Buddy Nix, a former assistant general manager of the San Diego Chargers, was named general manager in the final week of the 2009 season. One of his first personnel moves was to cut ties with Owens (ironically, a man he had recruited during his time in college football). With Terrell Owens’ contract expiration in March 2010, the Bills chose not to re-sign him. Meanwhile, on January 20th, the team named Chan Gailey as head coach. Gailey was previously the offensive coordinator of Kansas City and head coach of Georgia Tech and the Dallas Cowboys, going 8 – 0 in the division in 1998, and leading the team to the postseason in both 1998 and 1999.
As the 2010 season began, the Bills lost to Miami at home. After going 0 – 4, the Bills released Trent Edwards and named Ryan Fitzpatrick starting quarterback. Despite some close games, they ended up at a 0 – 8 record before beating Detroit at home in week 10. Then came a 49 – 31 win in Cincinnati and an OT loss to Pittsburgh. The team finished 2010 with a 4 – 12 record. As a result of the Bills’ poor play in 2010, the team earned the third overall selection in the 2011 NFL Draft, using it to select defensive tackle Marcell Dareus to improve the team’s long-struggling run defense. The Bills fired Tom Modrak, one of the last connections to the Donahoe era, shortly after the 2011 draft.
Buffalo had an excellent start to 2011, routing Kansas City 41 – 7. The following week, they hosted Oakland and erased a 21 – 3 deficit, winning 38 – 35. In week 3, the Bills hosted the Patriots; they erased a 21 – 0 Patriots lead and led 31 – 24 in the fourth; a late Tom Brady touchdown tied the game, but the Bills whipped into range of a last-second field goal. The 34 – 31, win ended a 15-game franchise losing streak spanning 8 years to the Patriots. Despite starting the 2011 season with a 5 – 2 record, leading the AFC East for several weeks, a wave of injuries to several key starters led to the Bills compiling a 7-game losing streak, pushing the team out of playoff contention for the twelfth straight year. The losing streak was finally broken with a defeat of the Tim Tebow-led Denver Broncos on Christmas Eve, in a game that had unusually poor attendance. With the Detroit Lions making the playoffs for the first time since 1999 that same season, the Bills held the longest postseason drought in the NFL.
On March 15th, 2012, defensive end and former first-overall pick Mario Williams, formerly of the Houston Texans, signed a six-year contract with the Bills worth up to $100 million ($49.5 million guaranteed), which made it the most lucrative contract for a defensive player in NFL history at the time(27). Unfortunately, it was not enough to prevent another disappointing season in 2012 in which the Bills finished 6 – 10 again. Following the season, the Bills relieved Chan Gailey and his entire coaching staff of their duties(28). While Gailey reinvigorated the Bills offense, his teams were undone by poor defensive play, in contrast to bad offense but decent defense under the Juron years(29).
2013 – 2014: The Doug Marrone years and the death of Ralph Wilson
On January 1st, 2013, it was announced that Ralph Wilson had “passed the torch” to Russ Brandon and that he would have complete control of football operations. He then served as CEO and President of the team. Later that month, the team hired Doug Marrone as their new head coach. After the draft, Nix would announce his resignation, and Doug Whaley moved into the general manager position.
Offseason player moves included Ryan Fitzpatrick being released and replaced by Kevin Kolb in free agency(30). The Bills also swung a trade with the Indianapolis Colts, sending linebacker Kevin Shappard in exchange for edge rusher Jerry Hughes(31). Hughes and Mario Williams, Kyle Williams, and Marcell Dareus would form the ”Cold Front” defensive line that helped Buffalo rank in the top two teams for quarterback sacks over the next two years, attaining 54 or more in both seasons(32). In the 2013 NFL Draft, the Bills traded back from their 8th pick to the 16th pick and selected quarterback E.J. Manuel out of Florida State. Receivers Robert Woods and Marquise Goodwin, the latter of whom was also an Olympic sprinter, and linebacker Kiko Alonso were among the other notable players chosen in the 2013 draft.
As the 2013 season approached, a knee injury to Manuel and a season-ending concussion to Kolb almost forced the team to start undrafted rookie Jeff Tuel; Manuel nonetheless recovered in time to start week 1 only to injure his other knee a few weeks later, which resulted in the signing of Thad Lewis (who himself had started a game as an undrafted rookie the previous year with the Cleveland Browns). The Bills finished 6 – 10 yet again and missed the playoffs for the 14th consecutive season.
