1965 Buffalo Bills season

6th season in franchise history, second league championship November 2013 February 2026 Buffalo Bills 1965 10–3–1 1st AFL Eastern Lou Saban Ralph Wilson War Memorial Stadium Won AFL Championship(at Chargers) 23–0 Bills seasons The 1965 Buffalo Bills season was the team's sixth season in the American Football League. Though not as statistically dominant as the previous season, the Bills won a second consecutive league championship. Although Buffalo's offense was in the middle of the pack in 1965, it was their dominant team defense that kept them atop the league's standings. Buffalo gave up only 226 points (16.1 per game), fewest in the AFL, and one point fewer than AFL Championship runner-up San Diego.Pro-Football-Reference.com: 1965 AFL Opposition & Defensive Statistics The Bills' opportunistic defense led the league in interceptions, with 32, and gave up a league-low four rushing touchdowns all season. Between week 6 of the 1964 season, through week eight of the 1965 season, including two 1964 playoff games, the Bills' defense did not allow a touchdown by rushing, a Professional Football record that still stands. The Bills, who had led the AFL in points, rushing yards and total yards the previous season, suffered significantly after losing star running back Cookie Gilchrist in the offseason. Statistically, the Bills dropped to 6th (out of 8) in rushing yards, and 7th in passing yards. Still, they managed to finish 3rd in the AFL in points scored, with 313 (22.3 per game).Pro-Football-Reference.com: 1965 AFL Standings, Team & Offensive Statistics The Bills' turnover ratio was +18, best in the AFL, and fourth best in AFL history.Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1960 to 1969, in the AFL, in the regular season, sorted by descending Turnover Margin Buffalo's +87 point differential was second-best in the league in 1965. Seven Bills made the 1965 AFL All-Star team: safety George Saimes, cornerback Butch Byrd, linebacker Mike Stratton, defensive tackle Tom Sestak, guard Billy Shaw, kicker Pete Gogolak, and quarterback Jack Kemp.Pro-Football-Reference.com: 1965 AFL All-Pros Personnel Coaches/Staff 1965 Buffalo Bills staffFront office President/owner – Ralph Wilson Vice-president/minority owner – Pat McGroder Head coaches Head coach – Lou Saban Offensive coaches Running backs/wide receivers – John Mazur Offensive line – Jerry Smith Defensive coaches Linebackers/Defensive Backs – Joe Collier Final roster 1965 Buffalo Bills roster Quarterbacks 15 Jack Kemp 12 Daryle Lamonica Running backs 30 Wray Carlton 33 Billy Joe 20 Bobby Smith 32 Donnie Stone Wide receivers 48 Pete Mills 46 Bo Roberson 40 Ed Rutkowski Tight ends 82 Paul Costa 84 Ernie Warlick Offensive linemen 77 Stew Barber T 60 Dave Behrman C 50 Al Bemiller G 73 George Flint G 79 Dick Hudson T 67 Joe O'Donnell T/G 66 Billy Shaw G Defensive linemen 88 Tom Day DE 78 Jim Dunaway DT 72 Ron McDole DE 75 Dudley Meredith DT/DE 76 Henry Schmidt DT 70 Tom Sestak DT Linebackers 64 Harry Jacobs MLB 52 Bill Laskey OLB 56 Marty Schottenheimer MLB 58 Mike Stratton OLB 51 John Tracey OLB Defensive backs 42 Butch Byrd CB 45 Hagood Clarke SS 24 Booker Edgerson CB 49 Floyd Hudlow FS 27 Tom Janik SS 26 George Saimes FS 22 Charley Warner CB Special teams  3 Pete Gogolak K 55 Paul Maguire P Taxi squad 81 Bill Groman WR -- Mailon