1995 Buffalo Bills - Reloaded for the Playoffs

by Bill Choinski

With the Buffalo Bills missing the playoffs for the first time in 7 seasons, the aging veteran roster underwent a major overhaul. The salary cap also necessitated that more pricey salaries had to be moved. Added to the mix was NFL expansion, with the Carolina Panthers and Jacksonville Jaguars added to the league. Claimed by Carolina in the expansion draft was TE Vince Marrow. LB Keith Goganious was selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars. But they weren’t the only Bills to end up on the respective rosters. Free Agent QB Frank Reich, TE Pete Metzelaars, and WR Don Beebe all found their way to Charlotte and played major roles on the expansion team.

GM John Butler also had to make some tough decisions with other fan favorites. RB Ken Davis retired after 9 seasons, 6 with the Bills. Guard John Davis, CB Micky Washington, NT Jeff Wright, and DT Mike Lodish also did not return. The biggest and saddest loss to the roster was 12 year defensive stalwart LB Darryl Talley. Talley was the heart and soul of a star studded defense and was the most underrated cog in the big play defense. He would sign with the Atlanta Falcons as a free agent.

It wasn’t all bad news on the personnel front. Replacing Talley was LB Bryce Paup from Green Bay. Massive DT Ted Washington was signed away from the Denver Broncos. Veteran DL Jim Jeffcoat was added off the Dallas Cowboys roster. The NFL Draft brought Guard Ruben Brown of Pittsburgh with the Bills top selection in Round 1. QB Todd Collins was the Bill’s second round pick followed by CB Marlon Kerner (3), LB Damien Covington (3), CB Ken Irvin, WR Justin Armour, & TE Tony Cline in the 4th round, LB John Holecek in the 5th, and RB Darick Holmes in the 7th.

Buffalo got off to an auspicious preseason, going 2-3 . They split with the Dallas Cowboys (21-15 loss in Dallas, 9-7 win in Toronto), Lost to the Steelers 31-10, and lost to the Chiefs on the road 36-10. They redeemed themselves with a 24-10 win over the Falcons at home to wrap up camp.

DENVER 22, BUFFALO 7

Buffalo opened the season with a loss to the Broncos in Denver. Trailing 3-0, Andre Reed put Buffalo on top with a 34 yard TD reception- capping a 7 play 77 yard drive. Denver reeled off 3 field goals in the 2nd quarter, the last coming on the half’s last play. Buffalo had an opportunity to turn the game around on the first drive of the 3rd quarter. Henry Jones picked off John Elway setting up the Bills in Denver territory. Buffalo drove to the Denver goal line, but on 4th and goal Carwell Gardner was stopped inches short. It was all Denver from then on out, as 5 Jason Elam FGs and a Terrell Davis TYD in the fourth sealed the Bills fate, 22-7.

BUFFALO 31, CAROLINA 9

Buffalo’s home opener featured the return of many familiar faces as the expansion Carolina Panthers came to town. QB Frank Reich, WR Don Beebe, and TE Pete Metzelaars. Carolina smelled upset when they jumped out to a 9-0 lead on the leg of Jim Kasay. Buffalo woke up out of their offensive funk in the 3rd quarter when Russell Copeland hauled in a 77 yard bomb from Jim Kelly to put Buffalo on the board. The play sparked a 28 point Buffalo outburst in a span of 9 minutes. Frank Reich was sacked on the next possession, forcing a punt and giving the Bills excellent field position. Thurman Thomas capped a 9 play 41 yard drive for his first TD on the season to give the Bills the lead. Following another Panther 3 and out, Buffalo’s offense went to work again. Kelly hit Thomas on a pass that he turned into a 60 yard gain. The play set up rookie Darick Holmes’ first pro TD of his career on a 5 yard run. 21 seconds later, Bills safety Kurt Schultz intercepted a Reich pass and returned it 32 yards for the fourth TD of the quarter. The Bills coasted the rest of the way, registering the 31-9 win. Buffalo registered 3 sacks in the win.