Owner Ralph Wilson died on March 25th, 2014, at the age of 95. Wilson’s assets, including the team, were placed into a trust governed by four members: Wilson’s widow, Mary Wilson; his niece, Mary Owen; Jeff Littman, the Bills’ chief financial officer; and Eugene Driker, an attorney(33)(34). The trust sold the team to Buffalo Sabres owner Terrence Pegula, along with his wife Kim, reportedly for $1.4 billion in cash, which the Wilson trust intends to use as an endowment for charitable causes in Western New York (and Wilson’s hometown of Detroit); Pegula outbid two other parties, a Toronto-based consortium led by Jon Bon Jovi and a stalking horse bid from Donald Trump (the latter’s failure was a major factor in Trump’s decision to run for president the next year), to secure the team. The deal closed October 10th, 2014(35)(36). Having committed to keeping the Bills in Buffalo, the Pegulas negotiated with Rogers Communications to cancel the Bills Toronto Series as one of their first actions as the new owners(37)(38).
The Bills finished the 2014 season with a 9 – 7 record, which broke a league-leading streak of nine consecutive losing seasons. However, they were eliminated from playoff contention after a loss to the Oakland Raiders in the second to last week of the season, which extended their league-leading playoff drought to fifteen seasons. The starting quarterback for most of the 2014 season was Kyle Orton, a last-minute signing who was named starter a month into the regular season. Orton announced his retirement the Monday following the conclusion of the season.
2015 – 2016: Rex Ryan and new ownership under the Pegulas
The 2015 season was the first full season for the Bills under the Pegula Family’s ownership. On December 31st, 2014, Doug Marrone chose to opt out of his contract with the Bills. He asked for a contract extension, but his request was denied by Mr. Pegula. It was reported that Rex Ryan, who had recently been fired from his head coaching job with the New York Jets, would become the next coach. Ryan was officially named the new head coach the next day, January 12th, 2015. The day after that, on January 13th, 2015, it was announced that defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz would not be returning for the 2015 season. The team dramatically overhauled its offense in the offseason, bringing in several new starters: quarterback Tyrod Taylor, running back LeSean McCoy, fullback Jerome Felton, wide receiver Percy Harvin, and tight end Charles Clay.
The Bills set a franchise record for season ticket sales for the 2015 season with more than 60,000 season tickets sold. The Rex Ryan hiring has been linked to the high increase in sales(39). The Bills opened the 2015 season with a 24 – 17 win over the Indianapolis Colts but faltered (despite an unsuccessful late-game comeback) against traditional nemesis New England. Through the first quarter of the season, the Bills led the NFL in penalties heading into their week 5 game against the Tennessee Titans. After being flagged 17 times in week 4 against the New York Giants, the Bills were only penalized only seven times in their 14 – 13, victory over the Titans(40). In the end, the Bills finished a middling 8 – 8, missing the playoffs for the 16th consecutive season, the longest active streak in major professional sport (after the 2015 Toronto Blue Jays broke their then-22-year streak).
In 2016 Kathryn Smith became the first woman to be a full-time coach in the NFL, when she was hired by the Bills as a special-teams quality control coach(41).
The start of the 2016 season was marred by long-term injuries to both of the team’s top draft picks, first-rounder Shaq Lawson and second-rounder Reggie Ragland (who will miss his entire rookie season). On December 27th, 2016, Rex Ryan was fired after compiling a 15 – 16, record in 2 seasons along with his brother Rob Ryan which made the Bills the third team in the NFL to fire a coach in-season (along with the Los Angeles Rams and Jacksonville Jaguars who both fired Jeff Fisher and Gus Bradley), Anthony Lynn was promoted to interim coach. After winning three more games to finish 7 – 9. Though Ryan was hired as a defensive-minded coach, Bill's defense ironically declined during his tenure, as compared to the Doug Marrone era, though the offense improved significantly(42)(43).
2017 – present: The McDermott / Allen era
2017
On January 11th, 2017, Sean McDermott was hired as the head coach of the Buffalo Bills(44). McDermott had previously spent the past six seasons as the defensive coordinator of the Carolina Panthers. Along with McDermott, Brandon Beane, the Panthers’ assistant general manager, replaced Doug Whaley as the Bills’ general manager. Many of the players that Whaley had added or extended, including receiver Sammy Watkins, cornerback Ronald Darby, and defensive tackle Marcell Dareus, were traded away before or during the season. During the 2017 offseason, McDermott popularized the term “Trust the Process” when questioned if he was rebuilding the team(45). The tandem of McDermott and Beane has since been referred to by fans as “McBeane”(46).
Despite low expectations for McDermott’s first season, the Bills played surprisingly well aside from a 3-game midseason slump. On December 31st, 2017, the Bills secured a playoff berth for the first time in 17 seasons with a win over the Miami Dolphins (concurrently with a Baltimore Ravens loss to the Cincinnati Bengals). Their season ended on January 7th, 2018, when the Bills lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Wild Card game by a score of 10 – 3.
