1997 Buffalo Bills season
1997 Buffalo Bills season | |
---|---|
Owner | Ralph Wilson |
General manager | John Butler |
Head coach | Marv Levy |
Home field | Rich Stadium |
Results | |
Record | 6–10 |
Division place | 4th AFC East |
Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
The 1997 Buffalo Bills season was their 38th in the league. The team failed to improve upon their previous season's output of 10–6, instead falling to 6–10.[1] They missed the playoffs for only the second time in ten seasons. 1997 was Hall of Fame head coach Marv Levy's final year as the team's head coach.
Todd Collins started at quarterback for the Bills in their first season in the post-Jim Kelly era. The Bills also signed Oakland's Billy Joe Hobert to challenge Collins for the starting job. Third-string quarterback Alex Van Pelt also saw playing time with three starts in Collins' absence.
Hobert's contract was terminated after Week Seven, in which Hobert was backing up an injured Collins, and after the game revealed to the media that he had not studied the playbook. Hobert was released the next day.[2]
One of the most memorable games in Buffalo Bills history occurred in Week Four against the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts roared to a 26–0 lead in the second quarter, before the Bills went on a 37–3 run, ultimately taking the lead 37–29 with 1:15 remaining in the game. The Colts closed to within two, but missed a two-point conversion, giving Buffalo a two-point victory.[3] The game was the second-greatest regular season comeback in NFL history (second only to a 28-point comeback by the 1980 49ers), and the second greatest in team history (second to "The Comeback" in the 1992 playoffs.)[4]
Offseason
Prior to the 1997 season, long-time quarterback (and future Hall of Famer) Jim Kelly announced his retirement from professional football. This left the Bills forced to find a different opening day starting quarterback for the first time since 1985. Third-year quarterback Todd Collins started the season, and the Bills signed former Raiders quarterback Billy Joe Hobert, whose contract was terminated after a Week Seven loss to New England.
NFL Draft
= Pro Bowler [5] |
One notable player that was not drafted by the Bills, but debuted for the team in 1997, was future Pro Bowl defensive tackle Pat Williams, who played with the team for eight seasons.
Round | Pick | Player | Position | School/Club Team |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 23 | Antowain Smith | Running back | Houston |
2 | 52 | Marcellus Wiley[6] | Defensive end | Columbia |
4 | 120 | Jamie Nails | Offensive lineman | Florida A&M |
5 | 153 | Sean Woodson | Defensive back | Jackson State |
6 | 185 | Marcus Spriggs | Guard | Houston |
7 | 226 | Pat Fitzgerald | Tight end | Texas |
Roster
Quarterbacks (QB)
Running backs (RB)
Wide receivers (WR)
Tight ends (TE)
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Offensive linemen (OL)
Defensive linemen (DL)
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Linebackers (LB)
Defensive backs (DB) {{{defensive_back}}}
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Schedule
Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | August 31, 1997 | Minnesota Vikings | L 34–13 | |
2 | September 7, 1997 | at New York Jets | W 28–22 | |
3 | September 14, 1997 | at Kansas City Chiefs | L 22–16 | |
4 | September 21, 1997 | Indianapolis Colts | W 37–35 | |
5 | Bye | |||
6 | October 5, 1997 | Detroit Lions | W 22–13 | |
7 | October 12, 1997 | at New England Patriots | L 33–6 | |
8 | October 20, 1997 | at Indianapolis Colts | W 9–6 | |
9 | October 26, 1997 | Denver Broncos | L 23–20 | |
10 | November 2, 1997 | Miami Dolphins | W 9–6 | |
11 | November 9, 1997 | New England Patriots | L 31–10 | |
12 | November 17, 1997 | at Miami Dolphins | L 30–13 | |
13 | November 23, 1997 | at Tennessee Oilers | L 31–14 | |
14 | November 30, 1997 | New York Jets | W 20–10 | |
15 | December 7, 1997 | at Chicago Bears | L 20–3 | |
16 | December 14, 1997 | Jacksonville Jaguars | L 20–14 | |
17 | December 20, 1997 | at Green Bay Packers | L 31–21 |
Game summaries
Week 2
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Standings
AFC East | |||||||
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W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
(3) New England Patriots | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 369 | 289 | W1 |
(6) Miami Dolphins | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 339 | 327 | L2 |
New York Jets | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 348 | 287 | L1 |
Buffalo Bills | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 255 | 367 | L3 |
Indianapolis Colts | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 313 | 401 | L1 |
References
- ^ 1997 Buffalo Bills
- ^ David Fleming, Breaking down the Bills' QB situation ESPN.com, September 23, 2010, "the infamous Billy Joe Hobert who promptly threw a pick on his first pass leading to a 33–6 blowout loss, after which Billy Joe admitted (awesomely, I might add) that he hadn't actually, you know, opened his playbook that week" | retrieved January 9, 2012
- ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com: Indianapolis Colts 35 at Buffalo Bills 37, Sunday, September 21, 1997
- ^ YouTube: Buffalo Bills NFL Primetime 8
- ^ Players are identified as a Pro Bowler if they were selected for the Pro-Bowl at any time in their career.
- ^ Made Pro Bowl with San Diego in 2001
- ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com