The 2021 season was the Buffalo Bills '62nd in the National Football League (NFL), seventh full under the ownership of Terry and Kim Pegula, and their fifth under the head coach/general manager tandem of Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane.
Although unable to match or improve on their 13–3 record from the previous season, the Bills clinched the AFC East for a second straight year, their first consecutive division title since 1991. They finished the regular season at 11–6 to obtain the #3 seed for the playoffs, also marking their third consecutive postseason berth and fourth in five years. Statistically, the Bills had the No. 1-ranked defense, as well as the highest point differential and margin of victory. All of the team's victories were by multiple possessions, but with the exception of their week 11 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, they lost every game that was within one possession.
The Bills defeated their AFC East rival New England Patriots in the wild card round, a game marked by them becoming the first NFL team to score a touchdown on every offensive drive. Facing the Kansas City Chiefs in a Divisional Round matchup, the Bills lost amid a quarterback duel between Buffalo's Josh Allen and Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes. Although the Bills were able to take a three-point lead with 13 seconds remaining, the Chiefs scored a game-tying field goal on their following drive and won in overtime, with Josh Allen and the Bills' offense never getting to touch the ball in overtime. The defeat marked the second consecutive year the Bills were eliminated by the Chiefs.
The season also saw Pittsburgh-based health insurance company Highmark purchase the rights to the Bills' stadium, resulting in it being named Highmark Stadium.
Draft
2021 Buffalo Bills Draft Round Selection Player Position College Notes 1 30 Gregory Rousseau DE Miami (FL) Opted out of the 2020 CFB season while at the University of Miami 2 61 Carlos Basham Jr. DE Wake Forest 3 93 Spencer Brown OT Northern Iowa 5 161 Tommy Doyle OT Miami (OH) from Las Vegas 6 203 Marquez Stevenson WR Houston from Washington via Las Vegas and Miami and Houston 212 Damar Hamlin S Pittsburgh from New Orleans via Houston 213 Rachad Wildgoose CB Wisconsin 7 236 Jack Anderson OG Texas Tech from Carolina Notes The Bills received a fifth-round selection from the Las Vegas Raiders in exchange for wide receiver Zay Jones. The Bills got a conditional seventh-round selection from the Carolina Panthers in exchange for offensive tackle Marshall Newhouse.
Staff
Final roster
Preseason The Bills preseason schedule was announced on May 12. They opened the preseason with a 16–15 road win against the Detroit Lions. Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 at Detroit Lions W 16–15 1–0 Ford Field Recap 2 at Chicago Bears W 41–15 2–0 Soldier Field Recap 3 Green Bay Packers W 19–0 3–0 Highmark Stadium Recap
Regular season
Schedule The Bills 2021 schedule was announced on May 12.
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 September 12 Pittsburgh Steelers L 16–23 0–1 Highmark Stadium Recap 2 September 19 at Miami Dolphins W 35–0 1–1 Hard Rock Stadium Recap 3 September 26 Washington Football Team W 43–21 2–1 Highmark Stadium Recap 4 October 3 Houston Texans W 40–0 3–1 Highmark Stadium Recap 5 October 10 at Kansas City Chiefs W 38–20 4–1 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 6 at Tennessee Titans L 31–34 4–2 Nissan Stadium Recap 7 Bye 8 October 31 Miami Dolphins W 26–11 5–2 Highmark Stadium Recap 9 November 7 at Jacksonville Jaguars L 6–9 5–3 TIAA Bank Field Recap 10 November 14 at New York Jets W 45–17 6–3 MetLife Stadium Recap 11 November 21 Indianapolis Colts L 15–41 6–4 Highmark Stadium Recap 12 November 25 at New Orleans Saints W 31–6 7–4 Caesars Superdome Recap 13 New England Patriots L 10–14 7–5 Highmark Stadium Recap 14 December 12 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 27–33 7–6 Raymond James Stadium Recap 15 December 19 Carolina Panthers W 31–14 8–6 Highmark Stadium Recap 16 December 26 at New England Patriots W 33–21 9–6 Gillette Stadium Recap 17 January 2 Atlanta Falcons W 29–15 10–6 Highmark Stadium Recap 18 January 9 New York Jets W 27–10 11–6 Highmark Stadium Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Despite a 10–0 halftime lead and a strong performance from the Buffalo defense, the Bills' hopes for a third straight Week 1 victory were dashed after Pittsburgh scored 20 unanswered points in the second half, including a blocked punt returned for a touchdown. The Bills were also hurt by several penalties throughout the game. With the loss, Buffalo began the season 0–1 for the first time since 2018.
Week 2: at Miami Dolphins
Buffalo rebounded from its loss the prior week with the most dominant win over division rival Miami in franchise history. Despite another mediocre performance by quarterback Josh Allen, a strong performance from running backs Devin Singletary and Zack Moss, as well as the defense, allowed the Bills to win 35–0. Dolphins quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa and Jacoby Brissett were sacked six times, with Tagovailoa leaving the game in the first quarter after a rib injury.
Week 3: vs. Washington Football Team
Josh Allen and the Bills' passing game enjoyed a strong performance, as Allen accounted for five total touchdowns and surpassed 300 passing yards for the first time in the season. Aside from a 73-yard scoring reception by running back Antonio Gibson and two scores from quarterback Taylor Heinicke set up by a Buffalo special teams gaffe and garbage time, respectively, Washington's offense struggled against the Bills defense. With another win, Buffalo improved to 2–1.
