1978 Buffalo Bills (NFL) |
| 4th place • American Football Conference • Eastern Division • 5-11-0 .313 |
| Head Coach: Chuck Knox |
| Tom Catlin | Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers |
| Jack Donaldson | Receivers |
| Steve Moore | Special Assignments |
| Elijah Pitts | Offensive Backfield/Special Teams |
| Ray Prochaska | Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line |
| Kay Stephenson | Quarterbacks |
| Jim Wagstaff | Defensive Backfield |
| Willie Zapalac | Defensive Line |
| SCORES | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day | Date | Opponent | Score | Location | Venue | Attendance | |||
| Sat | 8/5/1978 | A | Detroit Lions | 20-28 | L | Pontiac, MI | Pontiac Silverdome | 48474 | |
| Sat | 8/12/1978 | H | Cleveland Browns | 10-20 | L | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 23341 | |
| Sat | 8/19/1978 | H | Denver Broncos | 13-23 | L | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 18301 | |
| Sat | 8/26/1978 | A | Minnesota Vikings | 27-30 | L | Bloomington, MN | Metropolitan Stadium | 45062 | |
| Sun | 9/3/1978 | H | Pittsburgh Steelers | 17-28 | L | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 64147 | |
| Sun | 9/10/1978 | H | New York Jets | 20-21 | L | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 40985 | |
| Sun | 9/17/1978 | A | Miami Dolphins | 24-31 | L | Miami, FL | Orange Bowl | 48373 | |
| Sun | 9/24/1978 | H | Baltimore Colts | 24-17 | W | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 55270 | |
| Sun | 10/1/1978 | H | Kansas City Chiefs | 28-13 | W | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 47310 | |
| Sun | 10/8/1978 | A | New York Jets | 14-45 | L | New York, NY | Shea Stadium | 44545 | |
| Sun | 10/15/1978 | A | Houston Oilers | 10-17 | L | Houston, TX | Astrodome | 47727 | |
| Sun | 10/22/1978 | H | Cincinnati Bengals | 5-0 | W | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 47754 | |
| Sun | 10/29/1978 | A | Cleveland Browns | 20-41 | L | Cleveland, OH | Cleveland Stadium | 51409 | |
| Sun | 11/5/1978 | H | New England Patriots | 10-14 | L | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 44897 | |
| Sun | 11/12/1978 | H | Miami Dolphins | 24-25 | L | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 48623 | |
| Sun | 11/19/1978 | A | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 10-31 | L | Tampa, FL | Tampa Stadium | 61383 | |
| Sun | 11/26/1978 | H | New York Giants | 41-17 | W | Orchard Park, NY | Rich Stadium | 28496 | |
| Sun | 12/3/1978 | A | Kansas City Chiefs | 10-14 | L | Kansas City, MO | Arrowhead Stadium | 25781 | |
| Sun | 12/10/1978 | A | New England Patriots | 24-26 | L | Foxborough, MA | Schaefer Stadium | 59598 | |
| Sun | 12/17/1978 | A | Baltimore Colts | 21-14 | W | Baltimore, MD | Memorial Stadium | 25415 | |
Exhibition game. Playoff game. A=Away game. H=Home game. N=Neutral site game. W=Win. L=Loss. T=Tie. OT=Overtime.
Click on Date to see boxscore.
