2009 Buffalo Bills season

2009 Buffalo Bills season
Bills 50th season logo
Owner	Ralph Wilson
General manager	Russ Brandon
Head coach	Dick Jauron (fired Week 10, 3–6 record) Perry Fewell (interim, 3–4 record)
Home field	Ralph Wilson Stadium Rogers Centre
Results
Record	6–10
Division place	4th AFC East
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	S Jairus Byrd
←  2008 Bills seasons 2010  →

The 2009 season was the Buffalo Bills' 40th season in the National Football League (NFL) the 50th overall and the fourth and final under the head coach Dick Jauron.

The Bills were unable to improve upon their third consecutive 7–9 regular-season record (2006, 2007 and 2008) and failed to make the playoffs for the 10th consecutive year, the longest-standing playoff drought in the NFL which did not end until the 2017 season.

Jauron returned as head coach for a fourth season, the first Bills coach since Marv Levy to receive a contract extension beyond three years. He was fired on November 17 after a 3–6 start and replaced on an interim basis by defensive coordinator Perry Fewell, who was fired at the end of the season but not before starting Ryan Fitzpatrick for the rest of the season.

With the 2009 season, the Bills became one of only two non-expansion teams to not make the playoffs in the 2000s (the other being the Detroit Lions).

Offseason

Notable roster additions

• WR Terrell Owens – Signed March 7. – Former Team: Dallas Cowboys
• CB Drayton Florence – Signed March 3. – Former Team: Jacksonville Jaguars
• QB Ryan Fitzpatrick – Signed February 27. – Former Team: Cincinnati Bengals
• C Geoff Hangartner – Signed February 28. – Former team: Carolina Panthers
• RB Dominic Rhodes – Signed April 18. But released September 5 – Former Team: Indianapolis Colts

Notable roster losses

• OG Derrick Dockery – Released February 26. Dockery re-joined the Washington Redskins.
• QB J. P. Losman – Allowed to leave as a free agent. After not receiving any interest from the NFL, signed with the Las Vegas Locomotives of the United Football League in June 2009.
• TE Robert Royal – Released February 26. Royal signed a contract to join the Cleveland Browns.
• LT Jason Peters – Traded to the Philadelphia Eagles. Traded for the 28th (Eric Wood) and 121st pick (Shawn Nelson) in the 2009 NFL draft and a conditional 6th round pick in the 2010 NFL draft.
• LT/RT Langston Walker – Released September 8. Re-signed with the Oakland Raiders.

NFL draft

Main article: 2009 NFL draft

The Bills drafted three players—Eric Wood, Andy Levitre and Jairus Byrd—who would later become starters on the team. Byrd was runner-up in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting. First round pick Aaron Maybin was released from the Bills shortly before the 2011 season after two disappointing seasons with the team.

= Pro Bowler [1]

Round	Pick #	Player	Position	College
1	11	Aaron Maybin	Defensive end	Penn State
1	28	Eric Wood	Center	Louisville
2	42	Jairus Byrd [2]	Safety	Oregon
2	51	Andy Levitre	Guard	Oregon State
4	121	Shawn Nelson	Tight end	Southern Miss
5	147	Nic Harris	Safety	Oklahoma
6	183	Cary Harris	Cornerback	USC
7	220	Ellis Lankster	Cornerback	West Virginia

Undrafted free agents

2009 undrafted free agents of note

Player	Position	College
Nick Hennessey	Tackle	Colgate
Ryan Manalac	Linebacker	Cincinnati
Ashlee Palmer	Linebacker	Ole Miss
Garrison Sanborn	Long snapper	Florida State

Staff

Buffalo Bills 2009 staff
Front office Owner/founder/president – Ralph Wilson Head coaches Head coach – Dick Jauron Assistant head coach/special teams coordinator – Bobby April Assistant to the head coach/special projects – Chuck Lester Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks – Alex Van Pelt Running game coordinator/running backs – Eric Studesville Wide receivers – Tyke Tolbert Tight ends – Charlie Coiner Offensive line – Sean Kugler Assistant offensive line – Ray Brown Offensive quality control – Nathaniel Hackett			Defensive coaches Interim head coach/defensive coordinator – Perry Fewell Defensive line – Bob Sanders Linebackers – Matt Sheldon Defensive backs – George Catavolos Defensive/special teams assistant – Cannon Matthews Defensive quality control – Adrian White Pass rush consultant – Joe Kim Special teams coaches Special teams assistant/assistant linebackers – DeMontie Cross Strength and conditioning Head strength and conditioning – John Allairie Strength and conditioning assistant – Dan Liburd