Week 4: vs. Houston Texans
Buffalo faced Houston for the first time since a 22–19 overtime loss in the 2019–20 NFL playoffs. Despite an early interception, Allen completed two touchdown passes to tight end Dawson Knox and led the Bills to 33 points before backup Mitchell Trubisky was substituted on in the fourth quarter. The Bills defense limited the Texans' rookie quarterback Davis Mills, filling in for former Bills starter Tyrod Taylor, to just 87 passing yards and intercepted him four times. The Texans finished with just 109 total offensive yards. With the 40–0 victory, their second shutout win of the season, the Bills improved to 3–1.
Week 5: at Kansas City Chiefs
The Bills returned to Arrowhead Stadium for a Sunday night rematch of the previous season's AFC Championship game looking to avenge a 38–24 loss; in that same season, the Bills had also lost in the regular season to Kansas City. In a game nationally anticipated as a potential bellwether for AFC contention, the Bills scored 38 points, and they were dominant on both sides of the ball throughout the game. While Allen earned a 139.1 passer rating and threw for 315 yards (averaging 21 yards per pass completion), the Bills defense sacked Patrick Mahomes twice and forced him into three turnovers, with one being returned for a touchdown. The game was affected greatly by weather conditions, as a rain delay extended halftime by over an hour, and by numerous penalties, as the two teams combined for 158 penalty yards.
This was Buffalo's first win over Kansas City since 2017 and their first win with Mahomes as the Chiefs' starting quarterback. The win improved the Bills to 4–1.
Week 6: at Tennessee Titans
The Bills attempted to avenge a 42–16 loss to the Titans from the previous season, which was rescheduled several times due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the Titans organization. In the final moments of a back-and-forth shootout on Monday Night Football, in which the lead changed seven times, the Titans defensive line stopped Josh Allen on a fourth-down quarterback sneak at the Tennessee 3-yard line, and Buffalo narrowly lost 34–31, falling to 4–2 ahead of its bye week.
Week 8: vs. Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins, who entered the game at 1–6, dominated the time of possession in the first half and limited Buffalo's offense to a field goal; however, they also squandered two scoring opportunities in the red zone, culminating in a 3–3 tie at halftime. The Bills would score two unanswered touchdowns to Gabe Davis and Stefon Diggs after halftime en route to a 26–11 win, their seventh straight over Miami.
Week 9: at Jacksonville Jaguars
The Bills entered this game as 14.5-point favorites over the 1–6 Jacksonville Jaguars. Nevertheless, the game was a defensive struggle, with neither team finding the end zone. Despite outgaining Jacksonville by 83 yards, the Bills lost the turnover battle 1–3, with all of their turnovers coming from quarterback Josh Allen (two interceptions and a lost fumble). Allen was sacked four times for 35 yards, and Buffalo was penalized 12 times for 118 yards. After allowing field goals on each of their first two drives, the Jaguars defense had their way with the Bills offensive line, which was missing Jon Feliciano and Spencer Brown due to injury. Notably, Josh Allen's namesake on the Jaguars sacked, intercepted, and recovered a fumble from his Bills counterpart, marking the first time in NFL history where a defensive player had done all of this to a quarterback with the same name. Jacksonville pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the season, defeating Buffalo 9–6 and winning their first game in North America since Week 1 of the 2020 season. With the stunning loss, Buffalo fell to 5–3, with their division lead over the New England Patriots shrinking to just half a game.
Week 10: at New York Jets
Buffalo rebounded against the divisional rival New York Jets, scoring six touchdowns after being held out of the endzone the week prior, with two of those touchdowns accounted for by third string running back Matt Breida. On defense, all five starting defensive backs for the Bills, namely Taron Johnson, Micah Hyde, Tre'Davious White, Levi Wallace, and Jordan Poyer, recorded a turnover off the Jets' offense, stifling quarterback Mike White. With the 45–17 win, Buffalo improved to 6–3.
Week 11: vs. Indianapolis Colts
The Bills defense, missing key run-stoppers Star Lotulelei and Tremaine Edmunds, struggled to contain Colts RB Jonathan Taylor, who scored five total touchdowns from scrimmage. To make matters worse, the Buffalo offense and special teams unit committed key turnovers, contributing to a 41–15 blowout loss. Buffalo fell to 6–4, also falling to second place in the AFC East as the Patriots had won earlier that week. This was the first NFL game to ever end in the score of 15–41, a scorigami.Bills, Colts combine for Scorigami with first 41-15 game in NFL history
Week 12: at New Orleans Saints Thanksgiving Day games
In their second Thanksgiving Day game in three years, the Bills traveled south to play the injury-depleted Saints. Josh Allen continued to struggle with interceptions, throwing two in the second quarter, but also threw four touchdown passes, including two to Dawson Knox, as Buffalo routed New Orleans 31–6 to improve to 7–4. They also lost Tre'Davious White for the season to a torn ACL suffered during the game.
Week 13: vs. New England Patriots
In a game affected by winds greater than 40 miles per hour, divisional rival New England ran the ball 46 times and only threw three passes, accumulating over 200 rushing yards and just 19 passing yards. The Bills also tried a run-heavy approach but relied more on the passing game late in the game despite the heavy winds affecting several of Josh Allen's passes. New England never trailed after taking the early lead with a 64-yard rushing touchdown by Damien Harris, and Buffalo finished just 1 for 4 on redzone possessions, leading to a 14–10 loss to the Patriots.
Week 14: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers