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NFL/Teams/Buffalo Bills
FRANCHISE

NFL franchise story

Buffalo Bills

Buffalo's story spans AFL championships, O.J. Simpson's rushing brilliance, the unprecedented four straight Super Bowls and Josh Allen's revival of a football-mad region.

Every era · The defining players · Five essential games

The franchise timeline

Every era of the Buffalo Bills.

Move through the franchise chronologically. The jerseys identify each chapter’s central cast, and every card opens the complete story of that era.

Historical reference: Buffalo Bills official NFL team page ↗
The beginning↓
01▼

Franchise era

1960—1965

01
BUFKEMP—Jack Kemp
BUFGILCHRIST—Cookie Gilchrist
BUFSESTAK—Tom Sestak

A defense-led back-to-back champion

The AFL champions

Lou Saban's Bills won consecutive AFL championships and established Buffalo as one of the young league's strongest organizations.

Read the era story →

Chapter 01

1960—1965

02▼

Franchise era

1966—1984

02
BUFSIMPSON—O.J. Simpson
BUFFERGUSON—Joe Ferguson
BUFDELAMIELLEURE—Joe DeLamielleure

Simpson runs into history

The Electric Company and Ground Chuck

An elite line powered Simpson's 2,003-yard season before Chuck Knox later returned Buffalo to the playoffs with a tougher, balanced roster.

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Chapter 02

1966—1984

03▼

Franchise era

1985—1996

03
BUFKELLY12Jim Kelly
BUFTHOMAS34Thurman Thomas
BUFSMITH78Bruce Smith

Four consecutive AFC championships

The K-Gun years

Kelly's no-huddle offense and a defense led by Smith reached four straight Super Bowls, an achievement defined equally by dominance and heartbreak.

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Chapter 03

1985—1996

04▼

Franchise era

1997—2016

04
BUFMOULDS80Eric Moulds
BUFJACKSON22Fred Jackson
BUFWILLIAMS95Kyle Williams

Great defenses and near misses without January

The seventeen-year drought

Buffalo cycled through coaches and quarterbacks while devoted fans waited through the league's longest active playoff drought.

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Chapter 04

1997—2016

05

Franchise era

2017—present

05
BUFALLEN17Josh Allen
BUFDIGGS14Stefon Diggs
BUFMILANO58Matt Milano

Arm strength, movement and a restored contender

The Josh Allen revival

Sean McDermott restored the playoffs, Allen developed into an elite quarterback and Buffalo became a permanent part of the AFC championship conversation.

Read the era story →

Chapter 05

2017—present

◆Present day

The essential watchlist

Five Buffalo Bills games to start with.

Curated from the franchise’s defining eras, championship stakes and the games that still carry its story.

#01 · Conference Championship

Conference Championship
1992
TENNESSEETITANS
BUFFALOBILLS
JAN 3, 1993

Oilers vs Bills

Jan 3, 1993

#02 · Super Bowl XXV

Super Bowl
XXV
NEW YORKGIANTS
BUFFALOBILLS
JAN 27, 1991

Giants vs Bills

Jan 27, 1991

#03 · Conference Championship

Conference Championship
2021
BUFFALOBILLS
KANSAS CITYCHIEFS
JAN 23, 2022

Bills vs Chiefs

Jan 23, 2022

#04 · Conference Championship

Conference Championship
1964
SAN DIEGOCHARGERS
BUFFALOBILLS
1964-12-26

San Diego Chargers vs Buffalo Bills

1964-12-26

#05 · Wild Card

Wild Card
1981
BUFFALOBILLS
NEW YORKJETS
1981-12-27

Buffalo Bills vs New York Jets

1981-12-27

Season history

Every season

67 seasons · newest first

Game archive

Latest games

1,078 total · loaded 10 at a time