Roster

2009 Buffalo Bills roster

Quarterbacks (QB)  4 Brian Brohm  5 Trent Edwards 14 Ryan Fitzpatrick 10 Gibran Hamdan Running backs (RB) 22 Fred Jackson KR/PR 23 Marshawn Lynch 38 Corey McIntyre FB Wide receivers (WR) 83 Lee Evans 84 James Hardy 17 Justin Jenkins 13 Stevie Johnson 81 Terrell Owens 11 Roscoe Parrish KR/PR 82 Josh Reed Tight ends (TE) 87 Joe Klopfenstein 89 Shawn Nelson 88 Jonathan Stupar

Offensive linemen (OL) 73 Kirk Chambers T 61 Christian Gaddis C/G 63 Geoff Hangartner C 74 Nick Hennessey T 62 Richie Incognito G 67 Andy Levitre G 69 Jamon Meredith G/T 76 Andre Ramsey T 79 Jonathan Scott T Defensive linemen (DL) 92 Ryan Denney DE 93 Chris Ellis DE 91 Spencer Johnson DT 90 Chris Kelsay DE 58 Aaron Maybin DE 97 John McCargo DT 94 Aaron Schobel DE 99 Marcus Stroud DT 95 Kyle Williams DT

Linebackers (LB) 57 Jon Corto OLB 52 Chris Draft OLB 96 Ryan Manalac OLB 59 Ashlee Palmer OLB 51 Paul Posluszny MLB 43 Bryan Scott OLB/SS 50 Josh Stamer MLB Defensive backs (DB) 27 Reggie Corner CB 29 Drayton Florence CB 47 Cary Harris FS 25 Ellis Lankster CB 21 John Wendling SS 20 Donte Whitner FS 37 George Wilson SS 26 Ashton Youboty CB Special teams  9 Rian Lindell K  8 Brian Moorman P 65 Garrison Sanborn LS

Practice squad 72 Rashaad Duncan DT 42 Bruce Hall RB 98Lonnie Harvey DT 18 C. J. Hawthorne WR (IR) 15 Felton Huggins WR 75 Corey Mace DT 66 Jason Watkins T Reserve 77 Demetress Bell T(IR) 53 Marcus Buggs LB (IR) 60 Brad Butler T (IR) 31 Jairus Byrd S (IR) 56 Keith Ellison LB (IR) 86 Derek Fine TE (IR) -- Justise Hairston RB (IR) 54 Nic Harris LB (IR) 35 Todd Johnson S (IR) 24 Terrence McGee CB (IR) -- Jermaine McGhee DE (IR) 28 Leodis McKelvin CB/KR (IR) 68 Seth McKinney C/G (IR) 55 Kawika Mitchell LB (IR) -- Marvin Philip C (IR) 40 Lydell Sargeant CB (IR) 80 Derek Schouman TE (IR) 71 Kendall Simmons G (IR) -- Marcus Smith DT (IR) 70 Eric Wood G (IR) Rookies in italics 53 active, 21 reserve, 6 practice squad

Preseason

Preseason

The Bills were selected to play against the Tennessee Titans in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on August 9, 2009; the game seeks to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the American Football League. Bills owner Ralph Wilson was among the 2009 inductees to the Hall and is one of the two surviving original AFL owners, the other being Titans owner Bud Adams. Each team wore their AFL throwback uniforms, with the Titans in Houston Oilers uniforms, as the team played in Houston until the early-1990s.

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game site	NFL.com recap
HOF	August 9	at Tennessee Titans	L 18–21	0–1	Fawcett Stadium (Canton)	Recap
1	August 15	Chicago Bears	W 27–20	1–1	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap
2	August 22	at Green Bay Packers	L 21–31	1–2	Lambeau Field	Recap
3	August 29	at Pittsburgh Steelers	L 0–17	1–3	Heinz Field	Recap
4	September 3	Detroit Lions	L 6–17	1–4	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap

Schedule

The Bills played a 16-game schedule in 2009, in accordance with the NFL scheduling formula. The schedule consisted of six games against their AFC East divisional rivals (two each against the Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, and New York Jets), four intra-conference games versus the AFC South (one game each against the Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Tennessee Titans), four inter-conference games against teams from the NFC South (one game each against the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers), and two games against the remaining two AFC teams that, like Buffalo, finished fourth in their respective divisions in 2008 (one game each versus the Cleveland Browns and Kansas City Chiefs). For the first time, the Bills faced the Buccaneers in Buffalo; in the 33-year history of the Tampa Bay franchise, all previous regular-season games between the two teams have been held in Tampa, Florida.