BUFFALO 20 INDIANAPOLIS 14

The Buffalo defense, retooled in the offseason, shined in the second half of the Bills 20-14 win over the Indianapolis Colts in week 2. The Colts began with an opening drive that featured 12 plays and ate up half the first quarter. Marshall Faulk capped the 65 yard drive with a 13 yard TD run. Buffalo answered with their own 7 minute drive, with Carwell Gardner tying the score by falling on a Bills fumble in the endzone. Faulk scored his second TD of the game midway through the second on an 18 yard pass from Jim Harbaugh. But the Bills needed only 1:42 to tie it again with a 2 yard run. The Bills defense dominated the second half, as Steve Christie provided a pair of FG’s to give Buffalo the winning edge, 20-14. Newcomer Bryce Paup was a force, getting 3 sacks, forcing 2 fumbles, and making 14 tackles. He won the NFL Defensive player of the week honor for the effort. Buffalo totaled 5 sacks for the game.

BUFFALO 22, CLEVELAND 19

After a rare early season bye week, the Bills were in Cleveland for a Monday Night Football appearance against the Browns. Buffalo opened with an impressive first drive, an 8 play, 48 yard march capped off with a Kelly to Justin Armour 14 yard TD pass. The Browns Tied the game 3 minutes later on a Derrick Alexander 69 yard punt return for a TD. The game them turned into a FG duel between Steve Christy and Browns kicker Matt Stover. Trailing 16-13 into the 4th, Kelly hit WR Andre Reed for 41 yards and the score. A missed extra point gave the Browns a chance to tie. With 3:49 in the game, Stover connected from 38 yards out to tie it at 19-19. Kelly then used the final 3:30 of the game to move Buffalo 60 yards in 8 plays- highlighted by a 20 yard catch by Russell Copeland. From the 14 yard line of the Browns, Christie booted the winning FG as time expired. Bills WR Andre Reed injured his hamstring and would be out for 10 weeks.

BUFFALO 29, NEW YORK JETS 10

The Buffalo Bills trademark special teams play broke open the game against the visiting New York Jets. After Steve Christie’s third FG of the game pushed the Buffalo lead to 9-3 late in the second quarter, the Bills forced a Jet fumble on the ensuing kickoff. Rookie Tim Tindale recovered at the Jet 15, setting up the Bills first touchdown. On the next play, Jim Kelly hit WR Billy Brooks on a scoring toss to give Buffalo a 16-3 halftime lead. New York would answer on their opening drive after the half with a 55 yard TD march in 11 plays. Wayne Cherbet drew the Jets within 16-10, but it would be the last points surrendered. Christie would tie a team record with his 4th and 5th FGs of the day. Thurman Thomas added an insurance TD with his 1 yard run in the 4th quarter as the Bills continued their winning ways.

BUFFALO 27, SEATTLE 21

Buffalo played host to the Seattle Seahawks and drove their record to 5-1 with a 27-21 victory. After a scoreless first quarter, Seattle jumped out to the lead on a RB Chris Warren’s 3 yard run. Seattle was driving for a second score when Kurt Schultz picked of Rick Mirer for his third interception in the past 3 games. Starting from their own 15, Kelly led the Bills on a 15 play 85 yard TD drive capped off with a spectacular Bill Brooks reception in the endzone. The Seahawks muffed the ensuing kickoff giving the Bill the ball back on the Seattle 17. The Bills managed a FG for a 10-7 lead at the half. Buffalo blew the game open in the third With Kelly TD passes to TE Lonnie Johnson and Bill Brooks, the second TD set up by Jeff Burris’ first career pick. A Rick Mirer TD pass to WR Joey Galloway put Seattle back into the game, But Christie added one more FG to give the Bills insurance in the 27-21 win. Bryce Paup continued his impressive season registering another 2 sacks.

