1984 Buffalo Bills season

25th season in franchise history November 2013 March 2026 Buffalo Bills 1984 2–14 5th AFC East Kay Stephenson Ralph Wilson Rich Stadium Did not qualify RB Greg Bell Bills seasons The 1984 Buffalo Bills season was the franchise's 15th season in the National Football League, and the 25th overall. The team started the season with eleven consecutive losses before an upset home win over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 12. The 1984 Bills gave up a team-record 454 points on defense, an average of more than 28 per game.Pro-Football-Reference.com: Team Game Finder Query Results The Bills gave up 30+ points eight times and allowed fewer than 20 points in a game only three times all season. The Bills also allowed sixty quarterback sacks, for a total of 554 yards, the most-ever at the time.Pro-Football-Reference: In a single season, from 1978 to 2011, in the regular season, sorted by descending SackedThe record was later shattered by the Eagles in 1986. The Bills’ 4,341 total yards gained was second-worst in the league in 1984 (only the Colts gained fewer total yards).Pro-Football-Reference.com: 1984 NFL Standings, Team & Offensive Statistics The 1984 Bills are one of only two NFL teamsThe 1975 Bears are the other to have been outscored by 25 points six different times during the season.Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1940 to 2011, in the NFL, in the regular season, requiring Points Differential <= -25, sorted by most games in season matching criteria. This season is notable for being Pete Carroll’s first NFL coaching experience. The Bills failed to win a single road game. Offseason Uniform change For the third time in team history, the Bills changed their helmets. While keeping the streaking buffalo logo from the second change, the Bills changed their helmet color from white to red. They would keep the red helmet through the 2010 season.SportsLogos.net: Buffalo Bills Logos It was the Bills first major change to their helmets since changing from the "standing Bison" to the streaking buffalo before the 1974 season. Since three of the Bills' four AFC Eastern division opponents—Miami, Indianapolis and New England—then had white helmets (the Jets wore green helmets but would wear white ones from 1998 to 2018; the Patriots have used silver helmets since 1993), "it was easier for [Ferguson] to distinguish and that's the reason why we made the switch."ProFootballTalk.com: The story behind the Bills’ red helmets, 23 June 2011|Retrieved January 4, 2012]BuffaloBills.com: Untold uniform stories: Fergie behind helmet color change, 23 June 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20180215050646/http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-2/Untold-uniform-stories-Fergie-behind-helmet-color-change/363e8e60-8573-42ac-8f4a-2bb56169e127 February 15, 2018 |Retrieved January 4, 2012 Ferguson had thrown a high number of interceptions over the previous two seasons, and coach Kay Stephenson hoped it would help the quarterback reduce them. Ironically, 1984 was Ferguson's last year with the Bills, and only year with the red helmets; Ferguson, after 107 consecutive starts dating to the 1977 season (at the time tied with the league record), was benched in favor of Joe Dufek on September 30. Ferguson's interception total actually increased compared to the previous year, and he would go on to play for at least three more teams (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Indianapolis Colts and Canadian football's San Antonio Texans) that all had white helmets. The Bills wore white jerseys for all 1984 home games, the only time they have done so in franchise history. Buffalo wore white at home occasionally every other year from 1980 to 1986, and has done so since 2011. NFL draft 1984 NFL draft Notre Dame running back Greg Bell made the Pro Bowl in his rookie season; he was later traded to the Los Angeles Rams in the blockbuster three-team Eric Dickerson trade. Defensive end Sean McNanie played for the team for four of his seven NFL seasons. Punter John Kidd played his first six seasons with Buffalo; his career lasted a total of 15 seasons. 