| ROSTER | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | No | Pos | Ht | Wt | Age | College | GP | GS |
| Bill Adams | 60 | OG | 6-2 | 250 | 28 | Holy Cross | 6 | 0 |
| Doug Becker | 52 | LB | 6-0 | 222 | 22 | Notre Dame | 8 | 0 |
| Jim Braxton | 34 | FB | 6-1 | 243 | 29 | West Virginia | 6 | 5 |
| Curtis Brown | 47 | FB | 5-10 | 203 | 24 | Fort Scott CC; Missouri | 15 | 10 |
| Mario Celotto | 58 | LB | 6-3 | 234 | 22 | Southern California | 4 | 0 |
| Bob Chandler | 81 | WR | 6-0 | 179 | 29 | Southern California | 16 | 13 |
| Mario Clark | 29 | LCB | 6-2 | 193 | 24 | Oregon | 16 | 16 |
| Joe DeLamielleure | 68 | ROG | 6-3 | 253 | 27 | Michigan State | 16 | 16 |
| Tom Dempsey | 6 | K | 6-1 | 275 | 31 | Palomar JC | 16 | 0 |
| Joe Devlin | 70 | ROT | 6-5 | 280 | 24 | Iowa | 14 | 14 |
| Phil Dokes | 85 | RDT | 6-5 | 257 | 23 | Oklahoma State | 10 | 10 |
| Elbert Drungo | 79 | LOT-ROT | 6-5 | 265 | 35 | Tennessee State | 13 | 4 |
| Tom Ehlers | 56 | LB | 6-2 | 218 | 26 | Kentucky | 8 | 0 |
| Joe Ferguson | 12 | QB | 6-1 | 190 | 28 | Arkansas | 16 | 16 |
| Mike Franckowiak | 84 | TE | 6-3 | 220 | 25 | Central Michigan | 16 | 0 |
| Steve Freeman | 22 | SS-FS | 5-11 | 185 | 25 | Mississippi State | 16 | 7 |
| Reuben Gant | 88 | TE | 6-4 | 226 | 26 | Oklahoma State | 16 | 16 |
| Tom Graham | 55 | MLB-RILB | 6-2 | 235 | 28 | Oregon | 11 | 4 |
| Will Grant | 53 | C | 6-3 | 266 | 24 | Idaho State; Kentucky | 16 | 0 |
| Tony Greene | 43 | FS | 5-10 | 170 | 29 | Maryland | 16 | 14 |
| Dee Hardison | 74 | LDT | 6-4 | 280 | 22 | North Carolina | 16 | 15 |
| Roland Hooks | 25 | RB | 6-0 | 196 | 25 | North Carolina State | 16 | 0 |
| Scott Hutchinson | 78 | DE | 6-4 | 243 | 22 | Florida | 16 | 0 |
| Mekeli Ieremia | 73 | DT | 6-2 | 244 | 24 | Brigham Young | 2 | 0 |
| Rusty Jackson | 4 | P | 6-2 | 190 | 28 | Louisiana State | 16 | 0 |
| Dan Jilek | 51 | RLB | 6-2 | 225 | 25 | Michigan | 15 | 1 |
| Dennis Johnson | 75 | DT | 6-4 | 265 | 27 | Delaware | 14 | 0 |
| Dennis Johnson | 39 | FB | 6-3 | 220 | 22 | Mississippi State | 16 | 1 |
| Doug Jones | 24 | SS | 6-2 | 205 | 28 | Arizona State; San Diego CC; Northridge State | 12 | 9 |
| Ken Jones | 72 | LOT | 6-5 | 270 | 26 | Arkansas State | 16 | 16 |
| Mike Kadish | 71 | RDT-MG | 6-5 | 265 | 28 | Notre Dame | 11 | 6 |
| Merv Krakau | 52 | MLB | 6-1 | 242 | 27 | Iowa State | 5 | 3 |
| Mike Levenseller | 87 | WR | 6-1 | 180 | 22 | Washington State | 2 | 0 |
| Frank Lewis | 82 | WR | 6-1 | 196 | 31 | Grambling State | 15 | 15 |
| Dave Mays | 10 | QB | 6-1 | 204 | 29 | Texas Southern | 1 | 0 |
| Randy McClanahan | 54 | MLB-LILB | 6-5 | 225 | 24 | Glendale CC; Louisiana-Lafayette | 16 | 10 |
| Reggie McKenzie | 67 | LOG | 6-5 | 255 | 28 | Michigan | 16 | 16 |
| Eddie McMillan | 41 | CB | 6-0 | 190 | 27 | Florida State | 14 | 0 |
| Terry Miller | 40 | RB | 5-10 | 196 | 22 | Oklahoma State | 16 | 16 |
| Keith Moody | 46 | CB-WR | 5-11 | 179 | 25 | Syracuse | 14 | 0 |
| Bill Munson | 9 | QB | 6-2 | 203 | 37 | Foothill JC; Utah State | 4 | 0 |
| Shane Nelson | 59 | LLB-LOLB | 6-1 | 232 | 23 | Blinn JC; Baylor | 16 | 16 |
| Willie Parker | 61 | C | 6-3 | 245 | 30 | Wharton County JC; North Texas | 16 | 16 |
| Lou Piccone | 89 | WR | 5-8 | 184 | 29 | West Liberty | 16 | 1 |
