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34th season in franchise history, fourth straight Super Bowl appearance and loss
The 1993 Buffalo Bills season was the 34th season for the team in the National Football League (NFL). The Buffalo Bills finished the National Football League 's 1993 season with a record of 12 wins and 4 losses, and finished first in the AFC East division.
The Bills qualified for their fourth straight Super Bowl , where they faced the Dallas Cowboys in a rematch of the previous season's Super Bowl . However, just like with the previous Super Bowl, the Bills would lose to the Cowboys, this time by a score of 30–13. Until the 2020 season , this Bills squad was the last to reach the AFC Championship Game.
Season summary
Despite the many jokes about the Bills having lost three straight Super Bowls —a fan pleaded with head coach Marv Levy for the team to not return to the Super Bowl: "I can't take it. I can't go to work on Monday if we don't win the game. It's tearing me up. I can't handle it"—Don Beebe recalled that "I've got to be honest with you. We thrived in it. We enjoyed it. We were going to go to four ... I think that comes a lot from the Winston Churchill poems and the speeches that we would get from Marv". Dan Patrick reported that "Buffalo players have been wearing t-shirts reading something along the lines of 'Let's Tick Them Off and Go for Four'".[ 1] The team qualified for another Super Bowl; they became the first franchise to win four consecutive conference championships, as well as the first to appear in four consecutive Super Bowls.
Defensive end Bruce Smith was named NEA Defensive Player of the Year , and tied for the league lead with 13.5 sacks . Smith, linebacker Darryl Talley and special teams gunner Steve Tasker were named to the 1993 All-Pro team . The Bills' 47 defensive takeaways in 1993 is the third-highest total of the 1990s.[ 2]
Running back Thurman Thomas led the AFC with 1,315 rushing yards.[ 3]
Offseason
NFL Draft
Undrafted Free Agents
1993 Undrafted Free Agents of note
Player
Position
College
Phil Bryant
Running back
Virginia Tech
Personnel
1993 Buffalo Bills staff
Front office
Owner/President – Ralph Wilson
Vice President of Administration/general manager – John Butler
Vice President of Football Operations – Marv Levy
Assistant general manager/Director of Pro Personnel – Bob Ferguson
Director of player personnel – John Butler
Assistant director/Collegiate Scouting – A. J. Smith
Director of Player Development/Alumni Relations - Jerry Butler
Head coaches
Head coach – Marv Levy
Assistant head coach – Elijah Pitts
Administrative Assistant to the Head Coach – Chuck Lester
Offensive coaches
Defensive coaches
Defensive coordinatorr/Linebackers – Walt Corey
Defensive line – Dan Sekanovich
Defensive backs – Dick Roach
Defensive Quality Control / Administrative Assistant – Chuck Lester
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
Roster
1993 Buffalo Bills roster
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
Reserve lists
Practice squad
53 active, 3 inactive, 5 practice squad
Rookies in italics
Regular season
Schedule
Week
Date
Opponent
Result
Record
Venue
Attendance
1
September 5
New England Patriots
W 38–14
1–0
Rich Stadium
79,751
2
September 12
at Dallas Cowboys
W 13–10
2–0
Texas Stadium
63,226
3
Bye
4
September 26
Miami Dolphins
L 13–22
2–1
Rich Stadium
79,635
5
October 3
New York Giants
W 17–14
3–1
Rich Stadium
79,283
6
October 11
Houston Oilers
W 35–7
4–1
Rich Stadium
79,613
7
Bye
8
October 24
at New York Jets
W 19–10
5–1
Giants Stadium
71,541
9
November 1
Washington Redskins
W 24–10
6–1
Rich Stadium
79,106
10
November 7
at New England Patriots
W 13–10 (OT)
7–1
Foxboro Stadium
54,326
11
November 15
at Pittsburgh Steelers
L 0–23
7–2
Three Rivers Stadium
60,265
12
November 21
Indianapolis Colts
W 23–9
8–2
Rich Stadium
79,101
13
