The 2015 Buffalo Bills season was the franchise’s 56th overall
season
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...
as a football team, 46th in the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
, third under leadership of general manager
Doug Whaley
Douglass G. Whaley (born December 16, 1972) is an American football executive and former collegiate player. He is the current Senior Vice President of Player Personnel for the XFL and from 2013 to 2017 was the general manager of the Buffalo B ...
and first under new head coach
Rex Ryan
Rex Ashley Ryan (born December 13, 1962) is an American former football coach and analyst. Ryan was formerly the head coach of the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL), and also held various coaching position ...
. It was also the first full season under the ownership of
Terry
Terry is a unisex given name, derived from French Thierry and Theodoric. It can also be used as a diminutive nickname for the names Teresa or Theresa (feminine) or Terence (given name), Terence or Terrier (masculine).
People
Male
* Terry Albrit ...
and
Kim Pegula
Kim S. Pegula ( née Kerr; born June 7, 1969) is an American businesswoman and with her husband Terry Pegula, one of the principal owners of the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League. She is also the president of Pegula Sports and Enterta ...
(who also own the
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...
), having purchased the Bills partway through 2014 after the death of longtime owner
Ralph Wilson
Ralph Cookerly Wilson Jr. (October 17, 1918 – March 25, 2014) was an American businessman and sports executive. He was best known as the founder and owner of the Buffalo Bills, a team in the National Football League (NFL). He was one of the fo ...
in March at the age of 95.
The Bills began their season with an open competition for the starting quarterback position after
Kyle Orton
Kyle Raymond Orton (born November 14, 1982) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football for Purdue, where he started four straight bowl games. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL Dr ...
, the starter for most of the 2014 campaign, retired during the offseason, so the team acquired free agent
Tyrod Taylor
Tyrod Diallo Taylor (born August 3, 1989) is an American football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Virginia Tech, leading the Hokies to the 2009 Orange Bowl as a Sophomore ...
, a former backup quarterback of the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...
, who won the competition over incumbent second-string quarterback
EJ Manuel
Erik Rodriguez "EJ" Manuel Jr. (born March 19, 1990) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at Florida State, leading the Seminoles to an ACC championship and Orange Bowl win in his senior year, and was drafted by t ...
and trade acquisition
Matt Cassel
Matthew Brennan Cassel (born May 17, 1982) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons. A member of seven NFL teams, Cassel's most notable stints were with the New England Patriots ...
, the latter of whom the team later traded along with a seventh-round pick in 2017 to the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
, in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick in 2017.
Despite Ryan's bold prediction of the Bills making the playoffs at his introductory press conference, the Bills were unable to do so in their first season with Ryan as head coach, finishing with a record of 8-8 (the team’s first since
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
), making it the 16th straight season without a playoff appearance, which became the longest active in major professional sports after
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
’s
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
broke their 22-year playoff drought on September 25, 2015.
Offseason
The Bills made headlines when they hired a new head coach in Rex Ryan, who signed a five-year, $27.5 million contract on January 12, 2015 after having previously spent the past six seasons coaching the division-rival
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...
. Ryan had led the Jets to two straight AFC Championship games in
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
and
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
before his firing in 2014. He became the 18th head coach in Bills history and the fifth in the past seven years in the process. Ryan replaced
Doug Marrone
Douglas Charles Marrone (born July 25, 1964) is an American football coach and former offensive lineman who is the offensive line coach for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He came to prominence as the head coach a ...
, who opted out of his contract on December 31, 2014 in order to take advantage of a contract loophole.
Roster changes
Signings
Free agents lost
Trades
Draft
Notes
* The Bills did not have a selection in the first-round or fourth-round as a result of a trade that sent their
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
first-round selection (19th overall), later revealed to be
Ja’Wuan James, to the
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
, fourth-round selection (115th overall), later revealed to be
Shaquelle Evans, to the
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...
and their first-round selection (9th overall), later revealed to be
Anthony Barr, to the
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
in a three-team trade that sent the Browns’ 2014 first-round selection (4th overall), later revealed to be
Sammy Watkins, to Buffalo. The Bills acquired a fourth-round selection (113th overall), later revealed to be
Gabe Wright
Gabriel Alexander Wright (born April 3, 1992) is an American football defensive tackle for the DC Defenders of the XFL. He played college football at Auburn and was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. Wrigh ...