2018
During the offseason, the Bills overhauled their roster yet again, trading away Tyrod Taylor and tackle Cordy Glenn. In addition, longtime center Eric Wood announced his retirement due to health issues, and guard Richie Incognito began suffering from mental breakdowns and was released from his contract at his request. They then brought in former Bengals backup A.J. McCarron and drafted Josh Allen to compete for the starting quarterback position. On May 1st, just days after the 2018 NFL draft, Russ Brandon abruptly resigned from the organization. He was replaced as president by Kim Pegula(47).
Nathan Peterman, who performed the best of the three quarterbacks during the 2018 preseason, was named the opening-day starter. Midway through the first regular season game, in which he failed to obtain a first down until the third quarter and threw two interceptions (the team was down 40 – 0 by the end of Peterman’s day), he was benched in favor of Allen; that game ended up a 47 – 3 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Though Allen was named starter from week 2 onward, Peterman would play several more games for the Bills after injuries to Allen but was released later in the season after several more poor performances, with Matt Barkley signed to replace him as the backup(48). The Bills would finish the 2018 season 6 – 10, fielding an anemic offense early in the year and poor special teams play throughout, but also the league’s second-ranked defense(49)(50)(51).
Notable games included a 27 – 6 win over the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings(52), a rematch of the previous year’s Wild Card game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in which the Bills avenged their loss,(53), and a battle of rookie quarterbacks between Allen and Sam Darnold of the rival New York Jets(54). 2018 was also notable for being the final season for longtime defensive tackle Kyle Williams, who retired at the end of the season and was widely considered the “heart and soul” of the team. Williams caught a pass from Allen in his final game with the Bills, a 42 – 17 victory over the Dolphins(55).
2019
The Bills freed up cap space after paying off the dead money for players from the Whaley era they had cut or traded. Before the season, numerous offensive players, such as John Brown, Cole Beasley, and Andre Roberts, center Mitch Morse, running backs Frank Gore and T.J. Yeldon, and others were added in free agency, with general manager Brandon Beane dismissing the notion that “players don’t want to play for Buffalo”(56)(57). The team also drafted defensive tackle Ed Oliver in the first round of the draft to replace Kyle Williams(58). Running back LeSean McCoy, who was an integral part of the offense, was one of the final preseason cuts after a strong preseason by rookie halfback Devin Singletary(59).
The Bills clinched their second playoff appearance in three years with a 17 – 10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in week 15, in addition to their first season with 10 or more wins in the 21st century(60). Buffalo entered the playoffs as the AFC’s 5th seed, but lost the wild card round to the Houston Texans 22 – 19 in overtime, despite leading that game 16 – 0 in the third quarter(61).
2020
During the offseason, the Bills traded their first-round draft pick and several other selections for receiver Stefon Diggs, formerly of the Minnesota Vikings, and a late draft-round draft pick(62). They also signed free-agent defensive linemen such as Mario Addison and Verno Butler. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, training camp was not held at St. John Fisher College for the first time since 2000, moving the team facility to Orchard Park similar to all other teams in the league(63).
Buffalo started strong thanks to a high-powered passing attack, with Josh Allen enjoying a breakout year, though the defense regressed from the previous two years early in the season. Despite back-to-back losses in weeks 5-6 to the Tennessee Titans and the Kansas City Chiefs, the reigning Super Bowl champions, the Bills won nine of their next ten games, clinching their first AFC East division title since 1995 after a week 15 win over the Denver Broncos(64). The Bills went on to win 13 games, tying the franchise record set in 1990 and 1991. They also swept their entire division for the first time in franchise history(65).
As the number two seed in the AFC, the Bills hosted their first home playoff game in 24 years, against the Indianapolis Colts. The Bills won 27 – 24, their first playoff win in 25 years.
The Bills went on to defeat the Baltimore Ravens 17 – 3 in the divisional round, advancing to the AFC Championship round. The Bills were matched against the Chiefs in their first AFC Championship game since the 1993 – 94 season but were defeated 38 – 24.
2021
In the offseason, Allen signed a 6-year, $258 million dollar contract extension with the Bills, keeping him on the team until 2027(66). To back him up, Buffalo signed former Chicago Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky to a 1-year deal, replacing the departing Matt Barkley(67). In an effort to bolster their defense, the Bills drafted defensive lineman including Gregory Rousseau and Carlos “Boogie” Basham.