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game site	NFL.com recap
1	September 14	at New England Patriots	L 24–25	0–1	Gillette Stadium	Recap
2	September 20	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 33–20	1–1	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap
3	September 27	New Orleans Saints	L 7–27	1–2	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap
4	October 4	at Miami Dolphins	L 10–38	1–3	Land Shark Stadium	Recap
5	October 11	Cleveland Browns	L 3–6	1–4	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap
6	October 18	at New York Jets	W 16–13 (OT)	2–4	Giants Stadium	Recap
7	October 25	at Carolina Panthers	W 20–9	3–4	Bank of America Stadium	Recap
8	November 1	Houston Texans	L 10–31	3–5	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap
9	Bye
10	November 15	at Tennessee Titans	L 17–41	3–6	LP Field	Recap
11	November 22	at Jacksonville Jaguars	L 15–18	3–7	Jacksonville Municipal Stadium	Recap
12	November 29	Miami Dolphins	W 31–14	4–7	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap
13	December 3	New York Jets	L 13–19	4–8	Rogers Centre (Toronto)	Recap
14	December 13	at Kansas City Chiefs	W 16–10	5–8	Arrowhead Stadium	Recap
15	December 20	New England Patriots	L 10–17	5–9	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap
16	December 27	at Atlanta Falcons	L 3–31	5–10	Georgia Dome	Recap
17	January 3, 2010	Indianapolis Colts	W 30–7	6–10	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap

Standings

AFC East
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
(3) New England Patriots	10	6	0	.625	4–2	7–5	427	285	L1
(5) New York Jets	9	7	0	.563	2–4	7–5	348	236	W2
Miami Dolphins	7	9	0	.438	4–2	5–7	360	390	L3
Buffalo Bills	6	10	0	.375	2–4	4–8	258	326	W1

Regular season

Week 1

1 2 3 4 Total Bills 7 7 3 7 24 •Patriots 0 10 0 15 25 Date: September 14 Location: Gillette Stadium • Foxborough, Massachusetts Game start: 7:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 68,756 Game weather: 70 °F (21 °C) (Clear) Referee: Scott Green TV announcers (ESPN): Mike Tirico, Ron Jaworski, Jon Gruden & Suzy Kolber

The Bills began their season at Gillette Stadium for an AFL Legacy duel with their AFC East rival, the New England Patriots, in the first game of a MNF doubleheader. Buffalo got off to a fast start in the first quarter as quarterback Trent Edwards completed an 11-yard touchdown pass to rookie tight end Shawn Nelson. The Patriots would respond in the second quarter as running back Fred Taylor got a 1-yard touchdown run, yet Buffalo came right back as defensive end Aaron Schobel returned an interception 26 yards for a touchdown. New England would close out the half with kicker Stephen Gostkowski getting a 20-yard field goal.

In the third quarter, the Bills would add to their lead as kicker Rian Lindell made a 40-yard field goal. In the fourth quarter, the Patriots replied with Gostkowski nailing a 28-yard field goal. Buffalo would increase their lead as Edwards completed a 10-yard touchdown pass to running back Fred Jackson. With just over 5 minutes to play, The Patriots would strike back as quarterback Tom Brady completed an 18-yard touchdown pass to tight end Benjamin Watson (with a failed two-point conversion). On the ensuing kickoff, cornerback Leodis McKelvin got the kickoff from his own endzone and got as far as the Bills 31-yard line, where he was stripped of the ball and New England's Gostkowski recovered. This would eventually set up Brady's 16-yard touchdown pass to Watson (with another failed two-point conversion). With under a minute to play Buffalo tried to respond, but the Patriots' defense was too much to overcome.

With the bitter loss, the Bills began their season at 0–1.