November 28
at Kansas City Chiefs
L 7–23
8–3
Arrowhead Stadium
74,452
14
December 5
Los Angeles Raiders
L 24–25
8–4
Rich Stadium
79,478
15
December 12
at Philadelphia Eagles
W 10–7
9–4
Veterans Stadium
60,769
16
December 19
at Miami Dolphins
W 47–34
10–4
Joe Robbie Stadium
71,597
17
December 26
New York Jets
W 16–14
11–4
Rich Stadium
70,817
18
January 2, 1994
at Indianapolis Colts
W 30–10
12–4
Hoosier Dome
43,028
Game summaries
Week 1
Week One: New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills – Game summary
Period
1
2
3 4 Total
Patriots
0
7
7 0 14
Bills
0
17
0 21 38
at Rich Stadium , Orchard Park, New York
Date : September 5Game time : 1:00 p.m.Game weather : 66 °F (19 °C), wind 12 mph (19 km/h)Referee : Gerald AustinTV announcers (NBC) : Tom Hammond and Cris CollinsworthBox Score
Scoring summary
Quarter
Time
Drive
Team
Scoring information
Score
Plays
Yards
TOP
Patriots
Bills
2
Bills
28-yard field goal by Steve Christie
0
3
2
Bills
Bill Brooks 4-yard touchdown reception from Jim Kelly, Steve Christie kick good
0
10
2
Patriots
Ben Coates 54-yard touchdown reception from Drew Bledsoe, Scott Sisson kick good
7
10
2
Bills
Andre Reed 41-yard touchdown reception from Jim Kelly, Steve Christie kick good
7
17
3
Patriots
Greg McMurtry 2-yard touchdown reception from Drew Bledsoe, Scott Sisson kick good
14
17
4
Bills
Andre Reed 22-yard touchdown reception from Jim Kelly, Steve Christie kick good
14
24
4
Bills
Andre Reed 14-yard touchdown reception from Jim Kelly, Steve Christie kick good
14
31
4
Bills
Punt returned 47 yards for touchdown by Russell Copeland , Steve Christie kick good
14
38
"TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football .
14
38
Week 2
1
2 3 4 Total
• Bills
7
3 0 3
13
Cowboys
0
3 0 7
10
Date: September 12Location: Texas Stadium , Irving, Texas Game start: 3:00 p.m. Game weather: 85 °F (29 °C), wind 16 mph (26 km/h)Referee: Bernie KukarTV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Bob Trumpy
[ 4]
Week 3
1
2 3 4 Total
• Dolphins
16
3 3 0
22
Bills
0
6 0 7
13
Week 5
Week 6
1
2 3 4 Total
Oilers
7
0 0 0
7
• Bills
7
21 0 7
35
[ 5]
Week 8
[ 6]
Week 9
November 1, 1993.
1
2 3 4 Total
Redskins
7
3 0 0
10
• Bills
14
0 7 3
24
[ 7]
Week 13
Buffalo Bills (8–2) at Kansas City Chiefs (7–3)
1
2 3 4 Total
Bills
7
0 0 0
7
• Chiefs
7
3 10 3
23
[ 8]
Week 14
[ 9]
Week 15
1
2 3 4 Total
• Bills
9
17 21 0
47
Eagles
7
13 7 7
34
Week 16
Buffalo (9–4) at Miami (9–4)
1
2 3 4 Total
• Bills
9
17 21 0
47
Dolphins
7
13 7 7
34
Standings
Playoffs
Super Bowl XXVIII
Scoring Summary
DAL – FG: Eddie Murray 41 yards 3–0 DAL
BUF – FG: Steve Christie 54 yards 3–3 tie
DAL – FG: Eddie Murray 24 yards 6–3 DAL
BUF – TD: Thurman Thomas 4 yard run (Steve Christie kick) 10–6 BUF
BUF – FG: Steve Christie 28 yards 13–6 BUF
DAL – TD: James Washington 46 yard fumble return (Eddie Murray kick) 13–13 tie
DAL – TD: Emmitt Smith 17 yard run (Eddie Murray kick) 20–13 DAL
DAL – TD: Emmitt Smith 1 yard run (Eddie Murray kick) 27–13 DAL
DAL – FG: Eddie Murray 20 yards 30–13 DAL
Awards and records
References
^ "Four Falls of Buffalo" . 30 for 30 . Season 3. December 12, 2015. ESPN.
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1990 to 1999, in the regular season, sorted by descending Takeaways , behind the 1991 Eagles and 1991 Saints .
^ Neft, David S.; Cohen, Richard M.; and Korch, Rich The Sports Encyclopedia: Pro Football, 12th Edition , p. 680, Martin's Press, August 1994, ISBN 0-312-11073-1
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com . Retrieved 2013-Dec-14.
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com . Retrieved 2021-Jun-06.
^ "Washington Redskins at Buffalo Bills - November 1st, 1993" . Pro-Football-Reference.com .
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com , [1]
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
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