1984 Buffalo Bills 1 26 Greg Bell Running back Notre Dame yes yes 2 41 Eric Richardson Wide receiver San Jose State yes 3 77 Rodney Bellinger Defensive back Miami (FL) yes 3 79 Sean McNanie Defensive end San Diego State yes 3 82 Speedy Neal Running back Miami (FL) yes 4 95 Mitchell Brookins Wide receiver Illinois yes 5 128 John Kidd Punter Northwestern yes 6 155 Tony Slaton Center USC 7 182 Stan David Linebacker Texas Tech yes 8 209 Stacy Rayfield Defensive back Texas–Arlington 9 236 Leroy Howell Defensive end Appalachian State 10 263 Joe Azelby Linebacker Harvard yes 11 299 Craig White Wide receiver Missouri yes 12 322 Russell Davis Wide receiver Maryland no https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/buf/1984_draft.htm 1984 Buffalo Bills draftees Pro-Football-Reference.com November 15, 2014 Personnel Staff 1984 Buffalo Bills President – Ralph Wilson Senior executive vice-president – Pat McGroder Vice-president of administration/General Manager – Terry Bledsoe Vice-president of football operations – Kay Stephenson Vice-president of player personnel – Norm Pollom Director of pro personnel – Bill Polian Assistant director of player personnel – Bruce Nicholas Head coach – Kay Stephenson Quarterbacks – John Becker Running backs – Andy MacDonald Receivers – Milt Jackson Tight ends – Perry Moss Offensive line – Jim Niblack Defensive coordinator/defensive line – Don Lawrence Linebackers – Monte Kiffin Defensive backfield – Pete Carroll Defensive assistant – Miller McCalmon Special teams – Miller McCalmon Strength and Conditioning Coordinator – Jim Speros 1984 Buffalo Bills Media Guide 3–19 Roster 1984 Buffalo Bills 19 Joe Dufek 12 Joe Ferguson 10 Matt Kofler 28 Greg Bell running back, born 1962 y 34 Booker Moore 41 Speedy Neal y 40 Robb Riddick 23 Van Williams American football 81 Mitchell Brookins y 89 Julius Dawkins 83 Preston Dennard 85 Byron Franklin 88 Mike Mosley American football 27 Craig White American football y 84 Buster Barnett 86 Mark Brammer 87 Tony Hunter tight end 49 Ulysses Norris 73 Jon Borchardt G 70 Joe Devlin American football T 53 Will Grant C 72 Ken Jones American football T 61 Tom Lynch American football T/G 51 Jim Ritcher G 65 Tim Vogler G/C 75 Bill Acker NT 92 LeRoy Howell no y DE 91 Ken Johnson defensive end, born 1955 DE 95 Sean McNanie y DE 79 Dean Prater DE 76 Fred Smerlas NT 77 Ben Williams American football, born 1954 DE 50 Joe Azelby y ILB 59 Stan David OLB y 55 Jim Haslett ILB 52 Chris Keating OLB 54 Eugene Marve ILB 56 Darryl Talley OLB 60 Al Wenglikowski y OLB 43 Martin Bayless y SS 36 Rodney Bellinger y CB 30 Brian Carpenter American football CB 22 Steve Freeman American football SS 48 Lawrence Johnson American football CB 42 Rod Kush FS 26 Charles Romes CB 21 Don Wilson gridiron football y FS  4 John Kidd American football y P 13 Chuck Nelson K 80 Jerry Butler American football WR PUP 63 Justin Cross T IR -- Reggie Gipson y no RB IR 25 Rod Hill CB IR 38 Jeff Nixon S IR 74 Jimmy Payne no DE IR 58 Steve Potter no LB NF-Ill. 82 Eric Richardson American football y WR IR 57 Lucius Sanford LB IR -- Roger Taylor American football T IR Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 2 New England Patriots L 17–21 0–1 Rich Stadium 48,528 2 September 9 at St. Louis Cardinals L 7–37 0–2 Busch Memorial Stadium 35,785 3 September 17 Miami Dolphins L 17–21 0–3 Rich Stadium 65,455 4 September 23 New York Jets L 26–28 0–4 Rich Stadium 48,330 5 September 30 at Indianapolis Colts L 17–31 0–5 Hoosier Dome 60,032 6 October 7 Philadelphia Eagles L 17–27 0–6 Rich Stadium 37,555 7 October 14 at Seattle Seahawks L 28–31 0–7 Kingdome 59,034 8 October 21 Denver Broncos L 7–37 0–8 Rich Stadium 31,204 9 October 28 at Miami Dolphins L 7–38 0–9 Miami Orange Bowl 58,824 10 November 4 Cleveland Browns L 10–13 0–10 Rich Stadium 33,343 11 November 11 at New England Patriots L 10–38 0–11 Sullivan Stadium 43,313 12 November 18 Dallas Cowboys W 14–3 1–11 Rich Stadium 74,391 13 November 25 at Washington Redskins L 14–41 1–12 RFK Stadium 51,513 14 December 2 Indianapolis Colts W 21–15 2–12 Rich Stadium 20,693 15 December 8, 1984 at New York Jets L 17–21 2–13 Giants Stadium 45,378 16 December 16 at Cincinnati Bengals L 21–52 2–14 Riverfront Stadium 55,771 Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. Game summaries Week 3 (Monday, September 17, 1984): vs. Miami Dolphins The Football Database. Retrieved 2022-Jul-10. Buffalo