The 2001 season was the Buffalo Bills' 42nd season overall, their 32nd in the National Football League (NFL), and their first season under head coach Gregg Williams. At 3–13, they finished the season with the worst record in the whole American Football Conference and at last place in the AFC East division for the first time since 1985. This would be the most losses the Bills ever suffered in a season during their playoff drought from 2000 to 2016.
John Butler, who had been the Bills' general manager from 1993 to 2000, left to take the same position with the San Diego Chargers. He was replaced by Tom Donahoe, who would remain with the Bills through the 2005 season.
In the wake of Buffalo's 1999-2000 quarterback controversy, Doug Flutie was released by the Bills prior to the season and followed Butler to San Diego. Buffalo named Rob Johnson their starting quarterback for the 2001 season, which would ultimately be his last in Buffalo. Bills defensive end Marcellus Wiley, linebacker Sam Rogers, and linebacker John Holecek also left Buffalo for San Diego in 2001, leaving a gap in Buffalo's defense. The special teams also saw a major overhaul. Placekicker Steve Christie was also among the defectors to San Diego, forcing the Bills to sign rookie Jake Arians (son of longtime offensive coordinator and eventual NFL head coach Bruce Arians) as a replacement, then after several weeks of Arians's poor play, Shayne Graham. Punter Chris Mohr left for the Atlanta Falcons and was replaced by Brian Moorman, who would stay with the team for the next eleven seasons. The Bills switched to a 4–3 defensive scheme after using a 3–4 scheme since 1979.
Offseason Additions Subtractions FB Larry Centers (Redskins) QB Doug Flutie (Chargers) LS Ethan Albright (Redskins) RB Antowain Smith (Patriots) P Chris Mohr (Falcons) DE Marcellus Wiley (Chargers) G Joe Panos (Patriots) LB John Holecek (Chargers) G Jamie Nails (Dolphins) LB Sam Rogers (Chargers) DT Ted Washington (Bears) CB Donovan Greer (Redskins) T Marcus Spriggs (Dolphins) S Henry Jones (Vikings) K Steve Christie (Chargers)
NFL draft
Buffalo's 2001 draft was general manager Tom Donahoe first with the team. The Bills' first three draft picks — Nate Clements, Aaron Schobel and Travis Henry — went on to make the Pro Bowl with the Bills.
Undrafted free agents
+ 2001 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeStephen CampbellWide receiverBrownRandall CumminsCenterKansas StateMatt DavisonWide receiverNebraskaRyan DiepenbrockLong snapperBowling GreenDavid DinkinsQuarterbackMorehead StateDonny GreenLinebackerVirginiaTim HasselbeckQuarterbackBoston CollegeTeddy JohnsonWide receiverNorthwesternJosh LindOffensive tackleOklahoma StateCarl NesmithSafetyKansasKendrick OfficeDefensive endWest AlabamaDeVonte PetersonDefensive tackleCatawbaPat PidgeonPunterPenn StateJonathan PittmanWide receiverBYUClark RoosendaalTackleNevadaJosh WhitmanTight endIllinois
Personnel
Staff / Coaches
Roster
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue 1 August 12 St. Louis Rams L 10–24 1–0 Ralph Wilson Stadium 2 Philadelphia Eagles W 6–3 1–1 Ralph Wilson Stadium 3 at Cincinnati Bengals W 20–10 2–1 Paul Brown Stadium 4 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 0–20 2–2 Heinz Field
Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap 1 September 9 New Orleans Saints L 6–24 0–1 Ralph Wilson Stadium 71,447 Recap 2 September 23 at Indianapolis Colts L 26–42 0–2 RCA Dome 56,135 Recap 3 September 30 Pittsburgh Steelers L 3–20 0–3 Ralph Wilson Stadium 72,874 Recap 4 October 7 New York Jets L 36–42 0–4 Ralph Wilson Stadium 72,654 Recap 5Bye 6 at Jacksonville Jaguars W 13–10 1–4 Alltel Stadium 58,893 Recap 7 October 28 at San Diego Chargers L 24–27 1–5 Qualcomm Stadium 63,698 Recap 8 November 4 Indianapolis Colts L 14–30 1–6 Ralph Wilson Stadium 63,786 Recap 9 November 11 at New England Patriots L 11–21 1–7 Foxboro Stadium 60,292 Recap 10 November 18 Seattle Seahawks L 20–23 1–8 Ralph Wilson Stadium 60,836 Recap 11 November 25 Miami Dolphins L 27–34 1–9 Ralph Wilson Stadium 73,063 Recap 12 December 2 at San Francisco 49ers L 0–35 1–10 3Com Park 67,252 Recap 13 December 9 Carolina Panthers W 25–24 2–10 Ralph Wilson Stadium 44,549 Recap 14 December 16 New England Patriots L 9–12 (OT) 2–11 Ralph Wilson Stadium 45,527 Recap 15 December 23 at Atlanta Falcons L 30–33 2–12 Georgia Dome 43,320 Recap 16 December 30 at New York Jets W 14–9 3–12 Giants Stadium 78,200 Recap 17 January 6 at Miami Dolphins L 7–34 3–13 Pro Player Stadium 73,428 Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. New Orleans Saints