| Steve Powell | 23 | RB | 5-11 | 186 | 22 | Truman State | 10 | 0 |
| Charles Romes | 26 | RCB | 6-1 | 190 | 24 | Lake City JC; North Carolina Central | 16 | 16 |
| Lucius Sanford | 57 | RLB-ROLB | 6-2 | 216 | 22 | Georgia Tech | 16 | 15 |
| Marvin Switzer | 21 | FS | 6-0 | 192 | 24 | Kansas State | 10 | 1 |
| Larry Walton | 49 | WR | 5-11 | 180 | 31 | Trinidad State JC; Arizona State | 12 | 2 |
| Sherm White | 83 | RDE | 6-5 | 250 | 30 | Laney JC; California | 16 | 16 |
| Ben Williams | 77 | LDE | 6-3 | 260 | 24 | Mississippi | 16 | 16 |
| Lenny Willis | 86 | WR | 5-11 | 180 | 25 | Nebraska Southern JC; Ohio State | 4 | 1 |
| DRAFT LIST | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round | Overall | Player | Pos | College |
| 1 | 5 | Terry Miller | RB | Oklahoma State |
| 2 | 32 | Dee Hardison | DE | North Carolina |
| 2 | 38 | Scott Hutchinson | DE | Florida |
| 3 | 59 | Dennis Johnson | DB | Mississippi State |
| 3 | 65 | Dan Fulton | WR | Nebraska-Omaha |
| 4 | 89 | Lucius Sanford | LB | Georgia Tech |
| 5 | 114 | Ken Spaeth | TE | Nebraska |
| 6 | 145 | Eric Smith | T | Southern Mississippi |
| 7 | 171 | Mario Celotto | LB | Southern California |
| 7 | 183 | Steve Powell | RB | Truman State |
| 10 | 255 | Will Grant | C | Kentucky |
| 11 | 282 | Jerry Blanton | LB | Kentucky |
| 12 | 308 | Richard Crump | RB | Jacksonville State |
| SCORING BY QUARTERS | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Totals | 41 | 96 | 43 | 122 | 302 |
| Opponents Totals | 69 | 118 | 89 | 78 | 354 |
| TEAM STATS | TOP | 1st Downs | FDR | FDP | FDX | 3rd Down Efficiency | 4th Down Efficiency | PEN | PENY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Totals | 274 | 132 | 113 | 29 | 88/211 41.7% | / % | 120 | 1103 | |
| Opponents Totals | 305 | 171 | 104 | 30 | 100/209 47.8% | / % | 98 | 941 |
| SCORING | TD | X1 | X1A | PCT | FG | FGA | PCT | SAF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Dempsey | 0 | 36 | 38 | 94.7 | 10 | 13 | 76.9 | 0 | 66 |
| Frank Lewis | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | ||
| Terry Miller | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | ||
| Curtis Brown | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | ||
| Bob Chandler | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | ||
| Reuben Gant | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | ||
| Roland Hooks | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | ||
| Lou Piccone | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 | ||
| Dennis Johnson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | ||
| Keith Moody | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Charles Romes | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Larry Walton | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| (Team) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Team Totals | 39 | 36 | 39 | 92.3 | 10 | 13 | 76.9 | 1 | 302 |
| Opponents Totals | 46 | 43 | 46 | 93.5 | 11 | 21 | 52.4 | 1 | 354 |
| FIELD GOALS | MADE | ATT | PCT | BL | LG | 1-19 | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Dempsey | 10 | 13 | 76.9 | 0 | 46 | 0/0 | 5/5 | 4/5 | 1/3 | 0/0 |
| Team Totals | 10 | 13 | 76.9 | 0 | 46 | 0/0 | 5/5 | 4/5 | 1/3 | 0/0 |
| Opponents Totals | 11 | 21 | 52.4 | 0/0 | 6/9 | 1/5 | 4/7 | 0/0 |
