1990 Buffalo Bills
1990 American Football Conference Champions!
K-Gun's Ablazing!
The 1989 season for the Bills was one of bickering between some members of the offense and some members of their defense. Most of the concerns entering the 1990 season revolved around team chemistry and not whether or not this team had the talent to go far in the playoffs.
The Bills started sluggishly with a home win against Indy and a loss to a resurgent Dolphins squad in Miami. The Bills began to roll following that defeat as they rattled off 8 straight wins. Following a loss at Houston, the Bills would start another winning streak - this time they won 4 straight and the Bills had home field advantage up to the Super Bowl clinched by the final week when they lost to Washington.
The Bills offense kept scoreboard operators busy throughout the season as the no huddle K-Gun offense kept defenses off guard and wore them ragged. Jim Kelly threw for just under 3000 yards, Andre Reed had 945 yards receiving to lead the team and newcomer James Lofton was an outstanding complement to Reed in the passing game. Thurman Thomas would rush for over 1000 yards just as he did in his first two NFL campaigns. This prolific offense actually kicked it up a couple of notches in the playoffs as the snow flurries failed to cool off the offense. The Bills racked up 44 points against Miami in the Divisional Playoff Game and defeated the Dolphins by 10. The AFC Title Game was a one-sided affair as the Bills rolled up 51 points against the L.A. Raiders to advance to their first Super Bowl. As the Giants proved in the Super Bowl, the only way to stop this offense was to keep them off the field. The Giants had two scoring drives where they held on to the ball for over 7 minutes, yet the Bills were within one point with just seconds remaining. Scott Norwood would have won the championship for Buffalo if he could make a 48 yard FG. Well, the kick went wide right and the Bills would come up just 1 point short in arguably the Greatest Super Bowl ever played. Even the bitter defeat did not completely dampen this team's spirits since they accompished so much in 1990.
........................................1990 Results...............................................
Regular Season
Date Opponent Result
9/ 9/90 Indianapolis W 26-10
9/16/90 at Miami L 7-30
9/24/90 at N.Y. Jets W 30- 7
9/30/90 Denver W 29-28
10/ 7/90 L.A. Raiders W 38-24
10/14/90 Bye Week
10/21/90 N.Y. Jets W 30-27
10/28/90 at New England W 27-10
11/ 4/90 at Cleveland W 42- 0
11/11/90 Phoenix W 45-14
11/18/90 New England W 14- 0
11/26/90 at Houston L 24-27
12/ 2/90 Philadelphia W 30-23
12/ 9/90 at Indianapolis W 31- 7
12/15/90 at N.Y. Giants W 17-13
12/23/90 Miami W 24-14
12/30/90 at Washington L 14-29
Playoffs
Round Opponent Result
AFC Div. Playoff Miami W 44-34
AFC Championship L.A. Raiders W 51- 3
Super Bowl XXV vs. N.Y. Giants L 19-20
Note: Super Bowl XXV played at Tampa Stadium in Tampa, FL.
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1990 Buffalo Bills Depth Chart / Roster:
# Player Ht Wt Age Exp College Face Shape Hair Equipment
Quarterbacks
1. 12 Jim Kelly 6-3 218 30 4 Miami 28 5 l. brn crop 2 bar, wt wristbands, wt sleeves, left wt elbowpad (turf)
2. 14 Frank Reich 6-4 210 29 5 Maryland 73 5 blk crop 2 bar, bk sleeves
3. 7 Gale Gilbert 6-3 210 29 4 California 19 3 l. brn crop 2 bar, wt wristbands
Halfbacks
1. 34 Thurman Thomas 5-10 198 24 2 Oklahoma St. 216 5 blk fade half cage, wt wristbands, tc gloves (grass), tc sleeves (grass), wt gloves (turf), wt sleeves (turf)
2. 23 Kenneth Davis 5-10 209 28 4 TCU 102 5 blk fade half cage, tc mouthpiece, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt elbowpads (turf), bk gloves (turf)
3. 30 Don Smith 5-11 200 27 3 Miss. State 166 9 blk fade 3 bar rb, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves
Fullbacks
1. 41 Jamie Mueller 6-1 224 26 3 N/A 50 16 l. brn fade style 3 helmet, full cage, eye paint, neck roll, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt tc elbowpads (grass)
2. 35 Carwell Gardner 6-2 235 24 R Louisville 12 4 blk flat top style 3 helmet, full cage, neck roll, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves
Wide Receivers
1. 80 James Lofton 6-3 190 34 12 Stanford 79 4 blk flat top 2 bar, eye paint, left wt elbowpad, wt wrist double, bk gloves, wt sleeves, wt half sleeves (grass)
2. 83 Andre Reed 6-2 190 26 5 Kutztown 52 2 blk crop style 3 helmet, 3 bar, eye paint, wt wristbands, tc gloves, tc sleeves, right wt wrist double (turf), left qb wristband (turf), wt gloves (turf), wt sleeves (turf)
3. 82 Don Beebe 5-11 177 26 1 N/A 28 3 l. brn crop 2 bar, eye paint, bk gloves, wt sleeves, wt wristbands (turf), tc rb gloves (turf)
4. 89 Steve Tasker 5-9 185 28 5 Northwestern 21 5 brn crop style 3 helmet, 3 bar rb, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves
5. 85 Al Edwards 5-8 170 23 R N'western St. 251 3 blk fade 2 bar, wt wristbands, tc gloves, wt sleeves, wt gloves (turf)
Tight Ends
1. 84 Keith McKeller 6-4 245 26 2 Jacksonv. St. 145 9 blk fade style 3 helmet, half cage, wt elbowpads, wt wristbands, right tc glove, left wt glove, wt sleeves, wt gloves (turf), tc sleeves (turf)
2. 88 Pete Metzelaars 6-7 250 30 8 N/A 25 11 red crop style 3 helmet, 3 bar qb, neck roll, qb wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves, wt elbowpads (turf)
3. 87 Butch Rolle 6-3 245 26 4 Michigan St. 194 9 blk flat top 3 bar qb, wt elbowpads, wt gloves, wt sleeves (grass), tc sleeves (turf)
Left Tackles
1. 69 Will Wolford 6-5 295 26 4 Vanderbilt 91 9 l. brn crop half cage, tc extended, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves, wt elbowpads (turf)
2. 74 Glenn Parker 6-5 304 24 2 Arizona 77 7 brn c. over right patch2 tattoo, full cage, wt wristbands, wt gloves
Left Guards
1. 51 Jim Ritcher 6-3 275 32 10 N.C. State 50 12 brn crop half cage, tc extended, wt elbowpads, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves
2. 59 Mitch Frerotte 6-3 285 25 1 Penn State 39 15 blo long 3 bar qb, dk visor, tc extended, bk elbowpads, wt wristbands, wt gloves
