Established: 1959
Home Field: Orchard Park, New York
Owner(s): Ralph Wilson
General Manager: Russ Brandon
Head Coach: Dick Jauron
The Buffalo Bills were established in 1959 as part of the American Football League. They are named after William Frederick ‘Buffalo Bill’ Cody. They began to play competitively as a charter member of the AFL in 1960 and were later moved to the NFL as part of the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. They are now part of the AFC East. As part of the AFL, the Bills achieved success with back-to-back League Championships. Though, when they merged with the NFL in 1970, the team posted the worst overall record (1-13), scored the fewest points in the league (184), and allowed the most points (394). No NFL team has since posted all three in a single season in a non-strike year. Though, with a new coach in 1972 and a new stadium in 1973 seemingly turned the team around. It was the start of the ‘Electric Company’ era (composed of OJ Simpson, Jim Braxton, Paul Seymour and Joe DeLamielleure), and in 1973, the team posted its first winning record since 1966. They made their first NFL playoffs in 1974, but lost in the first round.
The Bills continued to have up and down seasons, peaking in the 90s in what is known as the Super Bowl years. During this decade, the Bills had substantial success, making it to the Super Bowl four times. Unfortunately, they were unable to capture the Super Bowl title, losing all four games. Since, they have been unable to replicate that success, and 1999 marked the last time the Buffalo Bills made it into the playoffs.
Championships
League Championships AFL: 1964, 1965
Conference Championships AFC: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993
Division Championships AFL East: 1964, 1965, 1966 AFC East: 1980, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995
Bills Trivia
- The team is the only New York based team that actually plays home games in New York State. Both the Jets and the Giants’ stadiums are in New Jersey.
- The Bills are the only team to play home games in Canada.
- Buffalo clobbered the Oakland Raiders 51-3 in January 1990 to reach their first ever Super Bowl.
