker Illinois
6185 Shannon Clavelle   Defensive tackle Colorado
7221 Tom Nütten   Center Western Michigan
7244 Darick Holmes   Running back Portland State
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Undrafted Free Agents

1995 Undrafted Free Agents of note
PlayerPositionCollege
Jason AndersonWide receiver Eastern Washington
Carey Bender Running back Coe College
Travis ColquittPunter Marshall
Eric CountsDefensive tackle NC State
Herve DamasLinebacker Hofstra
Randall EvansWide receiver St. Augustine's (NC)
Che FosterFullback Michigan
Myron GlassCornerback Northern Iowa
Steve HarveyLinebacker Kansas
Michael HendricksLinebacker Texas A&M
Adrian HillWide ReceiverNC State
Terry QuinnSafety Louisville
Mike Sheldon Guard Grand Valley State

Personnel

Staff

1995 Buffalo Bills staff

Front office

  • President – Ralph Wilson
  • Executive Vice President and General Manager – John Butler
  • Vice President of Football Operations – Marv Levy
  • Director of Pro Personnel – A. J. Smith
  • Director of Player Personnel – Dwight Adams

Head coaches

  • Head Coach – Marv Levy
  • Assistant Head Coach – Elijah Pitts
  • Administrative Assistant to the Head Coach – Chuck Lester

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches
  • Defensive Coordinator – Wade Phillips
  • Defensive Line – Dan Sekanovich
  • Linebackers – Ted Cottrell
  • Assistant Linebackers – Chuck Lester
  • Defensive Backs – Dick Roach

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning


[3]

Roster

1995 Buffalo Bills roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

 Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

 Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams

Practice squad

53 active, 4 inactive, 2 practice squadReserve


Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendance
1September 3at Denver Broncos L 7–220–1 Mile High Stadium 75,157
2September 10 Carolina Panthers W 31–91–1 Rich Stadium 79,190
3September 17 Indianapolis Colts W 20–142–1Rich Stadium62,499
4 Bye
5October 2at Cleveland Browns W 22–193–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 76,211
6October 8 New York Jets W 29–104–1Rich Stadium79,485
7October 15 Seattle Seahawks W 27–215–1Rich Stadium74,362
8October 23at New England Patriots L 14–275–2 Foxboro Stadium 60,203
9October 29at Miami Dolphins L 6–235–3 Joe Robbie Stadium 71,060
10November 5at Indianapolis Colts W 16–106–3 RCA Dome 59,612
11November 12 Atlanta Falcons W 23–177–3Rich Stadium62,690
12November 19at New York Jets W 28–268–3 Giants Stadium 54,436
13November 26 New England Patriots L 25–358–4Rich Stadium69,384
14December 3at San Francisco 49ers L 17–278–5 Candlestick Park 65,568
15December 10at St. Louis Rams W 45–279–5 Trans World Dome 64,623
16December 17 Miami Dolphins W 23–2010–5Rich Stadium79,531
17December 24 Houston Oilers L 17–2810–6Rich Stadium45,253

Season summary

Week 1 at Broncos

Week One: Buffalo Bills (0–0) at Denver Broncos (0–0)
Quarter1234Total
Bills 70007
Broncos 3901022

at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

Game information

The Bills first game in Denver since 1977

Week 5

Buffalo Bills (2–1) at Cleveland Browns (3–1)
Quarter1234Total
Bills1003922
Browns736319

at Cleveland Municipal Stadium • Cleveland, Ohio

Game information

Week 6

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 by Bruce Smith, thus putting Bubby Brister into the game. On his first snap in the game, he fumbled the ball and turned it over to Buffalo.

New York Jets (1–4) at Buffalo Bills (3–1)
1234Total
Jets037010
• Bills31331029



TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
JetsPassing 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
BillsPassing 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
StatisticsJetsBills
First downs1422
Plays–yards53–17367–318
Rushes–yards21–5145–220
Passing yards12298
Passing: comp–att–int17–32–29–22–1
Time of possession31:4928:11

[4]

Week 10

Elijah Pitts was the Buffalo Bills head coach for this game as Marv 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 quarter Paul Justin was put in by coach Ted Marchibroda as Harbaugh was injured. This wasn't the end for the Colts QB situation, as Justin was hit by Bryce 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

Buffalo Bills (5–3) at Indianapolis Colts (5–3)
1234Total
• Bills1060016
Colts703010

[5]

Week 11

1234Total
Falcons737017
• Bills776323

[6]

Week 12

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 to Adrian Murrell, however, failed on the 2-pt conversion to send the game into OT.