Week 2

1 2 3 4 Total Buccaneers 0 14 0 6 20 •Bills 17 3 0 13 33 Date: September 20 Location: Ralph Wilson Stadium • Orchard Park, New York Game start: 4:05 p.m. EST Game attendance: 70,318 Game weather: 74 °F (23 °C) (Sunny) Referee: Ron Winter TV announcers (Fox): Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston & Tony Siragusa

Hoping to rebound from a tough loss to the Patriots, the Bills would play their Week 2 home opener in an interconference duel with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. This would be the first time that Buffalo ever hosted Tampa Bay in a regular season game, having played a preseason game with each other in 1977. In the first quarter, the Bills came out firing as quarterback Trent Edwards completed a 32-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lee Evans, safety Donte Whitner returning an interception 76 yards for a touchdown and kicker Rian Lindell making a 31-yard field goal. The Buccaneers would get on the board in the second quarter as quarterback Byron Leftwich completed a 42-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kellen Winslow, while Buffalo replied with Lindell getting a 43-yard field goal. Tampa Bay would close out the half as Leftwich completed an 8-yard touchdown pass to running back Carnell "Cadillac" Williams. After a scoreless third quarter, the Bills began to pull away as Lindell got a 43-yard field goal and Edwards completed a 43-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Terrell Owens. The Buccaneers tried to rally as Leftwich completed a 6-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jerramy Stevens (with a failed two-point conversion), yet Buffalo closed out the game with Lindell nailing a 20-yard field goal. With the win, the Bills improved to 1–1.

Week 3

1 2 3 4 Total •Saints 7 3 0 17 27 Bills 0 7 0 0 7 Date: September 27 Location: Ralph Wilson Stadium • Orchard Park, New York Game start: 4:05 p.m. EST Game attendance: 70,261 Game weather: 64 °F (18 °C) (Cloudy) Referee: Walt Anderson TV announcers (Fox): Ron Pitts & John Lynch

Coming off their win the Buccaneers, the Bills stayed at home for a Week 3 interconference duel with the New Orleans Saints. Buffalo would trail early as Saints running back Lynell Hamilton got a 1-yard touchdown run. The Bills would answer in the second quarter on a fake field goal attempt, punter Brian Moorman threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to defensive end Ryan Denney. New Orleans would close out the half with kicker John Carney's 27-yard field goal. After a scoreless third quarter, the Saints took control in the fourth quarter with running back Pierre Thomas' 34-yard touchdown run, Carney's 35-yard field goal and Thomas' 19-yard touchdown run. With the loss, Buffalo fell to 1–2.

Week 4

1 2 3 4 Total Bills 0 3 0 7 10 •Dolphins 0 17 14 7 38 Date: October 4 Location: Land Shark Stadium • Miami Gardens, Florida Game start: 4:05 p.m. EST Game attendance: 65,523 Game weather: 88 °F (31 °C) (Sunny) Referee: Carl Cheffers TV announcers (CBS): Kevin Harlan & Solomon Wilcots

Hoping to rebound from their home loss to the Saints, the Bills flew to Land Shark Stadium for a Week 4 AFC East duel with the Miami Dolphins. After a scoreless first quarter, Buffalo would find themselves trailing in the second as Dolphins kicker Dan Carpenter got a 33-yard field goal, followed by cornerback Vontae Davis returning an interception 23 yards for a touchdown. The Bills would get on the board with a 35-yard field goal from kicker Rian Lindell, but Miami would answer with running back Ronnie Brown's 1-yard touchdown run.

The Dolphins' domination continued into the third quarter with quarterback Chad Henne completing a 5-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Brian Hartline, followed by a 1-yard touchdown run by running back Ricky Williams. Buffalo tried to salvage the game in the fourth quarter with quarterback Trent Edwards completing a 3-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Josh Reed, but Miami would close out the game with Brown's 4-yard touchdown pass.

With the loss, the Bills fell to 1–3.

Week 5

1 2 3 4 Total •Browns 0 3 0 3 6 Bills 0 0 3 0 3 Date: October 11 Location: Ralph Wilson Stadium • Orchard Park, New York Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 70,526 Game weather: 47 °F (8 °C) (Mostly Sunny) Referee: Jerome Boger TV announcers (CBS): Don Criqui & Randy Cross

The Bills, hoping to shake off a loss to the winless Miami Dolphins on the road the week before, faced the 0–4 Cleveland Browns at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The wind played a factor throughout the game, making it difficult for both teams to sustain drives in the air. The Browns and Bills traded punts in the first quarter until the Bills had a drive end at their own 47 after turning it over on downs. This stop led to the only points of the first half by the Browns, a 24-yard field goal by backup kicker Billy Cundiff. Cundiff was the starter at kicker for the Browns due to the injury to their regular kicker Phil Dawson.

