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1981 Buffalo Bills
Franchise Index: Previous Season / Next Season
Record: 10-6-0, Finished 3rd in AFC East Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 311 points (19.4/g), 20th of 28 in the NFL.
Allowed 276 points (17.2/g), 6th.
Differential of 35 points (2.2/g), 14th.
Expected W-L: 9.1-6.9.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential -2 (-0.1/g), 16th.
Simple Rating System: Total 1.3, Offense: -2.5, Defense: 3.9, SoS: -0.9, versus averages of 0.0.
Coached by
Chuck Knox (10-6-0)
Offensive Coordinator: Ray Prochaska
Training Camp: SUNY Fredonia (Fredonia, New York)
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Starters
ProBowl(*), 1st-team All-Pro(+),Hide Non-primary Starters
| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | ||||||
| QB | Joe Ferguson | 31 | 8 | 16 | 252 for 498, 3,652 yards, 24 td, 20 int, & 20 rushes for 29 yards and 1 td | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 57th pick / 1973 |
| RB | Joe Cribbs* | 23 | 1 | 15 | 257 rushes for 1,097 yards, 3 td, & 40 catches for 603 yards and 7 td | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 29th pick / 1980 |
| FB | Curtis Brown | 27 | 4 | 8 | 62 rushes for 226 yards, 0 td, & 7 catches for 46 yards and 1 td | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 59th pick / 1977 |
| FB | Roosevelt Leaks | 28 | 6 | 5 | 91 rushes for 357 yards, 6 td, & 7 catches for 51 yards and 0 td | Baltimore Colts / 5th / 105th pick / 1975 |
| WR | Jerry Butler | 24 | 2 | 16 | 55 catches for 842 yards, 8 td, & 1 rush for 1 yards and 0 td | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 5th pick / 1979 |
| WR | Frank Lewis* | 34 | 10 | 16 | 70 catches for 1,244 yards, 4 td | Pittsburgh Steelers / 1st / 8th pick / 1971 |
| TE | Mark Brammer | 23 | 1 | 16 | 33 catches for 365 yards, 2 td, & 2 rushes for 17 yards and 0 td | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 67th pick / 1980 |
| LT | Ken Jones | 29 | 5 | 15 | 2 fumbles recovered | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 45th pick / 1976 |
| LG | Jon Borchardt | 24 | 2 | 9 | 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 62nd pick / 1979 |
| LG | Reggie McKenzie | 31 | 9 | 6 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 27th pick / 1972 | |
| C | Will Grant | 27 | 3 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 10th / 255th pick / 1978 |
| RG | Conrad Dobler | 31 | 9 | 13 | 1 fumble recovered | St. Louis Cardinals / 5th / 110th pick / 1972 |
| RT | Joe Devlin | 27 | 5 | 16 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 52nd pick / 1976 | |
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Ben Williams | 27 | 5 | 16 | 1 interception, 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 78th pick / 1976 |
| NT | Fred Smerlas* | 24 | 2 | 16 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1979 |
| RDE | Sherman White | 33 | 9 | 16 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Cincinnati Bengals / 1st / 2nd pick / 1972 |
| LOLB | Lucius Sanford | 25 | 3 | 16 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 89th pick / 1978 |
| LILB | Jim Haslett | 26 | 2 | 16 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 51st pick / 1979 |
| RILB | Shane Nelson | 26 | 4 | 10 | 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | |
| ROLB | Isiah Robertson | 32 | 10 | 16 | 2 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Los Angeles Rams / 1st / 10th pick / 1971 |
| LCB | Mario Clark | 27 | 5 | 16 | 5 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 18th pick / 1976 |
| RCB | Charles Romes | 27 | 4 | 16 | 4 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Buffalo Bills / 12th / 309th pick / 1977 |
| SS | Steve Freeman | 28 | 6 | 16 | New England Patriots / 5th / 117th pick / 1975 | |
| FS | Bill Simpson | 30 | 7 | 16 | 4 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Los Angeles Rams / 2nd / 50th pick / 1974 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Nick Mike-Mayer | 31 | 8 | 0 | 14 of 24 field goals & 37 of 37 extra points | Atlanta Falcons / 10th / 248th pick / 1973 |