at Ralph Wilson Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Date: September 9, 2001 Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST Weather: Sunny, , humidity 52% wind TV: FOX Announcers: Scott Graham, D.J. Johnson Referee: Larry Mallam
The Gregg Williams era began inauspiciously in this game against former Bills linebacker Jim Haslett and the New Orleans Saints. The Bills led 6–0 at halftime, but in the second half the Saints turned the game into a rout. Saints quarterback Aaron Brooks went long and found Albert Connell for a 46-yard touchdown to give the Saints the lead, then later in the quarter threw another touchdown pass to tight end Cam Cleeland to make the score 17–6. Ricky Williams added another touchdown on a 19-yard reception from Brooks late in the fourth quarter to clinch the game for the Saints.
Rob Johnson threw three interceptions, all of which were intercepted by Saints safety Sammy Knight. Linebacker Sam Cowart hurt his achilles' heel in the first quarter, he would go on to miss the rest of the season and sign with the New York Jets the following season.
Week 2: at Indianapolis Colts
at RCA Dome, Indianapolis, Indiana
Date: September 23, 2001 Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST Weather: Dome TV: CBS Announcers: Don Criqui, Steve Tasker Referee: Bill Carollo
The Bills then traveled to Indianapolis to take on the Colts, who were coming off an impressive road win at the Jets two weeks prior. Surprisingly, the Bills struck first with rookie cornerback Nate Clements intercepting a Peyton Manning pass and returning it 48 yards for a touchdown. However, after this play it was all Colts. Edgerrin James scored on a one-yard touchdown plunge to tie the score at 7–7, then Manning threw a 60-yard bomb to receiver Jerome Pathon to make the score 14–7 at the end of the first quarter. Rookie running back Travis Henry answered with a 4-yard touchdown to tie the score at 14–14, but then Manning found Marvin Harrison for three touchdowns in the second quarter. The first two were from 39 yards apiece, and the third was a 7-yard touchdown to make the score 35–17 Colts at the half. In the third quarter Colts linebacker Rob Morris was ejected for unnecessary roughness and for inadvertently bumping up into referee Bill Carollo's mouth. Late in the fourth quarter, on a 4th and 34, Rob Johnson threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Peerless Price in the end zone cutting the score 42–26, and also converting the longest 4th down in known NFL history, but the Bills failed on a 2-point conversion pass.
The Bills allowed a whopping 555 yards of total offense, with Peyton Manning throwing for 421 yards and 4 touchdowns (albeit with two interceptions).
Week 3: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
at Ralph Wilson Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Date: September 30, 2001 Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST Weather: Sunny, , 48% humidity, wind TV: CBS Announcers: Ian Eagle, Solomon Wilcots Referee: Tom White
The Bills' next game was at home against the Steelers, where they continued to struggle. Near the end of the first quarter, Travis Henry fumbled in Steeler territory, and Dewayne Washington returned the loose ball 63 yards for a touchdown to open the scoring, 7–0. In the fourth quarter, the Steelers broke open the game with running back Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala running in for a 22-yard touchdown to make it 20–3.