Centers
1. 67 Kent Hull 6-5 275 27 4 Miss. State 81 18 brn crop half cage, wt elbowpads, wt wristbands, wt gloves
2. 63 Adam Lingner 6-4 263 30 7 Illinois 30 12 brn crop style 3 helmet, half cage, wt wristbands, wt sleeves
Right Guards
1. 65 John Davis 6-4 310 25 3 Georgia Tech 86 12 blk crop half cage, tc extended, wt elbowpads, wt wristbands, wt gloves
2. n/a (switch position to DT)
Right Tackles
1. 75 Howard Ballard 6-6 325 27 2 Alabama A&M 177 15 blk crop style 3 helmet, full cage, tc mouthpiece, tc extended, wt wristbands, wt gloves
2. n/a (switch position to LE)
Left Defensive Ends
1. 97 Cornelius Bennett 6-2 235 25 3 Alabama 13 6 blk flat top style 3 helmet, full cage, wt wristbands, tc gloves, tc sleeves, wt elbowpads (turf), wt gloves (turf)
2. n/a (switch position to MLB)
# 94 Mark Pike 6-4 272 27 3 Georgia Tech 18 16 brn crop style 3 helmet, half cage, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves
Right Defensive Ends
1. 78 Bruce Smith 6-4 275 27 5 Virginia Tech 92 13 blk fade half cage, wt wristbands
2. n/a (switch position to MLB)
3. 73 Mike Lodish 6-3 270 23 1 UCLA 35 11 l. brn crop style 3 helmet, half cage, wt wristbands, wt gloves, tc sleeves
Defensive Tackles
1. 96 Leon Seals 6-4 270 26 3 Jackson St. dk skin 178 16 blk fade full cage, dk visor, tc extended, bk elbowpads, wt wrist double, tc gloves (grass), wt gloves (turf)
2. 91 Jeff Wright 6-3 270 27 2 N/A 107 12 brn mullet style 3 helmet, full cage, wt wristbands, wt gloves
# 92 Gary Baldinger 6-4 275 27 3 Wake Forest 63 12 brn crop full cage, wt gloves, wt elbowpads (turf)
Left Outside Linebackers
1. 58 Shane Conlan 6-3 230 26 3 Penn State lt skin 29 7 brn crop style 3 helmet, full cage, neck roll, wt wristbands, wt gloves, tc sleeves (grass), wt sleeves (turf)
2. 99 Hal Garner 6-4 238 28 2 Utah State 9 7 l. brn crop half cage, neck roll, wt wristbands, wt gloves, tc sleeves, wt elbowpads (turf), bk gloves (turf)
Middle Linebackers
1. 50 Ray Bentley 6-2 235 30 4 C. Michigan 39 9 l. brn long full cage, eye paint, neck roll, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves, bk gloves (turf)
2. 54 Carlton Bailey 6-3 235 25 2 N. Carolina dk skin 71 14 blk flat top style 3 helmet, full cage, wt wristbands, wt gloves
3. n/a (switch positon to FS)
# 57 Matt Monger 6-1 235 29 6 Oklahoma lt skin 51 5 brn crop
Right Outside Linebackers
1. 56 Darryl Talley 6-4 245 30 7 West Virginia med skin 32 9 blk crop style 2 helmet, full cage, tc gloves, tc sleeves, wt wristbands (turf), wt gloves (turf)
2. 53 Marvcus Patton 6-2 223 23 R UCLA dk skin 167 7 blk fade full cage, rubber pads, wt wristbands, tc gloves, wt sleeves
Cornerbacks
1. 97 Cornelius Bennett 6-2 235 25 3 Alabama 13 6 blk flat top style 3 helmet, full cage, wt wristbands, tc
1. 37 Nate Odomes 5-10 188 25 3 Wisconsin 86 3 blk fade style 3 helmet, 3 bar, wt gloves, wt sleeves, left wt elbowband (turf)
2. 47 Kirby Jackson 5-10 180 25 3 Miss. State 203 6 blk crop 3 bar, wt elbowpads, qb wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves (grass), tc gloves (turf), tc sleeves (turf)
3. 31 James Williams 5-10 175 23 R Fresno State 149 6 blk buzz 3 bar rb, wt wristbands, bk gloves, wt sleeves
4. 29 David Pool 5-9 188 23 R N/A 180 6 blk fade 2 bar, tc rb gloves, wt sleeves
5. 27 Clifford Hicks 5-10 188 26 3 Oregon 3 bar rb, qb wristbands, wt gloves
# 26 Chris Hale 5-7 170 24 R USC 89 6 blk fade style 3 helmet, 2 bar, wt wristbands, bk gloves (grass), tc gloves (turf)
# 20 Richard Carey 5-9 185 22 R Idaho dk skin blk flat top bk wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves
Free Safeties
1. 38 Mark Kelso 5-11 185 27 4 Will. & Mary 37 1 l. brn crop style 2 helmet, 3 bar qb, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves
2. n/a (switch position to CB)
# 22 John Hagy 5-11 185 25 2 Texas lt skin 105 13 brn crop style 3 helmet, 3 bar rb, tc gloves, wt sleeves, wt gloves (turf)
Strong Safeties
1. 46 Leonard Smith 5-11 202 30 7 McNeese St. 38 4 blk flat top 3 bar rb, tc gloves, wt half sleeves
2. 45 Dwight Drane 6-2 205 28 4 Oklahoma dk skin 226 4 blk flat top 3 bar rb, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves
3. n/a (switch position to CB)
Kicker
1. 11 Scott Norwood 6-0 207 30 5 J. Madison 97 4 brn crop 1 bar, wt gloves, tc sleeves (grass), wt sleeves (turf)
Punter
1. 10 Rick Tuten 6-2 218 25 R Florida State 29 2 blo crop 3 bar rb, wt sleeves
Players Not Included
# 28 Larry Kinnebrew FB 6-1 256 31 8 Tennessee St. dk skin 2 bar, wt elbowpads, wt wrist double, wt gloves (grass)
# 86 Vernon Turner WR 5-8 185 23 R Carson-Newman dk skin
# 43 Kim Phillips CB 5-9 188 24 R North Texas dk skin 3 bar rb, wt wristbands, wt gloves, wt sleeves
Player Ratings spd-str-awr-agi-acl-cth-car-jmp-bkt-tak-thp-tha-pbk-rbk-kpr-kac-ret-stm-inj-tgh
J. Kelly 59-65-87-64-66-53-56-56-50-74-96-97-21-24-42-30-0-84-84-66
Reich 51-57-76-56-55-26-53-48-39-21-85-90-22-27-32-23-0-82-80-81
G. Gilbert 47-52-68-62-61-29-44-59-42-17-81-77-22-25-25-23-0-77-77-72
T. Thomas 95-74-83-98-97-84-85-66-86-24-32-24-41-40-27-23-10-84-88-90
K. Davis 99-56-77-92-96-76-80-79-73-23-28-22-36-33-27-25-63-80-86-82
D. Smith 89-59-64-85-88-78-74-71-70-22-77-64-32-29-30-23-66-79-77-73
J. Mueller 64-73-75-70-74-66-76-50-68-23-35-18-68-66-27-22-10-82-81-78
C. Gardner 67-79-56-68-75-65-75-54-62-23-34-23-62-59-28-25-10-79-83-70
A. Reed 91-64-87-95-94-96-75-86-78-22-38-34-35-39-32-23-10-89-87-84
J. Lofton 95-61-92-96-96-91-78-83-79-22-36-31-33-35-28-24-10-84-78-74
Beebe 95-56-65-96-93-84-79-79-66-19-27-23-37-35-25-19-78-81-73-65
Tasker 87-55-62-89-86-82-73-74-58-38-30-24-27-29-28-23-47-82-82-80
A. Edwards 94-43-55-92-91-72-68-84-55-25-27-24-23-26-29-24-76-85-71-65
McKeller 83-67-64-82-84-77-72-63-73-24-27-23-57-54-25-23-8-80-78-68
Metzelaars 68-74-84-71-66-76-73-55-62-23-26-24-62-58-25-22-8-83-85-76
B. Rolle 62-67-70-54-75-52-51-48-57-23-32-18-74-70-25-22-8-76-86-83
W. Wolford 63-95-88-61-83-23-21-55-29-28-34-21-92-92-26-24-0-71-78-83
G. Parker 51-90-58-50-68-32-30-44-30-26-22-20-82-85-28-25-0-68-77-75
Ritcher 52-92-90-51-69-21-21-42-29-23-27-22-93-90-26-23-0-69-83-78
M. Frerotte 56-85-58-54-73-56-49-50-27-25-30-18-77-81-30-22-0-72-80-84