In the second half, the longest drive by the Bills in the game was in their opening possession, which led to a successful 36-yard field goal by Bills kicker Rian Lindell to tie the game at 3. Later in the third quarter, each quarterback threw an interception, first Trent Edwards of the Bills to cornerback Eric Wright of the Browns, and then Derek Anderson of the Browns to Bills' safety Jairus Byrd. Deadlocked at 3 apiece going into the fourth quarter, both offenses continued to be stifled. However, a special teams blunder by Bills punt returner Roscoe Parrish allowed the Browns to set up at the Buffalo 16-yard line after Parrish muffed the punt. From this turnover, the Browns were able to win the game on an 18-yard field goal by Cundiff with 23 seconds left to play. This loss dropped the Bills' record to 1–4, with the division rival New York Jets next up on the schedule in the Meadowlands. The Browns improved their record to 1–4. During the game, the Bills lost two defensive starters to injury who were carted off the field- linebacker Kawika Mitchell and linebacker Marcus Buggs.

In this loss, the Bills earned the dubious distinction of losing to a quarterback with the worst completion percentage in NFL history in a win (minimum of 10 attempts), the Browns Derek Anderson, who completed just 2 out of 17 passes for just 23 yards- a percentage of 11.7%. Joe Ferguson (Buffalo) won a game on September 29, 1974, against the New York Jets while completing neither of his two pass attempts in the last NFL game won by a team without a pass completion. ^[3]

Week 6

1 2 3 4 OT Total •Bills 3 0 10 0 3 16 Jets 3 10 0 0 0 13 Date: October 18 Location: Giants Stadium • East Rutherford, New Jersey Game start: 4:15 p.m. EST Game attendance: 76,048 Game weather: 44 °F (7 °C) (Cloudy) Referee: Walt Coleman TV announcers (CBS): Dick Enberg & Dan Fouts

Trying to snap a three-game losing streak, the Bills flew to The Meadowlands for a Week 6 AFC East duel with the New York Jets. In the first quarter, Buffalo got the initial strike as kicker Rian Lindell got a 33-yard field goal. The Jets would answer with a 23-yard field goal from kicker Jay Feely. New York would take the lead in the second quarter Feely's 41-yard field goal and running back Thomas Jones' 71-yard touchdown run.

In the third quarter, the Bills fought back as Lindell nailed a 25-yard field goal, followed by quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick completing a 37-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lee Evans. Both teams would fight hard throughout the fourth quarter and eventually, Lindell got a chance to kick a last-second field goal. However, his 46-yard attempt went wide right, sending the game into overtime. In overtime, both teams would slug it out with each other throughout most of the quarter. In the end, Buffalo emerged victorious as Lindell booted the game-winning 47-yard field goal.

With the win, not only did the Bills improve to 2–4, but the defense managed to record five interceptions (two for rookie safety Jairus Byrd, one for safety George Wilson, one for cornerback Reggie Corner, and one for linebacker Paul Posluszny).

Starting quarterback Trent Edwards (5/5 for 43 yards) left the game in the second quarter with a concussion.

Week 7

1 2 3 4 Total •Bills 7 0 0 13 20 Panthers 0 2 0 7 9 Date: October 25 Location: Bank of America Stadium • Charlotte, North Carolina Game start: 4:05 p.m. EST Game attendance: 73,497 Game weather: 67 °F (19 °C) (Mostly Cloudy) Referee: Terry McAulay TV announcers (CBS): Gus Johnson & Steve Tasker

Coming off their thrilling overtime road win over the Jets, the Bills flew to Bank of America Stadium for a Week 7 interconference duel with the Carolina Panthers. With quarterback Trent Edwards recovering from a concussion, quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick was given the start.

Buffalo delivered the opening charge in the first quarter with a 7-yard touchdown run from running back Marshawn Lynch. In the second quarter, the Panthers got on the board as defensive tackle Hollis Thomas tackled running back Fred Jackson in his own endzone for a safety.

After a scoreless third quarter, the Bills increased their lead in the fourth quarter with Fitzpatrick completing a 2-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lee Evans, followed by a 29-yard field goal from kicker Rian Lindell. Carolina tried to rally as running back DeAngelo Williams got a 15-yard touchdown run, yet Buffalo pulled away with Lindell's 22-yard field goal.

With the win, the Bills improved to 3–4.