Buffalo Bills (7–3) at New York Jets(2–8)
1234Total
• Bills7147028
Jets30101326

[7]


TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
BillsPassing 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
JetsPassing 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
StatisticsBillsJets
First downs2017
Plays–yards73–37365–351
Rushes–yards36–8822–74
Passing yards285277
Passing: comp–att–int22–37–024–43–2
Time of possession31:1228:48

Week 15

1234Total
• Bills714141045
Rams10331127
Scoring summary
Q18:59BUF Bill Brooks 23 yard pass from Jim Kelly (Steve Christie kick)BUF 7–0
Q15:29STL Todd Kinchen 6 yard pass from Mark Rypien (Dean Biasucci kick)Tie 7–7
Q13:15STL(Dean Biasucci 28 yard field goal)STL 10–7
Q27:52BUF Thurman Thomas 1 yard pass from Jim Kelly (Steve Christie kick)BUF 14–10
Q25:29BUF Darick Holmes 1 yard run (Steve Christie kick)BUF 21–10
Q20:00STL(Dean Biasucci 37 yard field goal)BUF 21–13
Q36:29BUF Steve Tasker 6 yard pass from Jim Kelly(Steve Christie kick)BUF 28–13
Q34:34STL(Dean Biasucci 51 yard field goal)BUF 28–16
Q31:08BUF Steve Tasker 28 yard pass from Jim Kelly(Steve Christie kick)BUF 35–16
Q46:52STL(Dean Biasucci 25 yard field goal)BUF 35–19
Q46:40BUF Darick Holmes 38 yard run (Steve Christie kick)BUF 42–19
Q43:54STL Jessie Hester 5 yard pass from Mark Rypien, Johnny Bailey pass from Mark Rypien BUF 42–27
Q41:10BUF(Steve Christie 28 yard field goalBUF 45–27

[8]

Standings

AFC East
WLTPCTPFPASTK
(3) Buffalo Bills 1060.625350335L1
(5) Indianapolis Colts 970.563331316W1
(6) Miami Dolphins 970.563398332W1
New England Patriots 6100.375294377L2
New York Jets 3130.188233384L4

[9]

Playoffs

AFC Wild Card Game

Buffalo Bills 37, Miami Dolphins 22
Quarter1234Total
Dolphins0002222
Bills101431037

at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York

In Buffalo's first playoff game since losing Super Bowl XXVIII two seasons earlier, the Bills handled Miami easily by a score of 37–22 at Rich Stadium. Although Dolphins quarterback Dan 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.

AFC Divisional Playoff

Pittsburgh Steelers 40, Buffalo Bills 21
Quarter1234Total
Bills077721
Steelers71631440

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh

Running back Bam 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 back John L. Williams's 1-yard touchdown, quarterback Neil O'Donnell's 10-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Ernie Mills, and two field goals by Norm Johnson. However, Buffalo running back Thurman 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. Linebacker Levon 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]

Awards and honors

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References

  1. ↑ "NFL Sacks Single-Season Leaders (since 1960)". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Levy Tells Bills He Faces Cancer Surgery : Pro football: Coach will miss three games after prostate operation today in Buffalo". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. October 17, 1995. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  3. ↑ "Administration, coaches and staff". 1995 Buffalo Bills Media Guide. pp. 5–26.
  4. ↑ "New York Jets at Buffalo Bills - October 8th, 1995". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  5. ↑ "Buffalo Bills at Indianapolis Colts - November 5th, 1995". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Atlanta Falcons at Buffalo Bills - November 12th, 1995". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
  7. ↑ "Buffalo Bills at New York Jets - November 19th, 1995". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
  8. ↑ "Buffalo Bills at St. Louis Rams - December 10th, 1995". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
  9. ↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN   0-7611-2480-2, p. 291
  10. ↑ "Wild Card – Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills – December 30th, 1995". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Divisional Round – Buffalo Bills at Pittsburgh Steelers – January 6th, 1996". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  12. ↑ "Buffalo's Smith sacked by flu". Tampa Bay Times. September 15, 2005. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  13. ↑ "AP Defensive Player of the Year Winners". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 13, 2018.
  14. ↑ "1995 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 13, 2018.
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