NEW ENGLAND 27, BUFFALO 14

Buffalo’s 5 game win streak came to a halt on Monday Night Football in New England. Buffalo fumbled on their opening drive and the Patriots turned it into a TD on Curtis Martin’s 20 yard score. Bryce Paup got Buffalo on the board by recovering a fumble deep in Patriot territory, leading to a Christie FG. After a second Biolls FG , the Patriots jumped out to a 21-6 lead on a Vincent Brisby TD reception and a Dave Meggett 3 yard run. Just before the half, Kelly hooked up with Bill Brooks on a 45 yard TD pass. The Bills converted on the 2 point conversion, their first since 1968. Matt Bahr provided two second half FGs to give the Patriots the 27-14 win.

MIAMI 20, BUFFALO 6

The Bills fortunes did not change in Miami, as the Bills offense sputtered for the second straight game. Bernoe Parmalee and Terry Kirby each had a TD run in a 20-6 Dolphin win. Bryce Paup continued his monster season, registering his sack number 8 in 8 games as a Bill.

BUFFALO 16, INDIANAPOLIS 10

With the rematch with the Colts, the Bills got back on the winning track. Buffalo jumped out early, when Kelly connected with Bill Brooks on a 51 yard TD on Buffalo’s second play of the game. The Colts answered on their next drive with a Marshall Faulk TD. The Bills defense settled in while Christie ran off 3 FGs before the half. In the third, Buffalo stopped the Colts with a heroic goal line stand. On 4th and inches, Ted Washington collapsed the Colt line and nailed Faulk for a 2 yard loss. In the 4th, Bruce Smith forced a Faulk fumble which Henry Jones recovered. Bryce Paup registered 3 sacks on 3 different Colt QBs in the game. It was his 6th sack in 2 games vs Indianapolis on the season. The Bills would hang on for the 16-10 win.

BUFFALO 23, ATLANTA 17

Week 10 had the Buffalo Bills hosting the Atlanta Falcons at Rich Stadium. RB Craig Heyward gave the Falcons an early 7-0 lead, But Bill Brooks and Jim Kelly connected twice before the half for a 14-10 lead. After a Christie 3rd quarter FG, Heyward struck again with a 1 yard run. Christie added another pair of FGs to push the lead to 23-17. Falcon QB Jeff George mounted a final rally, but Bills safety Kurt Schultz picked him off in the endzone for the win- it was Schultz’s 6th interception on the year.

BUFFALO 28, NEW YORK JETS 26

Week 11 brought the Bills to the Meadowlands to face the Jets. Buffalo was victorious 28-26 with some last second heroics from the defense. Buffalo cruised to an early 21-3 lead at the half, on 2 TD receptions by Bill Brooks and a 12 yard Thomas TD run. The Jets mounted a comeback, with a 43 yard Johnny Mitchell TD pass from Boomer Esiason. Darick Holmes answered for Buffalo on a 6 yard run of his own to make the score 28- 10. The Jets mounted a furious comeback, scoring 2 TDs and a FG to close out the game. The final TD came on a 42 yard hail Mary pass with no time on the clock. Adrian Murrell came down with the score. However, Thomas Smith played the hero breaking up a 2 point conversion attempt and preserving the win. Kelly finished the game with 314 yards on the day, Esiason 312 in a classic QB duel. Brooks finished with 7 catches for 107 yards, and Steve Tasker had a career high 9 receptions for 91 yards. Tasker became more involved in the offense as a WR due to injuries.