, in a trade that sent
Stevie Johnson
Steven John Johnson Jr. (born July 22, 1986) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). Johnson was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the seventh round of the 2008 NFL Draf ...
to the
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
. The Bills later traded this selection to the
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...
in exchange for
Bryce Brown
Bryce Lee Brown (born May 14, 1991) is a former American football running back who played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Buffalo Bills, and Seattle Seahawks. He attended the University of Tennessee his freshman year of college, but decided to tra ...
. The Bills acquired a fifth-round selection (137th overall), later revealed to be
Grady Jarrett, as part of a trade that sent their 2014 seventh-round selection (221st overall), later revealed to be
Randell Johnson, to the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
. The Bills later traded this selection and their
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
seventh-round selection (240th overall), later revealed to be
Alex McCalister
Alex McCalister (born October 17, 1993) is an American football outside linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football as a defensive end at the University of Florida from 2012 to 2015. He was selected in the seventh round of the 201 ...
, to the Vikings in exchange for
Matt Cassel
Matthew Brennan Cassel (born May 17, 1982) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons. A member of seven NFL teams, Cassel's most notable stints were with the New England Patriots ...
and the Vikings’ 2015 sixth-round selection (188th overall), later revealed to be
Tony Steward.
Staff
Final roster
Schedule
Preseason
Regular season
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. Indianapolis Colts
The Bills franchise reached the 400th career win in its history with a 27-14 win over the Colts. Running backs
Karlos Williams
Karlos Jermell Williams Sr. (born May 4, 1993) is a former American football running back. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He played college football at Florida State.
Early years
Williams attend ...
,
LeSean McCoy
LeSean Kamel McCoy (born July 12, 1988), nicknamed "Shady", is an American former football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Pittsburgh and was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the ...
and quarterback
Tyrod Taylor
Tyrod Diallo Taylor (born August 3, 1989) is an American football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Virginia Tech, leading the Hokies to the 2009 Orange Bowl as a Sophomore ...
combined for 137 rushing yards and a touchdown (
Anthony Dixon
Anthony Rishard "Boobie" Dixon (born September 24, 1987) is a former American football running back. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the sixth round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He played college football for Mississippi State Univers ...
added another on the ground) and Taylor completed 14/19 for 195 yards and a touchdown. Colts quarterback
Andrew Luck
Andrew Austen Luck (born September 12, 1989) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons with the Indianapolis Colts. One of the most highly touted amateur prospects during his c ...
had two touchdowns, but he was intercepted and sacked twice.
Week 2: vs. New England Patriots
With the close loss, the Bills dropped to 1-1. As if the loss wasn’t bad enough, the team also lost safety
Aaron Williams for the season with a neck injury sustained trying to keep Patriots tight end
Rob Gronkowski
Robert James Gronkowski (born May 14, 1989) is an American former football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Nicknamed "Gronk", Gronkowski played nine seasons for the New England Patriots, then played h ...
from reaching the end zone.
Week 3: at Miami Dolphins
After leading 27-0, Dolphins quarterback
Ryan Tannehill
Ryan Timothy Tannehill III (born July 27, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Texas A&M, where he was a wide receiver until his junior year, an ...
finally threw two touchdowns, but his three interceptions, one of which a pick-six returned by linebacker
Preston Brown 43 yards for a touchdown, proved to be too much as the Bills improved to 2-1.
Week 4: vs. New York Giants
With their third straight loss to the Giants dating back to
2007
File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...
, the Bills dropped to 2-2.
Week 5: at Tennessee Titans
With the win, the Bills improved to 3-2.
Week 6: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
With their third straight loss to the Bengals dating back to
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
, the Bills dropped to 3-3.
Week 7: at Jacksonville Jaguars
NFL International Series
The NFL International Series is a series of American football games during the National Football League (NFL) NFL regular season, regular season that are List of National Football League games played outside the United States, played outside th ...
This was the Bills’ first game in London since
1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
. Sadly, with the stunning loss, the Bills dropped to 3-4 heading into the bye week, marking the first time they had been under .500 all season.
Week 9: vs. Miami Dolphins
With the win, not only did the Bills improve to 4-4, but they swept Miami for the first time since
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
.