After a week 1 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Bills won the next four games dominantly, which included two shutout wins and a victory over the Chiefs, before some midseason struggles, including an upset loss to the Urban Meyer-coached Jacksonville Jaguars(68). Following a close loss to the Tom Brady-led Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Bills closed out the season with another 4-game winning streak, including their third win over the Patriots in two years, to clinch their second consecutive AFC East division title despite failing to match their 13 – 3, record from the previous year(69). Buffalo also finished with the league’s top defense in several metrics(70).
Claiming the 3rd seed with an 11 – 6 record, the Bills hosted New England in the wild card round, winning 47 – 17 as they scored a touchdown on all their offensive possessions aside from the final kneel-downs and never punted or turned the ball over, a first in NFL history(71). They faced Kansas City in the playoffs again during the divisional round. In what would become regarded as one of the greatest games in recent NFL history, the Chiefs won 42 – 36 in overtime. Despite another playoff loss to Kansas City, Josh Allen played well, at one point out-performing Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes until the final 13 seconds and overtime(72).
2022
The Bills made a high-profile free agent signing, as All-Pro pass rusher Von Miller, formerly of the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams, was added to the roster after signing a six-year deal worth up to $120 million nearly ten years to the date of the Mario Williams signing(73). Hyped up as the “Super Bowl favorites” before the season(74), the Bills matched a franchise record by winning 13 games during the season and won their third consecutive AFC East division title. However, several events that occurred to the team and the city of Buffalo, including the 2022 Buffalo shooting, two deadly winter blizzards, and near-fatal emergencies to both co-owner Kim Pegula before the season and safety Damar Hamlin during the Bills’ later-cancelled week 17 game against the Cincinnati Bengals, contributed to what several players described as an “emotionally draining” season(75). The team’s performance noticeably declined during the playoffs, as the Bills barely won in the wild-card round around a Miami Dolphins team down to their third-string quarterback before losing in the divisional round to the Bengals in blowout fashion(76).
Damar Hamlin injury
On January 2nd, 2023, Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed after tackling Tee Higgins of the Cincinnati Bengals with 5:58 left in the first quarter. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was administered on the field and a defibrillator was used. He was transported by ambulance to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. There he was intubated and listed in critical condition. He was discharged nine days later on January 11th. The game against the Bengals was postponed until further notice at 10:01pm by the NFL after communication with NFLPA(77). The game was deemed a No Contest by the NFL on January 5th(78). The serious nature of Hamlin’s injury drew national attention, and after extensive rehab, Hamlin was cleared to play the next season, albeit in a more limited role.
2023
Fresh off a tumultuous season and with rumored tension brewing between Allen and Diggs(79)(80), Buffalo started off the 2023 season on Monday Night Football against the Jets, now led by former Green Bay Packer Aaron Rodgers at quarterback. Despite Rodgers suffering a season-ending injury four plays into the game, the Bills lost after the Jets defense forced Allen into four turnovers. Buffalo won their next three games, including a 48 – 20 win over Miami, before entering a six-game midseason slump in which the offense struggled and the defense lost three starters, including Tre’Davious White, DaQuan Jones, and Matt Milano. Following losses to the Bengals and Broncos, offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey was fired and replaced by quarterbacks coach Joe Brady(81).
Departing from Dorsey’s former air raid approach that focused mostly on passing, Brady sought a more balanced approach that put more emphasis on the rushing attack(82). Despite mounting pressure on head coach Sean McDermott to save the team’s season and an expose article that revealed McDermott’s controversial comments regarding the attackers in the September 11th attacks(83), the team threw their support behind him and Brady(84), winning six of their final seven games, including a week 18 “AFC East divisional title” game over the Dolphins, to clinch their fourth consecutive division title. After beating the Pittsburgh Steelers in the wild-card game, Buffalo lost another divisional round game, this time to the Chiefs again, with kicker Tyler Bass’s potential game-tying field goal attempt missing wide right in a similar fashion to Scott Norwood’s infamous miss in Super Bowl XXV.
Future Stadium Proposal
On December 21st, 2012, team CEO Russ Brandon, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, and Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz announced a new 10-year lease for Ralph Wilson Stadium. Included in the terms are $130 million in renovations and a $400 million penalty if the team relocates out of Buffalo (in addition to the NFL relocating fee). A buyout window was inserted into the lease that allowed the team to cancel the lease for a reduced $28 million fee after the 2019 season. The lease will include the team paying for part of the renovations for the first time. The deal also calls for a committee to explore building a new stadium in the Buffalo vicinity(85), a proposal the Pegulas eventually began pursuing in 2019. On January 31st, 2020, the Bills sent a formal letter to county executive Mark Poloncarz stating they would not exercise the buyout window(86).
After the team reached a deal with the state of New York and Erie County after the 2022 season to construct a new stadium next to the current site(87), construction began afterward with a completion date before the 2026 season(88).
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