NEW ENGLAND 35, BUFFALO 25

Buffalo met up with the Patriots for the second time in the season, and with the same result. Ben Coates and Bill Brooks traded TDs early in the game. Leading 12-10, Bills LB Cornelius Bennett stepped in front of a Drew Bledsoe pass and returned it 69 yards for a TD with 33 seconds in the half. Thurman Thomas’ 1 yard TD run gave the Bills a 25 13 lead with 6:15 remaining in the third. Bledsoe and Coates would hook up for their second and third TD’s of the game in the 4th quarter, the latter capping a 10 play 80 yard drive with 1:33 remaining in the game. The Bills trailed by 3, 28-25 when Bledsoe converted the 2 point conversion with Curtis Martin. The Bills were hurt by a missed conversion, and a second 2 point conversion that failed. Trying to drive the Bills into FG range, Kelly was picked off by Chris Slade who returned it 27 yards for the score. The Bills would lose, 35-25, but managed to hold on to first place in the AFC East.

SAN FRANCISCO 27, BUFFALO 17

Game 13 saw the Bills come out on the short end of the stick in a tough battle in Candlestick Park against the 49ers. After opening the game with a TD drive, the Buffalo defense put the clamps on the high owered San Francisco offense. Buffalo answered the opening drive with a 16 play drive of their own, that consumed almost 8 minutes. The drive was aided by a vintage 22 yard Thurman Thomas run to the 49er 9 yard line. The Bills had to settle for a Christie FG. The Buffalo defense pressured San Fran QB Steve Young all second quarter, with Brice Smith getting 2 sacks and Bryce Paup adding one more, the NFL leader with 16 on the season. Buffalo received the first good bounce in the game when a 29 yard TD pass intended for Lonnie Johnson deflected off the TE’s hands and into the arms of Justin Armour. The 49ers managed to drive for a game tying FG on the last play of the half to make it 10-10.

In the 3rd quarter, momentum was solidly behind the Bills. Steve Tasker returned a punt to the 49er 31 yard line, setting up what appeared to be a go ahead Buffalo TD. Darick Holmes plunged up the middle on first and goal from the 49er 1 yard line, but LB Gary Plummer forced the fumble . SD Safety Lee Woodall scooped up the loose ball and returned it 96 yards for the 17-10 lead, a lead the 49ers would not relinquish. Trailing 20-10 late, Buffalo refused to quit. Steve Tasker hauled in a 13 yard TD pass with 10:52 remaining. But San Francisco added a late Derrick Loville 8 yard TD run for the final score of 27-17.

BUFFALO 45, ST LOUIS 27

Week 14 found the Bills in St Louis playing the recently relocated Rams. The Buffalo offense had their best game of the season, scoring 6 TDs in a 45-27 win. Darick Holmes had a pair of TDs, and Thurman Thomas added 129 yards, including a 49 yard run , and scored once. Thomas became the club leader with his 42nd career 100 yard game. Steve Tasker added 2 TD receptions of his own during the game. Buffalo’s 45-27 victory moved them to 9-4 on the season and they remained 1 game on top of the AFC East with 2 to play- and the Miami Dolphins coming to town.

BUFFALO 23, MIAMI 20

Thurman Thomas continued his mastery over the Dolphins with season highs in rushes (35) and yards (148). Buffalo took a halftime lead of 13-3 on a pair of Christie FGs and a Thurman Thomas 2 yard run. A Fumble on the Bills 34 gave Miami a FG, and then on the ensuing drive Kelly was picked off, setting up a Marino to Eric Green 28 yard TD pass to tie the score at 13-13. Buffalo closed out the third quarter on Thomas’s second TD of the game, on an 11 yard pass. Bernie Parmalee answered with a TD of his own to knot the score at 20-20. The Bills swung the game when reserve LB David White picked off a Marino pass on first down and returned to to the Miami 11. Christie’s FG gave the Bills a slim 23-20 lead. Buffalo’s defense forced a Miami punt, and Thomas killed the remaining 4:30 of the game to preserve the 23-20 win. The victory clinched the Bills 6th Division crown in 8 seasons.