The Bills were held to a mere 172 yards of total offense.
Week 4: vs. New York Jets
at Ralph Wilson Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Date: October 7, 2001 Game time: 4:05 p.m. EST Weather: Mostly Cloudy light rain, , 51% humidity, Wind TV: CBS Announcers: Kevin Harlan, Craig James, and Beasley Reece Referee: Ron Winter
In danger of falling to their worst start in over a decade, the Bills opened this matchup by going into their bag of tricks. Rookie punter Brian Moorman attempted a surprise onside kick on the opening play of the game, and the Bills recovered. However, the Bills failed to score with Sammy Morris losing a fumble on the third play of the drive, and the Jets capitalized on the turnover by driving down for a 16-yard Curtis Martin touchdown run to make it 7–0. On the ensuing drive, Rob Johnson threw an interception deep in his own territory to linebacker Marvin Jones, and the Jets capitalized with Vinny Testaverde finding fullback Richie Anderson for a 4-yard touchdown on the very next play to make it 14–0 Jets. Johnson answered with a 46-yard touchdown pass to Eric Moulds, but a failed two-point conversion kept the score at 14–6. The next Bills drive lasted only one play as linebacker Mo Lewis sacked Johnson and forced him to fumble, with lineman John Abraham returning the fumble 7 yards for another Jets touchdown. Gregg Williams was 0–2 on replay challenges. The next play from scrimmage featured an injury. Just as he had two weeks earlier when he knocked out Drew Bledsoe against the Patriots to begin the Tom Brady era, Mo Lewis hit Rob Johnson at the end of a 17-yard run and knocked him out of the game, forcing longtime backup Alex Van Pelt to take over at quarterback.
Alex Van Pelt played well in his relief appearance, and after Curtis Martin added another touchdown to make the score 28–9 Jets, the Bills began to mount a comeback. Late in the first half, Van Pelt found tight end Jay Riemersma for a 3-yard touchdown to make the score 28–15 at the half. Then on the opening drive of the second half, Van Pelt found Peerless Price for a 70-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to just 6, 28–22. However, the Jets stretched the lead back to 20 points with Vinny Testaverde finding tight end Anthony Becht for a 2-yard touchdown, then with Mo Lewis recovering a Larry Centers fumble and returning it 15 yards for another touchdown to make the score 42–22. With 4:37 to go, Centers did run in for a 2-yard touchdown to make the score 42–29, then the Bills forced a punt. Van Pelt led the Bills to another touchdown by finding Centers for a 7-yard touchdown to make the score 42–36, the drive took much time due to short passes and only 7 seconds remained at this point. The Bills' subsequent onside kick was recovered by the Jets and the game then ended.
Alex Van Pelt was 23 of 41 for 268 yards and 3 touchdowns with 1 interception. Travis Henry ran for 113 yards on 19 carries for his first career 100-yard game, Eric Moulds caught 5 passes for 107 yards and a touchdown, and Peerless Price added 4 catches for 103 yards and a touchdown.
Although the Bills outgained the Jets 473–335, the turnover battle decided the game as the Bills committed 5 turnovers to the Jets' 0.
Week 6: at Jacksonville Jaguars
The Bills finally got into the win column with this win over the slumping Jaguars in a Thursday night clash. They led 3–0 at halftime after a 30-yard field goal by kicker Jake Arians. In the third quarter, Jaguars quarterback Mark Brunell found tight end Kyle Brady for a 20-yard touchdown pass to make the score 7–3, but on the ensuing drive Rob Johnson hit Eric Moulds for a 27-yard touchdown to make the score 10–7. Late in the fourth quarter with the score tied 10–10, the Bills drove to the Jaguars' 29-yard line. Arians made a 46-yard field goal with 1:03 to go to give the Bills the lead, then safety Travares Tillman intercepted a Brunell pass on the next drive with 44 seconds left to seal the win.
Week 7: at San Diego Chargers