K. Hull 61-94-84-60-73-25-22-55-26-23-23-20-90-90-25-20-0-67-80-82
Lingner 55-78-56-54-60-29-27-48-27-24-26-22-85-80-25-22-0-61-83-77
J. Davis 62-91-64-60-72-22-22-47-25-23-26-22-86-86-24-22-0-67-77-72
Staysniak 57-88-55-56-73-19-22-52-28-25-31-20-81-79-30-23-0-71-81-77
H. Ballard 59-93-74-54-84-23-21-54-28-26-28-23-88-90-27-24-0-70-93-86
C. Bennett 84-78-85-83-80-41-43-61-28-94-25-23-26-44-29-23-0-84-88-87
M. Pike 66-77-66-67-65-30-36-56-28-78-25-24-25-43-29-22-10-76-81-78
B. Smith 86-95-90-83-85-24-24-62-28-95-15-33-31-21-19-19-0-80-77-89
Lodish 62-86-55-60-69-19-21-56-29-75-28-18-26-42-28-26-0-78-82-83
L. Seals 69-84-72-67-72-26-28-56-28-81-25-21-24-28-27-19-0-79-83-82
J. Wright 62-88-75-60-73-25-24-49-28-88-27-24-26-35-31-24-0-78-80-83
G. Baldinger 64-84-66-63-67-20-22-52-28-76-27-23-26-31-25-21-0-77-66-77
Conlan 78-76-84-82-79-46-42-61-28-96-28-25-24-42-31-23-0-80-78-85
H. Garner 71-72-70-70-69-37-36-56-28-84-26-23-25-42-27-22-0-78-70-74
R. Bentley 74-75-79-73-70-42-39-51-28-86-26-24-26-47-28-24-0-78-77-85
C. Bailey 74-73-71-80-77-43-42-58-28-90-27-24-25-46-29-23-0-87-95-87
Monger 75-74-66-75-80-57-65-54-58-84-38-24-28-46-27-23-0-75-76-75
D. Talley 81-83-92-80-76-49-41-57-28-95-30-27-26-43-27-22-0-84-98-84
M. Patton 75-79-57-76-72-52-32-60-31-87-20-26-31-24-26-26-0-82-85-85
N. Odomes 90-54-78-89-89-66-51-82-28-76-26-23-22-25-25-21-27-81-78-71
K. Jackson 89-51-75-90-89-56-45-80-28-77-27-24-22-25-25-22-10-78-81-78
J. Williams 94-55-60-94-93-58-44-85-28-71-23-21-19-24-26-22-10-82-74-74
D. Pool 94-48-55-92-90-56-51-78-27-71-23-22-14-18-21-23-10-79-78-65
C. Hicks 92-49-71-94-90-60-55-74-47-59-22-21-19-23-23-22-74-78-73-69
C. Hale 95-47-53-90-92-59-56-86-38-52-24-22-19-23-22-20-71-78-70-62
R. Carey 91-46-55-88-87-61-46-82-39-55-25-24-19-21-23-22-10-76-73-71
Kelso 84-55-82-86-84-65-44-68-28-89-24-22-22-27-26-22-10-79-73-77
Hagy 83-53-64-86-83-58-43-75-28-81-27-24-25-31-26-21-10-78-80-75
L. Smith 82-54-86-84-80-59-47-76-28-88-26-23-24-29-28-24-27-87-87-85
Drane 86-56-72-85-83-53-46-77-28-74-23-20-21-32-28-25-10-76-69-71
S. Norwood 40-37-81-48-44-41-32-53-28-25-22-22-16-19-88-86-0-63-86-53
R. Tuten 54-37-64-55-52-47-25-48-14-17-26-33-25-18-82-90-0-76-73-56
Defensive End Bruce Smith finished second in the NFL with 19 QB sacks in 1990. Here, he takes down Giants QB Phil Simms.
1990 Buffalo Bills Individual Leaders
Passing: Jim Kelly, 2829 yds., 63.3 comp. pct, 24 TDs, 101.2 rating
Rushing: Thurman Thomas, 1297 yds., 11 TDs, 4.8 yds./carry
Receiving: Andre Reed, 71 rec., 945 yds., 8 TDs
Touchdowns: Thurman Thomas, 13 (11 rush., 2 rec.)
QB Sacks: Bruce Smith, 19
Interceptions: Kirby Jackson, 3 int., 16 yds., 0 TDs
Scoring: Scott Norwood, 110 pts. (20 FG’s, 50 PAT’s)
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1990 AFC EAST STANDINGS
1st Place – Buffalo (13-3)
2nd Place – Miami (12-4)
3rd Place – Indianapolis (7-9)
4th Place – N.Y. Jets (6-10)
5th Place – New England (1-15)
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Thurman Thomas (pictured below) gains a few of his 1297 rushing yards on this carry at home against the Los Angeles Raiders.