HOUSTON 23, BUFFALO 17

Buffalo had nothing to gain or lose in the season finale in Houston. With their playoff fate secure, they rested many regulars on offense and defense, Including NFL Sack leader Bryce Paup (17.5 on the season), Bruce Smith, Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, and Billy Brooks. Andre Reed did play in his first action in 10 weeks, scoring on a 15 yard TD pass from Alex Van Pelt, Todd Collins started the game, but was sacked 5 times. Houston rolled to an easy 28-17 win over the Bills, who were treating this as a glorified preseason game.

AFC Wild Card Playoff
Bills 37, Dolphins 22

The Bills improved to 9-0 at Rich Stadium in the postseason with their impressive 37-22 victory over their AFC East foe the Miami Dolphins in the first round of the AFC playoffs. The Bills jumped out to an early 7-0 lead on a seven play, 58-yard drive that resulted in a one-yard TD run by RB Thurman Thomas, who ran his consecutive postseason games with a TD streak to six games. Buffalo would never look back as they forced Miami into three downs and out before K Steve Christie added his first of three FGs to make the score 10-0.

The Bills defense stepped up at the start of the second quarter when Miami attempted a fourth-and-seven play from the Buffalo 32-yard line and were stopped. The Bills took over on downs and needed only four plays to march down the field for the score on RB Darick Holmes’ 21-yard run into the end zone. The score was set up by a vintage 32-yard burst by RB Thurman Thomas to the Dolphins 21-yard line. Thomas, who had his sixth career 100-yard rushing postseason game, would finish the day with 158 yards on 25 carries and the Bills’ 341 rushing yards would be the second highest total in NFL postseason history.

Buffalo crossed the goal line again on their next possession when QB Jim Kelly’s perfect 37-yard touch pass fell into the arms of WR Steve Tasker in the end zone to make the score 24-0 at halftime. Tasker would finish the first half with 108 yards receiving, the first 100-yard receiving game of his career. The scoring drive was set up by LB Marlo Perry’s first career interception at the Bills’ 38.

Buffalo added three more points to their lead late in the third quarter when Christie added a 23-yard FG to push the lead to 27-0. Miami finally got on the board on their first possession of the fourth quarter when QB Dan Marino hit WR O.J. McDuffie on a five-yard TD pass. The Bills punched in their final TD of the afternoon on RB Tim Tindale’s career-long 44-yard burst off the left side for the score. The Dolphins rebounded with another score before Christie added a 44-yard FG, the team’s final points of the day. The Dolphins added one final TD late in the game to provide for the final margin of victory, 37-22.

AFC Divisional Playoff
Steelers 40, Bills 21

The Bills’ Super Bowl dream came to a close on the frozen surface of Three Rivers Stadium with a 40-21 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round of the AFC playoffs. The Bills, playing without DE Bruce Smith who remained in Buffalo with the flu, quickly found themselves trailing 20-0 with under five minutes to play in the first half. Instead of packing it in, the Bills persevered and kept the game close by adding a one-yard RB Thurman Thomas TD plunge with under a minute remaining in the first half to close the gap to 20-7. For Thomas it was his seventh consecutive postseason game with a TD, second highest streak in NFL history.

The Steelers quickly regrouped to add a FG which made the score 23-7 at halftime. Pittsburgh added another three-pointer at the start of the third quarter before the Bills offense would get jump-started by a 40-yard run on a reverse by WR Steve Tasker. Two plays later backup QB Alex Van Pelt, in for a shaken QB Jim Kelly, hit TE Tony Cline on a two-yard TD pass to close the gap to 26-14. It was Cline’s first-career touchdown.

On their first possession of the final stanza the Bills drove 36 yards in six plays which was capped off by a nine yard pass from Kelly, who returned in the middle of the drive, to Thomas to make the score 26-21. For Thomas, it was his 18th postseason TD, making him the NFL’s career postseason TD leader at the time.

Pittsburgh took their ensuing possession and held onto the ball for 5:07 in driving 76 yards for the game-clinching TD to make the score 33-21. The Steelers added one more score in the waning moments to provide the final margin, 40-21.

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