1988 Buffalo Bills season

1988 Buffalo Bills season
1988 Buffalo Bills season
Owner	Ralph Wilson
General manager	Bill Polian
Head coach	Marv Levy
Home field	Rich Stadium
Results
Record	12–4
Division place	1st AFC East
Playoff finish	Won Divisional Playoffs; (vs. Oilers) 17–10; Lost AFC Championship; (at Bengals) 10–21
Pro Bowlers	QB Jim Kelly; WR Andre Reed; C Kent Hull; DE Bruce Smith; DT Fred Smerlas; OLB Cornelius Bennett; ILB Shane Conlan; K Scott Norwood
	← 1987; Bills seasons; 1989 →;

The 1988 Buffalo Bills season was the franchise's 29th overall season as a football team and the 19th in the National Football League. The Bills ended a streak of four consecutive losing seasons by winning the AFC East; they finished the NFL's 1988 season with a record of twelve wins and four losses; it was the club's first winning season since 1981, its first 12-win season since the 1964 AFL championship season, and only the fifth double-digit win season in team history. The Bills were 8–0 at home for the first time in their franchise history.^[1] On the road, the Bills were 4–4. From an attendance standpoint, the franchise set a record for attendance with 631,818 fans.^[2]

This was the first of four consecutive AFC East titles for the Bills. They started the season 11–1 before losing three of their final four games, costing them the top seed in the AFC, and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

It was Buffalo's first trip to the postseason since 1981. The Bills were the #2 seed in the AFC (behind #1 Cincinnati), giving the Bills their first home playoff game since the 1966 AFL Championship, and their first ever playoff game at Rich Stadium. The 1988 season would be the first of five AFC Championship game appearances over six seasons,^[3] and their only loss in the conference championship game.

The 1988 season was the first for running back Thurman Thomas, nose tackle Jeff Wright, and linebacker Carlton Bailey. Thomas would rush for 881 yards, despite only carrying the ball 207 times (42.7% of total team carries by a running back) while sharing carries with Robb Riddick, Jamie Mueller and Ronnie Harmon.

The Bills had a dominant defense in 1988: they gave up the fewest points (237) and the fewest total yards (4,578) in the AFC in 1988. The defensive unit was given the nickname "Blizzard Defense",^[4]^[5] alluding to Buffalo's harsh winters.

Four Bills players made the All-Pro team in 1988: defensive end Bruce Smith, linebackers Shane Conlan and Cornelius Bennett, and kicker Scott Norwood.

Head coach Marv Levy was named NFL Coach of the Year by The Sporting News and UPI.

Offseason

NFL draft

ESPN's cameras watched Oklahoma State running back Thurman Thomas in his home as he waited to be drafted. He fell to the second round, where the Bills made him their first pick at 40th overall. Thomas would go on to a Pro Football Hall of Fame career, where he would eclipse O. J. Simpson's all-time team rushing record with 12,074 yards. Thomas would set an NFL record by leading the league in yards-from-scrimmage for four consecutive years, from 1989 to 1992. (The record of three was previously held by Hall of Famer Jim Brown.) Thomas was a five-time Pro Bowl selection and NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 1992.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1988 Buffalo Bills draft
2	40	Thurman Thomas * ^†	RB	Oklahoma State
3	65	Bernard Ford	WR	Central Florida
5	123	Ezekial Gadson	DB	Pittsburgh
5	135	Kirk Roach	K	Western Carolina
6	150	Dan Murray	OLB	East Stroudsburg
7	177	Tim Borcky	OT	Memphis
7	184	Bo Wright	RB	Alabama
8	204	John Hagy	DB	Texas
8	213	Jeff Wright	DT	Central Missouri State
9	235	Carlton Bailey	ILB	North Carolina
10	262	Martin Mayhew	CB	Florida State	Placed on injured reserve
11	289	Pete Curkendall	DT	Penn State
12	309	John Driscoll	OT	New Hampshire
12	316	Tom Erlandson	LB	Washington
Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

^[6]

Personnel

Staff

**1988 Buffalo Bills staff**
	Front office President – Ralph Wilson Vice president of administration/general manager – Bill Polian Vice president of football operations – Marv Levy Director of college scouting – John Butler Director of Pro Personnel/Asst. Director of Football Operations – Bob Ferguson National scout – Norm Pollom College scout – A. J. Smith Administrative assistant to the head coach – Chuck Dickerson Head coaches Head coach – Marv Levy Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator/offensive line – Jim Ringo Quarterbacks/Passing Game Coordinator – Ted Marchibroda Running backs – Elijah Pitts Receivers – Ted Tollner Tight ends – Chuck Dickerson			Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator/linebackers – Walt Corey Defensive line – Ted Cottrell Defensive backs – Dick Roach Defensive assistant – Chuck Lester Special teams coaches Special teams – Bruce DeHaven Strength and conditioning Strength and conditioning coordinator – Rusty Jones

^[7]

Roster

1988 Buffalo Bills roster

Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

94 Mark Pike DE
96 Leon Seals DE
76 Fred Smerlas NT
78 Bruce Smith DE
72 Art Still DE
91 Jeff Wright NT

Linebackers

54 Carlton Bailey ILB
55 Cornelius Bennett OLB
50 Ray Bentley ILB
58 Shane Conlan ILB
99 Hal Garner OLB
97 Scott Radecic ILB
56 Darryl Talley OLB

Defensive backs

29 Derrick Burroughs CB
20 Sherman Cocroft CB/S
21 Wayne Davis CB
45 Dwight Drane SS
47 Kirby Jackson CB
38 Mark Kelso FS
37 Nate Odomes CB
46 Leonard Smith SS
22 Erroll Tucker CB/KR/PR

Special teams

4 John Kidd
11 Scott Norwood

Reserve lists

81 Walter Broughton WR (IR)
68 Tony Brown T (IR)
53 Tom Erlandson LB (IR)
82 Bernard Ford WR (IR)
49 John Hagy S (IR)
42 Joe Howard WR (IR)
-- Martin Mayhew CB (IR)
74 Bruce Mesner NT (IR)
57 Dan Murray LB (IR)
98 Elston Ridgle DE (IR)
64 Rich Strenger T (IR)
65 Tim Vogler G (IR)
-- Bo Wright RB (IR)

rookies in italics
47 active, 13 inactive

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	September 4	Minnesota Vikings	W 13–10	1–0	Rich Stadium	76,783
2	September 11	Miami Dolphins	W 9–6	2–0	Rich Stadium	79,520
3	September 18	at New England Patriots	W 16–14	3–0	Sullivan Stadium	55,945
4	September 25	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 36–28	4–0	Rich Stadium	78,735
5	October 2	at Chicago Bears	L 3–24	4–1	Soldier Field	62,793
6	October 9	Indianapolis Colts	W 34–23	5–1	Rich Stadium	76,018
7	October 17	at New York Jets	W 37–14	6–1	Giants Stadium	70,218
8	October 23	New England Patriots	W 23–20	7–1	Rich Stadium	76,824
9	October 30	Green Bay Packers	W 28–0	8–1	Rich Stadium	79,176
10	November 6	at Seattle Seahawks	W 13–3	9–1	Kingdome	61,074
11	November 14	at Miami Dolphins	W 31–6	10–1	Joe Robbie Stadium	67,091
12	November 20	New York Jets	W 9–6 (OT)	11–1	Rich Stadium	78,389
13	November 27	at Cincinnati Bengals	L 21–35	11–2	Riverfront Stadium	58,672
14	December 4	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L 5–10	11–3	Tampa Stadium	49,498
15	December 11	Los Angeles Raiders	W 37–21	12–3	Rich Stadium	77,348
16	December 18	at Indianapolis Colts	L 14–17	12–4	Hoosier Dome	59,908
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Season summary

Week 1

	1	2	3	4	Total
Vikings	0	3	0	7	10
• Bills	10	0	0	3	13

Date: September 4
Location: Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: 68 °F (20 °C), wind 11 mph (18 km/h)
Referee: Bob McElwee
TV announcers (CBS): Tim Ryan and Dan Jiggetts

Source: Pro-Football-Reference.com

Week 2

Miami Dolphins (0-1) at Buffalo Bills (1-0)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Dolphins	3	0	3	0	6
• Bills	0	3	0	6	9

Date: September 11
Location: Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: 60 °F (16 °C), wind 9 mph (14 km/h)
Referee: Johnny Grier
TV announcers (NBC): Chuck Thompson and Jerry Kramer

^[8]

Week 3

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Bills	0	3	3	10	16
Patriots	0	14	0	0	14

Date: September 18
Location: Sullivan Stadium, Foxboro, Massachusetts
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 55,945
Game weather: 67 °F (19 °C) •Wind 14 miles per hour (23 km/h; 12 kn)
Referee: Fred Wyant
Television network: NBC

^[9]

Week 4

	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	0	14	0	14	28
• Bills	10	6	14	6	36

Date: September 25
Location: Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Game start: 1:00 p.m.
Game weather: 57 °F (14 °C); wind 7 mph (11 km/h)
Referee: Ben Dreith
TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy and Al DeRogatis

^[10]

Week 5

Buffalo Bills (4-0) at Chicago Bears (4-0)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bills	3	0	0	0	3
• Bears	7	17	0	0	24

Date: October 2, 1988
Location: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 62,793
Game weather: 59 °F (15 °C); wind 11 mph (18 km/h)
Referee: Fred Silva
TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy, Merlin Olsen

Source: Pro-Football-Reference.com

^[11]

Week 6

Indianapolis Colts (1-4) at Buffalo Bills (4-1)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Colts	10	7	3	3	23
• Bills	0	7	14	13	34

Date: October 9, 1988
Location: Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 76,018
Game weather: 42 °F (6 °C), wind 7 mph (11 km/h)
Referee: Tom Dooley
TV announcers (NBC): Tom Hammond and Dave Lapham

Source: Pro-Football-Reference.com

Week 7

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Bills	17	14	3	3	37
Jets	0	7	7	0	14

Date: October 17
Location: Giants Stadium • East Rutherford, New Jersey
Game start: 9:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: 63 °F (17 °C) • Wind 13 mph (21 km/h)
Referee: Dick Jorgensen
TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf

^[12]

Week 8

Week 9

	1	2	3	4	Total
Packers	0	0	0	0	0
• Bills	7	7	7	7	28

Date: October 30
Location: Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: 36 °F (2 °C); wind 15 mph (24 km/h)
Referee: Gene Barth
TV announcers (NFL on CBS): Greg Gumbel and Ken Stabler

Thurman Thomas 23 Rush, 116 Yds

^[13]

Week 12

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Jets	0	3	0	3	0	6
• Bills	0	0	3	3	3	9

Date: November 20
Location: Rich Stadium • Orchard Park, New York
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 78,389
Game weather: 43 °F (6 °C) • Wind 10 mph (16 km/h)
Referee: Dick Hantak
TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui and Bob Trumpy

The Bills clinch the AFC Eastern division title.

^[14]

Week 16

Buffalo Bills at Indianapolis Colts

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bills	0	7	0	7	14
• Colts	3	0	0	14	17

Date: December 18, 1988
Location: Hoosier Dome Indianapolis, IN
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 59,908
Game weather: DOME
TV announcers (NBC): Marv Albert and Paul Maguire

The loss cost the Bills homefield advantage in the AFC playoffs.

^[15]

Standings

AFC East
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Buffalo Bills⁽²⁾	12	4	0	.750	7–1	10–2	329	237	L1
Indianapolis Colts	9	7	0	.563	5–3	7–5	354	315	W1
New England Patriots	9	7	0	.563	5–3	7–5	250	284	L1
New York Jets	8	7	1	.531	3–5	6–7–1	372	354	W2
Miami Dolphins	6	10	0	.375	0–8	3–9	319	380	L1

Playoffs

AFC Divisional Playoff

Buffalo Bills 17, Houston Oilers 10

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Oilers	0	3	0	7	10
Bills	0	7	7	3	17

at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York

Game time: 12:30 pm EST
Game attendance: 79,532
Referee: Gordon McCarter
TV announcers (NBC): Marv Albert and Paul Maguire

Buffalo's first playoff game since 1981 was a 17–10 win over the Oilers. Jim Kelly threw for 244 yards and an interception while Thurman Thomas and Robb Riddick had rushing scores to go with 87 rushing yards. The Bills intercepted Warren Moon once and forced two Oilers fumbles.

AFC Championship Game

Cincinnati Bengals 21, Buffalo Bills 10

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bills	0	10	0	0	10
Bengals	7	7	0	7	21

at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati

Game time: 12:30 pm EST
Game attendance: 59,747
Referee: Gene Barth
TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen

The Bengals forced three interceptions and allowed only 45 rushing yards and 136 passing yards to go with an offense that held the ball for 39:29 out of sixty minutes. Bills starting running back Thurman Thomas was held to just six yards on four carries, while quarterback Jim Kelly completed only 14-of-30 passes for 161 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions.

Awards and records

All-Pros

First Team

Bruce Smith, Defensive end
Shane Conlan, Linebacker
Cornelius Bennett, Linebacker
Scott Norwood, Kicker

Second Team

Kent Hull, Center
Nate Odomes, Cornerback (Associated Press honorable mention)

References

^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 262
^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 390
^ Buffalo also reached the conference championship following the 1990, 1991, 1992, and 1993 seasons, winning them all
^ December 21, 1988, Milwaukee Journal | Retrieved January 11, 2012
^ December 22, 1988, Orlando Sentinel | Retrieved January 11, 2012: "ANOTHER BLIZZARD is sweeping through Buffalo. The effects of this one aren't being felt by residents, but by opposing teams at the Buffalo Bills' Rich Stadium. This blizzard is actually The Blizzard Defense, which is the name Bills defenders chose for themselves as part of a local newspaper's Name That Defense contest. Members of the AFC's top-ranked defense selected that name over dozens submitted by readers of The Buffalo News."
^ The Football Database. Retrieved 2014-Aug-11.
^ 1988 Buffalo Bills Media Guide. pp. 3–24.
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Aug-10.
^ [1]. Retrieved 2021-Apr-18.
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Dec-15.
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
^ Pro-Football-Reference. Retrieved 2022-Mar-23.