Bills 1984 2; text-align:center collapsed Week 3: Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills September 17, 1984 9:01 p.m. EDT Dolphins (3–0) 7 7 7 0 Bills (0–3) 0 3 7 7 Rich Stadium • Orchard Park, New York 65,455 54 °F °C; wind 8 mph km/h knots Bob Frederic ABC Frank Gifford (play-by-play) and O. J. Simpson (color commentator) Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2021-Jun-06. right Miami Dolphins MIA Buffalo Bills BUF MIA BUF collapsed 1 2:09 Dolphins 8 62 5:13 RecTD Duper Marino 11 good von Schamann 7 0 2 5:04 Dolphins 9 52 4:20 RecTD Clayton Marino 12 good von Schamann 14 0 2 0:05 Bills 5 18 1:11 FG 33 Danelo 14 3 3 11:27 Dolphins 9 57 3:21 RecTD Moore Marino 1 good von Schamann 21 3 3 3:57 Bills 15 80 6:30 RushTD Williams 1 good Danelo 21 10 4 9:20 Bills 9 79 3:43 RecTD Dawkins Ferguson 13 good Danelo 21 17 21 17 Point spread: Over/under: Time of game: 3 hours, 15 minutes DolphinsGame statisticsBills First downs Rushes–yards Passing yards Passes Completions–Attempts–Interceptions Sacked–yards Net passing yards Total yards Return yards Punts Number–Average yardage Fumbles–lost Penalties–yards Time of Possession Buffalo had now gone the first three weeks without scoring a TD in the first half. Week 7 Bills 0 14 7 7 Seahawks 17 0 7 7 October 14 Kingdome 4:00 PM EDT 59,034 Dome Fred Wyant Rick Azar and Marv Levy ABC / Local Buffalo Broadcast / WKBW . Retrieved 2023-Sep-07. Week 9 (Sunday, October 28, 1984): at Miami Dolphins The Football Database. Retrieved 2022-Jul-10. Buffalo Bills 1984 2; text-align:center collapsed Week 9: Buffalo Bills at Miami Dolphins October 28, 1984 4:01 p.m. EST Bills (0–9) 0 0 0 7 Dolphins (9–0) 7 17 0 14 Miami Orange Bowl • Miami, Florida 58,824 Gene Barth NBC Charlie Jones (play-by-play) and Bob Griese (color commentator) Pro-Football-Reference.com right Buffalo Bills BUF Miami Dolphins MIA BUF MIA collapsed 1 3:18 Dolphins 7 80 3:06 RecTD Clayton Marino 7 good von Schamann 0 7 2 14:53 Dolphins 3 47 1:20 RecTD Johnson Marino 10 good von Schamann 0 14 2 7:55 Dolphins 10 77 4:50 FG 22 von Schamann 0 17 2 2:33 Dolphins 4 75 1:05 RecTD Clayton Marino 65 good von Schamann 0 24 4 14:19 Dolphins 7 64 3:42 RushTD Bennett 1 good von Schamann 0 31 4 3:26 Dolphins 12 68 7:44 RushTD Johnson 1 good von Schamann 0 38 4 1:22 Bills 10 75 2:04 RecTD Dennard Kofler 5 good Danelo 7 38 7 38 Point spread: Over/under: Time of game: 2 hours, 54 minutes BillsGame statisticsDolphins First downs Rushes–yards Passing yards Passes Completions–Attempts–Interceptions Sacked–yards Net passing yards Total yards Return yards Punts Number–Average yardage Fumbles–lost Penalties–yards Time of Possession Week 12 Cowboys 0 3 0 0 Bills 7 0 0 7 November 18 Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York 1:00 p.m. EST 74,391 38 °F °C 1; wind 17 mph km/h knot Bob McElwee Dick Stockton and Hank Stram CBS yes Q1 BUF Bell 85 yard run (Nelson kick) BUF 7–0 Q2 DAL Septien 20 yard field goal BUF 7–3 Q4 BUF Bell 3 yard pass from Ferguson (Nelson kick) BUF 14–3 yes Greg Bell 27 Rush, 206 Yds Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Nov-15. Week 13 Bills 0 7 7 0 Redskins 17 10 7 7 November 25 RFK Stadium 1:00 p.m. EST 51,513 43 F C 1 or, relative humidity 66%, wind 6 mph km/h knots Ben Dreith Jay Randolph & Reggie Rucker NBC Week 14 Colts 0 9 3 3 Bills 21 0 0 0 December 2 Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York 1:00 p.m. 35 °F °C 1; wind 14 mph km/h knot Pat Haggerty yes Q1 BUF Bell 7 yard run (Nelson kick) BUF 7–0 Q1 BUF Hunter 18 yard pass from Duek (Nelson kick) BUF 14–0 Q1 BUF Franklin 64 yard pass from Dufek (Nelson kick) BUF 21–0 Q2 IND Safety, Wilson tackled in end zone BUF 21–2 Q2 IND Middleton 14 yard pass from Schlichter (Allegre kick) BUF 21–9 Q3 IND Allegre 28 yard field goal BUF 21–12 Q4 IND Allegre 21 yard field goal BUF 21–15 yes Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Nov-16. Week 16 Bills 7 0 7 7 Bengals 7 21 3 21 December 16, 1984 Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio 1:00 p.m. EST 55,771 59 F C 1 or, wind 15 mph km/h knots Chuck Heberling Charlie Jones & Bob Griese NBC Standings Notes note References External links 1984 Buffalo Bills at Pro-Football-Reference.com Category:Buffalo Bills seasons Buffalo Bills Buffalo Bills