List of Buffalo Bills in the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Last updated

The list of inductees into the Pro Football Hall of Fame includes players, coaches, and contributors (e.g., owners and team or league officials) who have "made outstanding contributions to professional football". The "charter" class of seventeen was selected in 1963. [1]

As of 2016, 13 inductees have played for, coached, or contributed to the Buffalo Bills. [2]

According to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, 10 of these men made the major part of their primary contribution to the Buffalo Bills. [3] James Lofton spent a minor portion of his career with the Bills, and two others were assistant coaches.

Hall of Famers with a StarIconBronze.png had a significant portion of their career with the Bills
Buffalo Bills
InducteeClassPositionSeasonsMajor part of Primary Contribution [3] Ref
Joe DeLamielleure 2003Offensive Guard1973–1979
1985		 StarIconBronze.png Selected by Bills in 1st round, 1973 draft, All-American at Michigan State, earned All-Rookie Honor, played in 185 consecutive games, was the 'anchor' of Bills' famed "ELECTRIC COMPANY" offensive line, best known as lead blocker for O.J. Simpson, NFL's first 2,000-yard rusher, 1973 - selected ALL-PRO and ALL-AFC 1975 through 1980, made six Pro Bowls, named to NFL's 1970s all-decade team
Also had major impact for the Cleveland Browns 		[4]
Jim Kelly 2002Quarterback1986–1996 StarIconBronze.png Selected by Bills in 1st round, 1983 draft, passed for more than 3,000 in a season eight times, Master of "No-Huddle" offense, led Buffalo to 8 postseason berths, starting QB in a record 4 straight AFC Championships and Super Bowls, named to 4 Pro Bowls - Career stats: 35,467 Yards, 237 Touchdowns, 84.4 Passer rating, Led NFL with 101.2 rating, 1990 [5]
Dick LeBeau 2010Asst. Head Coach2003 Detroit Lions as a Cornerback
(12 straight seasons with three or more interceptions. Voted to three consecutive Pro Bowls. All-NFL second-team four times. NFC-leading nine interceptions, 1970. - 62 career interceptions for 762 yards and three touchdowns, ranked third all-time at retirement.)		 [6]
Marv Levy 2001Coach
General Manager		1986–1997
2006–2007		 StarIconBronze.png Designed high-powered “No-Huddle" offense, record four consecutive Super Bowl appearances, 1988 NFL Coach of the Year, AFC Coach of the Year 1988, 1993, 1995 - had 154-120-0 overall record, his coaching victories ranked 10th in NFL history at his retirement, guided Buffalo to 8 playoff appearances in 11 seasons. [7]
James Lofton 2003Wide Receiver1989–1992 Green Bay Packers
More than 50 receptions in a season nine times. First NFL player to score a touchdown in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. - 16 seasons, 764 passes for 14,004 yards, which was the NFL record at the time of his retirement. All-Pro four times, All-NFC three times, Eight Pro Bowls.		 [8]
Bill Polian 2015Personnel Director

General Manager		1984

1985–1992		 StarIconBronze.png Turned fortunes around of three different teams with eight combined championship games, five Super Bowls appearances; Guided Buffalo to four straight division titles, three Super Bowl berths; Led Carolina to NFC championship in just second season; Colts GM for eight division titles, two Super Bowl appearances and Super Bowl XLI win; Named NFL’s Executive of Year by The Sporting News six times
Also had major impact for the Indianapolis Colts 		[9]
Andre Reed 2014Wide Receiver1985–1999 StarIconBronze.png Fourth round pick by Buffalo, 1985; His 941 career receptions are third all-time at the time of his retirement; 13,198 career receiving yards; Known for his “yards after catch,”; His 13 seasons with 50-plus receptions second only to Jerry Rice; All-AFC four times; Seven Pro Bowls [10]
Jim Ringo 1981Coach
Off. Coordinator		1976–1977
1985–1988		 Green Bay Packers as a Center
All-Pro before Packers dynasty years. All-NFL seven times. 10 Pro Bowls, three NFL championship games. Great down-field blocker, pass protector. Started in then-record 182 straight games, 1954–1967, playing through many injuries.		 [11]
Billy Shaw 1999Offensive Guard1961–1969 StarIconBronze.png First player to spend entire career in AFL to be elected to Hall of Fame, Two-way collegiate player, drafted by Cowboys (NFL) and Bills (AFL), chose Bills to play on offensive line, adept at both pass blocking and run blocking, was a driving force behind offensive unit that led Buffalo to back-to-back AFL championships in 1964, 1965, 8 AFL All-Star games - All AFL Team 5 times. [12]
O. J. Simpson 1985Running Back1969–1977 StarIconBronze.png Heisman trophy winner, 1968; number 1 NFL draft pick, 1969, career highlighted by 2,003 yards rushing 1973, unanimous All-Pro plus exceeded 1,000 yards rushing, 1972–1976, won four NFL rushing titles, career record 11,236 yards rushing, 203 receptions, 990 yards kickoff returns, 14,368 combined net yards. [13]
Bruce Smith 2009Defensive End1985–1999 StarIconBronze.png Bills’ first-round draft pick (1st player overall), 1985 NFL draft, considered one of the most dominant defensive players in NFL history, his 200 career sacks is the NFL all-time record, had 10 or more sacks in an NFL record 13 seasons, NFL Defensive player of the year, 1990 and 1996 - named to NFL's All Decade teams of the 1980s and 1990s, 1st or 2nd team ALL-PRO 11 times, chosen for 11 Pro Bowls. [14]
Thurman Thomas 2007Running Back1988–1999 StarIconBronze.png Bills’ 2nd round pick in 1988 NFL draft, led NFL in total yards from scrimmage a record 4 consecutive seasons, NFL’s most valuable player, 1991, rushed for 1,000 yards in 8 consecutive seasons His ability to catch the ball as well as run with it was a key ingredient to the Bills' "No-Huddle" offensive attack, 5 straight Pro-Bowls, career numbers 12,074 yards rushing and 16,532 all-purpose yards. [15]
Ralph Wilson 2009Team owner1959–2014 StarIconBronze.png Original owner in the American Football League - known among NFL owners as "the voice of reason,” for his ability to tackle some of the NFL's toughest issues. During his tenure as Bills owner, team won 2 AFL Championships and a remarkable 4 straight AFC championships. Bills 103 regular season wins were 2nd most in the NFL during 1990S. Began talks with Carroll Rosenbloom, then owner of NFL’s Colts in January 1965, that eventually resulted in AFL-NFL merger [16]

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References

  1. ↑ "History of the Pro Football Hall of Fame". ProFootballHallofFame.com. Retrieved 25 January 2010.
  2. ↑ "Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinees" . Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 "HALL OF FAMERS BY FRANCHISE". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Retrieved 21 May 2016.
  4. ↑ "Joe DeLamielleure HOF Page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  5. ↑ "Jim Kelly HOF Page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  6. ↑ "Dick LeBeau HOF Page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  7. ↑ "Marv Levy HOF Page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  8. ↑ "James Lofton HOF Page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  9. ↑ "Polian hall of Fame page". Pro Football HOF. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  10. ↑ "Andre Reed Hall of Fame page". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
  11. ↑ "Jim Ringo Hall of Fame page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  12. ↑ "Billy Shaw Hall of Fame page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  13. ↑ "O. J. Simpson Hall of Fame page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  14. ↑ "Bruce Smith Hall of Fame page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  15. ↑ "Thurman Thomas Hall of Fame page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  16. ↑ "Ralph Wilson Hall of Fame page" . Retrieved 24 May 2016.
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