| RUSHING | ATT | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terry Miller | 238 | 1060 | 4.5 | 60t | 7 |
| Curtis Brown | 128 | 591 | 4.6 | 58t | 4 |
| Roland Hooks | 76 | 358 | 4.7 | 66 | 2 |
| Dennis Johnson | 55 | 222 | 4.0 | 30 | 2 |
| Joe Ferguson | 27 | 76 | 2.8 | 12 | 0 |
| Jim Braxton | 30 | 73 | 2.4 | 5 | 0 |
| Reuben Gant | 1 | 14 | 14.0 | 14 | 0 |
| Rusty Jackson | 1 | -13 | -13.0 | -13 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 556 | 2381 | 4.3 | 66 | 15 |
| Opponents Totals | 677 | 3228 | 4.8 | 71t | 23 |
| PASSING | ATT | COM | PCT | INC | YDS | Y/ATT | Y/COM | LG | TD | TD% | INT | INT% | TS | YL | NYP | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Ferguson | 330 | 175 | 175 | 140 | 2136 | 6.5 | 12.2 | 92t | 16 | 4.8 | 15 | 4.5 | 29 | 243 | 1893 | 70.5 |
| Bill Munson | 43 | 24 | 24 | 17 | 328 | 7.6 | 13.7 | 43 | 4 | 9.3 | 2 | 4.7 | 0 | 0 | 328 | 92.0 |
| Dave Mays | 15 | 4 | 4 | 11 | 39 | 2.6 | 9.8 | 19 | 1 | 6.7 | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | 11 | 28 | 61.8 |
| Team Totals | 388 | 203 | 203 | 168 | 2503 | 6.5 | 12.3 | 92t | 21 | 5.4 | 17 | 4.4 | 30 | 254 | 2249 | 72.3 |
| Opponents Totals | 317 | 167 | 167 | 136 | 2156 | 6.8 | 12.9 | 52 | 20 | 6.3 | 14 | 4.4 | 22 | 196 | 1960 | 77.0 |
| RECEIVING | REC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Chandler | 44 | 581 | 13.2 | 44 | 5 |
| Frank Lewis | 41 | 735 | 17.9 | 92t | 7 |
| Reuben Gant | 34 | 408 | 12.0 | 25 | 5 |
| Terry Miller | 22 | 246 | 11.2 | 52 | 0 |
| Curtis Brown | 18 | 130 | 7.2 | 31 | 0 |
| Roland Hooks | 15 | 110 | 7.3 | 21 | 1 |
| Dennis Johnson | 10 | 83 | 8.3 | 28 | 0 |
| Lou Piccone | 7 | 71 | 10.1 | 15 | 2 |
| Jim Braxton | 5 | 38 | 7.6 | 12 | 0 |
| Larry Walton | 4 | 66 | 16.5 | 32t | 1 |
| Lenny Willis | 2 | 41 | 20.5 | 23 | 0 |
| Joe Ferguson | 1 | -6 | -6.0 | -6 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 203 | 2503 | 12.3 | 92t | 21 |
| Opponents Totals | 167 | 2156 | 12.9 | 52 | 20 |
| INTERCEPTIONS | INT | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mario Clark | 5 | 29 | 5.8 | 29 | 0 |
| Shane Nelson | 3 | 69 | 23.0 | 40 | 0 |
| Tony Greene | 3 | 56 | 18.7 | 29 | 0 |
| Charles Romes | 2 | 95 | 47.5 | 85t | 1 |
| Lucius Sanford | 1 | 41 | 41.0 | 41 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 14 | 290 | 20.7 | 85t | 1 |
| Opponents Totals | 17 | 319 | 18.8 | 40t | 1 |
| PUNTING | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | BL | TB | I20 | RYDS | NYDS | NET |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rusty Jackson | 87 | 3373 | 38.8 | 70 | 2 | 9 | 19 | 442 | 2751 | 30.9 |
| Team Totals | 89 | 3373 | 37.9 | 70 | 2 | 9 | 19 | 442 | 2751 | 30.9 |
| Opponents Totals | 71 | 2588 | 36.5 | 65 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 375 | 2153 | 30.3 |
| PUNT RETURNS | NO | FC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keith Moody | 19 | 5 | 240 | 12.6 | 82t | 1 |
| Lou Piccone | 14 | 4 | 88 | 6.3 | 13 | 0 |
| Mike Levenseller | 3 | 0 | 35 | 11.7 | 15 | 0 |
| Roland Hooks | 3 | 0 | 12 | 4.0 | 11 | 0 |
| Curtis Brown | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 40 | 9 | 375 | 9.4 | 82t | 1 |
| Opponents Totals | 48 | 8 | 442 | 9.2 | 82t | 1 |
