1995 Buffalo Bills season

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 and won a playoff game until 2020.

1995 Buffalo Bills season
OwnerRalph Wilson
General managerJohn Butler
Head coachMarv Levy
Elijah Pitts (interim)
Home fieldRich 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 BowlersDE Bruce Smith
OLB Bryce Paup
ST Steve Tasker

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 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. Until 2020, this season was the last time the Bills won the AFC East, and the playoff win over Miami represents the last time that the Bills have won a playoff game until 2020.

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]

Off-season

1995 Expansion Draft
Main article: 1995 NFL expansion draft
Buffalo Bills selected during the Expansion Draft
Round Overall Name Position Expansion Team
59Keith GoganiousLinebackerJacksonville Jaguars
2346Vince MarrowTight EndCarolina Panthers

NFL Draft
Main article: 1995 NFL Draft
= Pro Bowler[3]
1995 Buffalo Bills Draft
RoundSelectionPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
1 14 Ruben Brown[4] G Pittsburgh
2 45 Todd Collins QB Michigan
3 76 Marlon Kerner CB Ohio State
96 Damien Covington LB North Carolina State
4 109 Ken Irvin CB Memphis
113 Justin Armour WR Stanford
131 Tony Cline TE Stanford
5 144 John Holecek LB Illinois
6 185 Shannon Clavelle DT Colorado
7 221 Tom Nütten C Western Michigan
244 Darick Holmes RB Portland 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

[5]

Roster
1995 Buffalo Bills roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists
  • 22 Jeff Burris CB/PR (IRTooltip Injured reserve)
  • 54 Herve Damas LB (IRTooltip Injured reserve)
  • 53 Steve Harvey LB (IRTooltip Injured reserve)
  • 55 Mark Maddox ILB (IRTooltip Injured reserve)


Practice squad

53 active, 4 inactive, 2 practice squad


Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 3 at Denver 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 at Cleveland 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 at New England Patriots L 14–27 5–2 Foxboro Stadium 60,203
9 October 29 at Miami Dolphins L 6–23 5–3 Joe Robbie Stadium 71,060
10 November 5 at Indianapolis 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 at New 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 at San Francisco 49ers L 17–27 8–5 Candlestick Park 65,568
15 December 10 at St. 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

Week 1 at Broncos
Week One: Buffalo Bills (0–0) at Denver Broncos (0–0)
Period 1 2 34Total
Bills 7 0 007
Broncos 3 9 01022

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)
Period 1 2 34Total
Bills 10 0 3922
Browns 7 3 6319

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)
1 234Total
Jets 0 370 10
• Bills 3 13310 29

[6]

[7]

TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
Jets PassingBubby Brister13/23, 112 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
RushingAdrian Murrell14 carries, 33 yards
ReceivingWayne Chrebet7 receptions, 74 yards, 1 TD
Bills PassingJim Kelly9/22, 101 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
RushingThurman Thomas27 carries, 133 yards, 1 TD
ReceivingRussell Copeland5 receptions, 67 yards

[8]

Statistics Jets Bills
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

[9]

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)
1 234Total
• Bills 10 600 16
Colts 7 030 10

[10]

Week 11
1 234Total
Falcons 7 370 17
• Bills 7 763 23

[11]

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)
1 234Total
• Bills 7 1470 28
Jets 3 01013 26

[12]

[13]

TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
Bills PassingJim Kelly22/37, 316 yards, 2 TD
RushingThurman Thomas18 carries, 43 yards, 1 TD
ReceivingBill Brooks7 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TD
Jets PassingBoomer Esiason24/43, 312 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT
RushingAdrian Murrell9 carries, 36 yards
ReceivingJohnny Mitchell5 receptions, 87 yards, 1 TD

[14]

Statistics Bills Jets
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

[15]

Week 15
1 234Total
• Bills 7 141410 45
Rams 10 3311 27
Scoring summary
Q18:59BUFBill Brooks 23 yard pass from Jim Kelly (Steve Christie kick)BUF 7–0
Q15:29STLTodd Kinchen 6 yard pass from Mark Rypien (Dean Biasucci kick)Tie 7–7
Q13:15STL(Dean Biasucci 28 yard field goal)STL 10–7
Q27:52BUFThurman Thomas 1 yard pass from Jim Kelly (Steve Christie kick)BUF 14–10
Q25:29BUFDarick Holmes 1 yard run (Steve Christie kick)BUF 21–10
Q20:00STL(Dean Biasucci 37 yard field goal)BUF 21–13
Q36:29BUFSteve Tasker 6 yard pass from Jim Kelly(Steve Christie kick)BUF 28-13
Q34:34STL(Dean Biasucci 51 yard field goal)BUF 28–16
Q31:08BUFSteve Tasker 28 yard pass from Jim Kelly(Steve Christie kick)BUF 35–16
Q46:52STL(Dean Biasucci 25 yard field goal)BUF 35–19
Q46:40BUFDarick Holmes 38 yard run (Steve Christie kick)BUF 42–19
Q43:54STLJessie Hester 5 yard pass from Mark Rypien, Johnny Bailey pass from Mark RypienBUF 42–27
Q41:10BUF(Steve Christie 28 yard field goalBUF 45–27

[16]

Standings
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

[17]

Playoffs

AFC Wild Card Game
Buffalo Bills 37, Miami Dolphins 22
Period 1 2 34Total
Dolphins 0 0 02222
Bills 10 14 31037

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.[18] It was the final game of Don Shula's coaching career with the Dolphins.

AFC Divisional Playoff
Pittsburgh Steelers 40, Buffalo Bills 21
Period 1 2 34Total
Bills 0 7 7721
Steelers 7 16 31440

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.[19] Bruce Smith was inactive for the game because he had a 106-degree fever; Smith wanted to play but the Bills' medical staff said "no".

Awards and honors

References
  1. "Player Season Finder Query Results - Pro-Football-Reference.com". PFRef.com. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  2. "Levy Tells Bills He Faces Cancer Surgery : Pro football: Coach will miss three games after prostate operation today in Buffalo". Associated Press. October 17, 1995. Retrieved February 11, 2017 – via LA Times.
  3. Players are identified as Pro Bowlers if they were selected for the Pro-Bowl at any time in their career.
  4. 9x pro bowler, 1996–2003
  5. "Administration, coaches and staff". 1995 Buffalo Bills Media Guide. pp. 5–26.
  6. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-05.
  7. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-05.
  8. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-05.
  9. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-05.
  10. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-05.
  11. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-04.
  12. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-06.
  13. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-06.
  14. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-06.
  15. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-06.
  16. . Retrieved 2020-Jul-03.
  17. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 291
  18. "Wild Card - Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills - December 30th, 1995". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  19. "Divisional Round - Buffalo Bills at Pittsburgh Steelers - January 6th, 1996". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  20. "AP Defensive Player of the Year Winners". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 13, 2018.
  21. "1995 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 13, 2018.
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