Week 8

1 2 3 4 Total •Texans 0 6 3 22 31 Bills 7 3 0 0 10 Date: November 1 Location: Ralph Wilson Stadium • Orchard Park, New York Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 69,790 Game weather: 49 °F (9 °C) (Partly Cloudy) Referee: Gene Steratore TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle & Rich Gannon

Coming off their road win over the Panthers, the Bills went home for a Week 8 duel with the Houston Texans. In the first quarter, Buffalo struck first as wide receiver Terrell Owens got a 29-yard touchdown run. The Texans would answer in the second quarter with a 42-yard and a 22-yard field goal from kicker Kris Brown. The Bills would end the half with kicker Rian Lindell's 21-yard field goal.

Houston would creep closer in the third quarter with Brown booting a 26-yard field goal. In the fourth quarter, the Texans would take the lead and never look back as running back Ryan Moats got three touchdown runs of 11 yards (followed by quarterback Matt Schaub's 2-point conversion pass to wide receiver Andre Johnson), 1 yard, and 3 yards.

With the loss, Buffalo went into their bye week at 3–5.

Despite the loss, rookie safety Jairus Byrd once again had two interceptions. He would become the first rookie and only the second player in NFL history to have three-straight multi-interception games.

Week 10

1 2 3 4 Total Bills 7 7 3 0 17 •Titans 14 3 0 24 41 Date: November 15 Location: LP Field • Nashville, Tennessee Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 69,143 Game weather: 68 °F (20 °C) (Sunny) Referee: John Parry TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle & Rich Gannon

Coming off their bye week, the Bills flew to LP Field, donned their throwbacks, and played a Week 10 AFL Legacy game with the Tennessee Titans. In the first quarter, Buffalo struck first with a trick play as running back Fred Jackson completed a 27-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lee Evans. The Titans would answer with a 28-yard touchdown run from running back Chris Johnson and quarterback Vince Young's 14-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Nate Washington. Tennessee would add onto their lead in the second quarter with a 38-yard field goal from kicker Rob Bironas. The Bills would close out the half with quarterback Trent Edwards' 8-yard touchdown pass to Evans. Buffalo would tie the game in the third quarter with kicker Rian Lindell nailing a 25-yard field goal, but the Titans would pull away in the fourth quarter with Johnson's 1-yard touchdown run, Bironas' 51-yard field goal, safety Vincent Fuller returning an interception 26 yards for a touchdown and cornerback Rod Hood returning an interception 31 yards for a touchdown. With the loss, not only did the Bills fall to 3–6, but head coach Dick Jauron would get fired two days later. ^[4]

Week 11

1 2 3 4 Total Bills 6 3 6 0 15 • Jaguars 3 7 0 8 18 Date: November 22 Location: Jacksonville Municipal Stadium • Jacksonville, Florida Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 47,757 Game weather: 74 °F (23 °C) (Light Rain) Referee: Mike Carey TV announcers (CBS): Bill Macatee & Steve Beuerlein

Hoping to rebound from their loss to the Titans, the Bills flew to Jacksonville Municipal Stadium for an intraconference duel with the Jacksonville Jaguars. In the 1st quarter Buffalo trailed early as kicker Josh Scobee made a 29-yard field goal. Then the Bills came on top with kicker Rian Lindell hitting a 26 and a 28-yard field goal. The Bills fell behind in the 2nd quarter when RB Maurice Jones-Drew got a 3-yard touchdown run. Then the Bills would score to end the half with Lindell nailing a 22-yard field goal. In the third quarter Buffalo took the lead with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick making a 98-yard touchdown pass to WR Terrell Owens (with a failed 2-point conversion attempt). In the fourth quarter Buffalo fell behind again with QB David Garrard making a 3-yard touchdown pass to WR Mike Sims-Walker (With a successful QB sneak to make the two-point conversion). With the loss, the Bills fell to 3–7 in Perry Fewell's first game as interim head coach.

Week 12

1 2 3 4 Total Dolphins 0 7 7 0 14 •Bills 0 7 0 24 31 Date: November 29 Location: Ralph Wilson Stadium • Orchard Park, New York Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 70,155 Game weather: 49 °F (9 °C) (Sunny) Referee: Jeff Triplette TV announcers (CBS): Gus Johnson & Steve Tasker

Trying to snap a three-game losing streak, the Bills went home, donned their throwback uniforms (again), and played a Week 12 AFC East rematch with the Miami Dolphins. After a scoreless first quarter, Buffalo would trail early in the second quarter as Dolphins quarterback Chad Henne threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Brian Hartline. The Bills would tie the game with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick getting an impressive 31-yard touchdown run.