Kent QB -- Howard Simpson DE Reserve list 85 Glenn Bass WR (IR) 7px -- Jim Davidson T (IR) 7px 44 Elbert Dubenion WR (IR) 7px 80 Charley Ferguson WR (IR) 7px 35 Doug Goodwin RB (IR) 7px 74 Tom Keating DT (IR) 7px 65 Remi Prudhomme G/C (IR) 7px 23 Gene Sykes S (IR) 7pxNote: rookies in italics Offseason The Bills lost All-AFL running back Cookie Gilchrist to the Denver Broncos after the 1964 season. Bills running back Wray Carlton would take over as the Bills' lead back. AFL draft 1965 American Football League draft Standings Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap 1 September 11 Boston Patriots W 24–7 1–0 War Memorial Stadium 45,502 Recap 2 September 19 at Denver Broncos W 30–15 2–0 Bears Stadium 30,682 Recap 3 September 26 New York Jets W 33–21 3–0 War Memorial Stadium 45,056 Recap 4 October 3 Oakland Raiders W 17–12 4–0 War Memorial Stadium 41,256 Recap 5 October 10 San Diego Chargers L 3–34 4–1 War Memorial Stadium 45,260 Recap 6 October 17 at Kansas City Chiefs W 23–7 5–1 Municipal Stadium 26,941 Recap 7 October 24 Denver Broncos W 31–13 6–1 War Memorial Stadium 45,046 Recap 8 October 31 Houston Oilers L 17–19 6–2 War Memorial Stadium 44,267 Recap 9 November 7 at Boston Patriots W 23–7 7–2 Fenway Park 24,415 Recap 10 November 14 at Oakland Raiders W 17–14 8–2 Frank Youell Field 19,352 Recap 11 Bye 12 November 25 at San Diego Chargers T 20–20 8–2–1 Balboa Stadium 27,473 Recap 13 December 5 at Houston Oilers W 29–18 9–2–1 Rice Stadium 23,087 Recap 14 December 12 Kansas City Chiefs W 34–25 10–2–1 War Memorial Stadium 40,298 Recap 15 December 19 at New York Jets L 12–14 10–3–1 Shea Stadium 57,396 Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. Player stats Passing PlayerCompAttYdsCompletion %TDINT Jack Kemp 179391 236845.8 10 18 Daryle Lamonica 2970 376 41.43 6https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/buf/1965.htm 1965 Buffalo Bills Statistics & Players Pro-Football-Reference.com Rushing PlayerAttYdsAverageLongTD Wray Carlton 156592 3.8 806 Postseason Round Date Opponent Result Venue Attendance Recap Championship December 26 at San Diego Chargers W 23–0 Balboa Stadium 30,361 Recap AFL Championship Game 1965 American Football League Championship Game Bills 0 14 6 3 23 Chargers 0 0 0 0 0 Buffalo Bills 23, San Diego Chargers 0 December 26, 1965, at Balboa Stadium, San Diego, CaliforniaAttendance: 30,361 Scoring BUF – Warlick 18 pass from Kemp (Gogolak kick) BUF – Byrd 74 punt return (Gogolak kick) BUF – Field goal Gogolak 11 BUF – Field goal Gogolak 39 BUF – Field goal Gogolak 32 AFL All-Star Game Season Date Winner Most Valuable Player(s) Site1965January 15, 1966 AFL All-Stars 30, Buffalo Bills 19 Offense: Joe Namath, QB, JetsDefense: Frank Buncom, LB, ChargersRice Stadium, Houston Awards and Records Lou Saban, Coach of the Year References 35em Further reading Jeffrey J. Miller, Rockin' the Rockpile: The Buffalo Bills of the American Football League. Toronto, ON: ECW Press, 2007. Jeffrey J. Miller and Greg D. Tranter, Relics: The History of The Buffalo Bills in Objects and Memorabilia. Haworth, NJ: St. Johann Press, 2021. Sal Maiorana, Buffalo Bills: The Complete Illustrated History. Minneapolis, MN: MVP Books, 2010. Buffalo Bills Category:American Football League championship seasons Category:Buffalo Bills seasons Category:1965 in sports in New York (state)