| KICKOFF RETURNS | NO | FC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Curtis Brown | 17 | 428 | 25.2 | 102t | 1 | |
| Keith Moody | 18 | 371 | 20.6 | 35 | 0 | |
| Dennis Johnson | 10 | 204 | 20.4 | 41 | 0 | |
| Roland Hooks | 7 | 124 | 17.7 | 25 | 0 | |
| Mike Franckowiak | 5 | 60 | 12.0 | 19 | 0 | |
| Steve Powell | 3 | 53 | 17.7 | 25 | 0 | |
| Lou Piccone | 3 | 51 | 17.0 | 26 | 0 | |
| Terry Miller | 1 | 17 | 17.0 | 17 | 0 | |
| Scott Hutchinson | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 8 | 0 | |
| Lenny Willis | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Team Totals | 66 | 1316 | 19.9 | 102t | 1 | |
| Opponents Totals | 58 | 1191 | 20.5 | 46 | 0 |
| SACKS | NO | YDS |
|---|---|---|
| Lucius Sanford | 5.5 | |
| Dee Hardison | 4.5 | |
| Sherm White | 4.0 | |
| Phil Dokes | 3.0 | |
| Ben Williams | 3.0 | |
| Tom Graham | 2.0 | |
| Mike Kadish | 0.5 | |
| Team Totals | 22.0 | 196.0 |
| Opponents Totals | 30.0 | 254.0 |
| FUMBLES | NO | LOST | OWN | OPP | REC | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Braxton | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Curtis Brown | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bob Chandler | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Joe DeLamielleure | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tom Dempsey | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Joe Devlin | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Joe Ferguson | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | -3 | 0 | |
| Reuben Gant | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Tom Graham | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tony Greene | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Roland Hooks | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Scott Hutchinson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Rusty Jackson | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Dan Jilek | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Dennis Johnson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Dennis Johnson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ken Jones | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Frank Lewis | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Dave Mays | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Randy McClanahan | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 58 | 0 |
| Reggie McKenzie | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Terry Miller | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Keith Moody | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Shane Nelson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Willie Parker | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -26 | 0 | |
| Lou Piccone | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Steve Powell | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Charles Romes | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Lucius Sanford | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Marvin Switzer | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 34 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 32 | 33 | 0 |
| Opponents Totals | 27 | 16 | 9 | 17 | 26 | 0 |
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