The 1975 Buffalo Bills season was the franchise's sixth season in the NFL, and its 16th overall. The Bills earned their third consecutive winning season, but failed to improve on their 9–5 record and playoff appearance from last year and finished 8–6 and out of the playoffs.
Season summary The Bills led the league in points scored, with 420 (30.0 per game). This amount is the most points scored by any team in a 14-game season after the merger,Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1970 to 1977, in the regular season, sorted by descending Points For. and the most points scored by any team in the 1970s.Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1970 to 1979, in the regular season, sorted by descending Points For. The Bills were the only team in NFL history to average at least 30 points per game and miss the playoffs, until being joined by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2004.
Buffalo won their first four games by an average of 17 points. They were 5–2 at the halfway point of the season, and one game behind the 6–1 Miami Dolphins in the AFC East. Buffalo then lost four of their final seven games, ultimately falling two games short of the division title.
Bills' running back O. J. Simpson rushed for 1817 yards on the season, and set a then-record with 23 touchdowns scored for the season. Fullback Jim Braxton had 823 yards rushing. Buffalo's ground game dominated the league, with a total of 2974 rushing yards, over 300 yards more than the second best rushing total.Pittsburgh, 2633
The 1975 Bills have the distinction of giving up the most total passing yards (3,080) in a 14-game schedule during the merger era.Post-Merger 14-game schedule era: 1970–1977Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1970 to 1977, in the regular season, sorted by descending opp Passing YdsPro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, in 1975, in the regular season, sorted by descending opp Passing Yds However, the Bills' 45 takeaways on defense led the league in 1975. Defensive back Robert James and safety Doug Jones were lost to the season with knee injuries.
Offseason
NFL draft
Buffalo's defense gave up the fourth-most yards in the NFL in 1974, and so the Bills' first two picks in the 1975 draft were a pair of Nebraska linebackers – Tom Ruud and Bob Nelson—both of whom played for Buffalo for three seasons. N.C. State running back Roland Hooks played in every Bills game from 1976–1981. He is best known for his "Hail Mary" reception against New England in Week Twelve of the 1981 season, a catch which was instrumental in putting Buffalo into the postseason that year.
Personnel Staff/coaches 1975 Buffalo Bills staff Front office Majority owner/team president – Ralph Wilson Vice President & General Manager – Bob Lustig Vice president/minority owner – Pat McGroder Coaching staff Head coach – Lou Saban Offensive coaches Receivers – Bob Shaw Offensive line – Jim Ringo
Defensive/Special teams coaches Defensive line – Stan Jones Linebackers – John Ray Defensive backfield – Bill Atkins Special teams – Ed Cavanaugh
Final roster
Regular season
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 21 New York Jets W 42–14 1–0 Rich Stadium 77,837 2 September 28 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 30–21 2–0 Three Rivers Stadium 49,348 3 October 5 Denver Broncos W 38–14 3–0 Rich Stadium 79,864 4 October 12 at Baltimore Colts W 38–31 4–0 Memorial Stadium 43,907 5 New York Giants L 14–17 4–1 Rich Stadium 79,428 6 October 26 Miami Dolphins L 30–35 4–2 Rich Stadium 79,141 7 November 2 at New York Jets W 24–23 5–2 Shea Stadium 58,343 8 November 9 Baltimore Colts L 35–42 5–3 Rich Stadium 77,320 9 at Cincinnati Bengals L 24–33 5–4 Riverfront Stadium 56,666 10 November 23 New England Patriots W 45–31 6–4 Rich Stadium 65,655 11 November 27 at St. Louis Cardinals W 32–14 7–4 Busch Memorial Stadium 41,899 12 December 7 at Miami Dolphins L 21–31 7–5 Miami Orange Bowl 78,701 13 December 14 at New England Patriots W 34–14 8–5 Schaefer Stadium 58,393 14 Minnesota Vikings L 13–35 8–6 Rich Stadium 54,993 Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Season summary
Week 1 vs Jets
Week 2 at Steelers
Week 3 vs Broncos
Pro-Football-Reference.com
Week 4 at Colts
Week 5 vs Giants
Week 6 vs Dolphins
Week 7 at Jets
Week 8 vs Colts
Week 9 at Bengals
MNF
Week 10 vs Patriots
Week 11 at Cardinals
Thursday game
Week 12 at Dolphins
Week 13 at Patriots
Week 14 vs Vikings
Saturday game Snow
Standings
Awards and honors
All-Pros
First Team Joe DeLamielleure, Guard O. J. Simpson, Running back
Second Team Reggie McKenzie, Guard
See also Electric Company
References
Bills on Pro Football Reference Bills on jt-sw.com Bills Stats on jt-sw.com