Week 10: at New York Jets
Rex Ryan made his return to
MetLife Stadium
MetLife Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, 5 mi (8 km) west of New York City. Opened in 2010 to replace Giants Stadium, it serves as the home for the New York Giants an ...
for the first time since the Jets fired him after the 2014 season. The Bills wore their red
Nike
Nike often refers to:
* Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory
* Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment
Nike may also refer to:
People
* Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...
“color rush” uniforms. With 0:18 remaining, Jets quarterback
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Ryan Joseph Fitzpatrick (born November 24, 1982) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. During his career, Fitzpatrick started at quarterback for nine different teams, the most ...
attempted a comeback, but a game-saving interception by Bills safety
Bacarri Rambo
Bacarri Jamon Rambo (born June 27, 1990) is a former American football safety. He played college football for the University of Georgia, where he was recognized as an All-American, and was selected by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round ...
sealed the 22-17 victory over the Jets. With the win, the Bills improved to 5-4.
This was the debut for
NFL Color Rush
The NFL Color Rush was a promotion done in conjunction with the National Football League (NFL) and Nike that promotes so-called "color vs. color" matchups with teams in matchup-specific uniforms that are primarily one solid color with alternatin ...
uniforms, with the Bills in all red and the Jets in all kelly green. The uniforms were indistinguishable to those with
red-green color blindness
Color blindness or color vision deficiency (CVD) is the decreased ability to see color or differences in color. It can impair tasks such as selecting ripe fruit, choosing clothing, and reading traffic lights. Color blindness may make some aca ...
, creating controversy.
Week 11: at New England Patriots
With yet another close loss, the Bills dropped to 5-5.
Week 12: at Kansas City Chiefs
With the loss, the Bills dropped to 5-6.
Week 13: vs. Houston Texans
With the win, not only did the Bills improve to 6-6, they remained in the wild card race. It’s also the Bills first win against the Texans since
2006
File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
.
Week 14: at Philadelphia Eagles
LeSean McCoy
LeSean Kamel McCoy (born July 12, 1988), nicknamed "Shady", is an American former football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Pittsburgh and was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the ...
made his return to Philadelphia for the first time since the Eagles traded him in the offseason. McCoy was seen kissing the Eagles logo, but did not stick around to interact with his former teammates or coach
Chip Kelly
Charles Edward Kelly (born November 25, 1963) is an American football coach who is the head coach of the UCLA Bruins. He came to prominence as the head coach of the Oregon Ducks from 2009 to 2012, whom he led to four consecutive BCS bowl game a ...
.
Week 15: at Washington Redskins
With the loss, not only did the Bills drop to 6-8, but they were officially eliminated from playoff contention for the 16th consecutive season.
Week 16: vs. Dallas Cowboys
With the win, the Bills improved to 7-8 heading into the season finale.
Week 17: vs. New York Jets
Prior to the game, the team called for paid volunteers to help shovel snow out of
Ralph Wilson Stadium
Highmark Stadium is a stadium in Orchard Park, New York, in the Southtowns of the Buffalo metropolitan area. The stadium opened in 1973 as Rich Stadium and is the home venue of the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). It was kn ...
.
[http://www.wgrz.com/story/news/2016/01/18/stadium-shovelers-paid-week/78971332/] Former Bills quarterback
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Ryan Joseph Fitzpatrick (born November 24, 1982) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. During his career, Fitzpatrick started at quarterback for nine different teams, the most ...
made his first return to Buffalo since being cut after the 2012 season, hoping to clinch a playoff spot for his new team with a win. Despite the Jets setting various team records, the Bills ultimately pulled out a win to close the season at 8-8 for the first time since
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
in their final regular season game before Ralph Wilson Stadium was renamed
New Era Field
Highmark Stadium is a stadium in Orchard Park, New York, in the Southtowns of the Buffalo metropolitan area. The stadium opened in 1973 as Rich Stadium and is the home venue of the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). It was kn ...
the following summer, not only keeping the Jets out of the playoffs for a fifth straight year, but helping the
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
reach the playoffs. As a thank you gift of sorts, the Steelers sent the Bills a care package of Primanti Brothers sandwiches.
Standings
Division
Conference
References
External links
*
{{2015 NFL season by team
Buffalo
Buffalo Bills seasons
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...