Miami would retake the lead in the third quarter with a 1-yard touchdown run from running back Ricky Williams, yet Buffalo's offense would explode with points in the fourth quarter. It would begin with running back Fred Jackson's 3-yard touchdown run and continued with kicker Rian Lindell booting a 56-yard field goal. Afterwards, Fitzpatrick would hook up with wide receiver Terrell Owens on a 51-yard touchdown pass, while Jackson got a 7-yard touchdown run.

With the win, the Bills improved to 4–7.

Week 13

1 2 3 4 Total •Jets 3 13 0 3 19 Bills 3 7 0 3 13 Date: December 3 Location: Rogers Centre • Toronto, Ontario Game start: 8:20 p.m. EST Game attendance: 51,567 Game weather: Indoors (Roof Closed) Referee: Scott Green TV announcers (NFL Network): Bob Papa & Matt Millen

In their second-ever regular season game north of the border, Buffalo traveled to Toronto to take on divisional rivals the New York Jets. The team traded field goals in the first quarter before the Bills took a 10–6 lead after a 15-yard touchdown run from Marshawn Lynch. The Jets regained the lead after quarterback Mark Sanchez threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Braylon Edwards. The teams went scoreless in the third quarter that was notable for Sanchez suffering a sprained Posterior cruciate ligament to his right knee. The team again traded field goals in the final quarter. Buffalo had a chance to take the lead or at least tie in the final two minutes, but quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick threw an interception to Darrelle Revis, sealing the victory for the Jets. With the loss, Buffalo fell to 4–8 overall and 1–2 since firing Jauron.

Week 14

1 2 3 4 Total •Bills 7 3 3 3 16 Chiefs 0 3 7 0 10 Date: December 13 Location: Arrowhead Stadium • Kansas City, Missouri Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 68,668 Game weather: 42 °F (6 °C) (Mostly Cloudy) Referee: Alberto Riveron TV announcers (CBS): Bill Macatee & Steve Beuerlein

Week 15

1 2 3 4 Total •Patriots 0 14 3 0 17 Bills 3 0 0 7 10 Date: December 20 Location: Ralph Wilson Stadium • Orchard Park, New York Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 70,000 Game weather: 28 °F (−2 °C) (Cloudy) Referee: Tony Corrente TV announcers (CBS): Greg Gumbel & Dan Dierdorf

Week 16

1 2 3 4 Total Bills 0 0 3 0 3 •Falcons 7 3 14 7 31 Date: December 27 Location: Georgia Dome • Atlanta, Georgia Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 68,887 Game weather: Indoors (Dome) Referee: Bill Leavy TV announcers (CBS): Bill Macatee & Steve Beuerlein

Week 17

1 2 3 4 Total Colts 7 0 0 0 7 •Bills 7 17 6 0 30 Date: January 3 Location: Ralph Wilson Stadium • Orchard Park, New York Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 69,848 Game weather: 12 °F (−11 °C) (Snow) Referee: Don Carey TV announcers (CBS): Bill Macatee & Steve Beuerlein

Scoring summary 1 9:25 BUF Fred Jackson 11-yard pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick (Rian Lindell kick) Bills 7–0 1 3:52 IND Mike Hart 1-yard run (Matt Stover kick) Tie 7–7 2 5:02 BUF Lee Evans 21-yard pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick (Rian Lindell kick) Bills 14–7 2 2:28 BUF Terrell Owens 41-yard pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick (Rian Lindell kick) Bills 21–7 2 :14 BUF Rian Lindell 31-yard field goal Bills 24–7 3 7:32 BUF Rian Lindell 33-yard field goal Bills 27–7 3 :14 BUF Rian Lindell 36-yard field goal Bills 30–7

Buffalo won its season finale for the first time since 2002.

References

1. Players are identified as a Pro Bowler if they were selected for the Pro-Bowl at any time in their career.
2. voted to Pro Bowl as a rookie
3. "New York Jets at Buffalo Bills - September 29th, 1974".
4. Clayton, John (November 17, 2009). "Struggling Bills fire coach Jauron after 3-6 start". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 2, 2024.

External links

• 2009 Buffalo Bills season at Pro Football Reference
• 2009 Buffalo Bills season at ESPN