| P | Greg Cater | 24 | 1 | 0 | 80 punts for a 39.7 average, 0 blocked | Buffalo Bills / 10th / 259th pick / 1980 |
| PR | Roland Hooks | 28 | 5 | 1 | 17 punt returns for a 8.4 average and 0 td | Buffalo Bills / 10th / 253rd pick / 1975 |
| KR | Byron Franklin | 23 | Rook | 0 | 21 kick returns for a 20.8 average and 0 td | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 50th pick / 1981 |
| No. | Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 87 | Steve Alvers | 24 | TE-C | 16 | 0 | 240 | 6-4 | Taft,Miami (FL) | 4/4/1957 | Rook | New York Giants / 7th / 172nd pick / 1979 |
| 84 | Buster Barnett | 23 | TE | 16 | 0 | 228 | 6-5 | Jackson St. | 11/24/1958 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 11th / 299th pick / 1981 |
| 28 | Rufus Bess | 25 | DB | 16 | 0 | 184 | 5-9 | South Carolina St. | 9/13/1956 | 2 | |
| 73 | Jon Borchardt | 24 | G-T | 16 | 9 | 260 | 6-5 | Montana St. | 8/13/1957 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 62nd pick / 1979 |
| 86 | Mark Brammer | 23 | TE | 16 | 16 | 238 | 6-3 | Michigan St. | 5/3/1958 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 67th pick / 1980 |
| 47 | Curtis Brown | 27 | RB | 14 | 8 | 203 | 5-10 | Missouri | 12/7/1954 | 4 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 59th pick / 1977 |
| 80 | Jerry Butler | 24 | WR | 16 | 16 | 178 | 6-0 | Clemson | 10/12/1957 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 5th pick / 1979 |
| 7 | Greg Cater | 24 | P | 16 | 0 | 191 | 6-0 | Tenn-Chattanooga | 4/17/1957 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 10th / 259th pick / 1980 |
| 29 | Mario Clark | 27 | DB | 16 | 16 | 194 | 6-2 | Oregon | 3/29/1954 | 5 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 18th pick / 1976 |
| 20 | Joe Cribbs* | 23 | RB | 15 | 15 | 190 | 5-11 | Auburn | 1/5/1958 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 29th pick / 1980 |
| 70 | Joe Devlin | 27 | T-G | 16 | 16 | 261 | 6-5 | Iowa | 2/23/1954 | 5 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 52nd pick / 1976 |
| 69 | Conrad Dobler | 31 | G | 14 | 13 | 254 | 6-3 | Wyoming | 10/1/1950 | 9 | St. Louis Cardinals / 5th / 110th pick / 1972 |
| 12 | Joe Ferguson | 31 | QB | 16 | 16 | 195 | 6-1 | Arkansas | 4/23/1950 | 8 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 57th pick / 1973 |
| 85 | Byron Franklin | 23 | WR | 13 | 0 | 179 | 6-1 | Auburn | 9/4/1958 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 50th pick / 1981 |
| 22 | Steve Freeman | 28 | DB | 16 | 16 | 185 | 5-11 | Mississippi St. | 5/8/1953 | 6 | New England Patriots / 5th / 117th pick / 1975 |
| 53 | Will Grant | 27 | C | 16 | 16 | 254 | 6-3 | Idaho St.,Kentucky | 3/7/1954 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 10th / 255th pick / 1978 |
| 55 | Jim Haslett | 26 | LB | 16 | 16 | 232 | 6-3 | Indiana (PA) | 12/9/1955 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 51st pick / 1979 |
| 25 | Roland Hooks | 28 | RB | 16 | 1 | 197 | 6-0 | North Carolina St. | 1/2/1953 | 5 | Buffalo Bills / 10th / 253rd pick / 1975 |
| 50 | Mike Humiston | 22 | LB | 16 | 0 | 238 | 6-3 | Weber St. | 1/8/1959 | Rook | |
| 97 | Darrell Irvin | 24 | DE | 13 | 0 | 259 | 6-4 | Oklahoma | 1/21/1957 | 1 | |
| 81 | Ron Jessie | 33 | WR | 15 | 0 | 185 | 6-0 | Kansas | 2/4/1948 | 10 | Dallas Cowboys / 8th / 206th pick / 1971 |
| 91 | Ken E. Johnson | 26 | DE | 16 | 0 | 253 | 6-5 | Knoxville | 3/25/1955 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 83rd pick / 1979 |
| 72 | Ken Jones | 29 | T-DE | 15 | 15 | 260 | 6-5 | Arkansas St. | 12/1/1952 | 5 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 45th pick / 1976 |
| 71 | Mike Kadish | 31 | DT-NT | 16 | 0 | 270 | 6-5 | Notre Dame | 5/27/1950 | 8 | Miami Dolphins / 1st / 25th pick / 1972 |
| 52 | Chris Keating | 24 | LB | 2 | 2 | 223 | 6-2 | Maine | 10/12/1957 | 2 | |
| 42 | Rod Kush | 25 | DB | 16 | 0 | 188 | 6-0 | Nebraska-Omaha | 12/29/1956 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 5th / 114th pick / 1979 |
| 48 | Roosevelt Leaks | 28 | RB | 16 | 5 | 225 | 5-10 | Texas | 1/31/1953 | 6 | Baltimore Colts / 5th / 105th pick / 1975 |
| 82 | Frank Lewis* | 34 | WR | 16 | 16 | 196 | 6-1 | Grambling St. | 7/4/1947 | 10 | Pittsburgh Steelers / 1st / 8th pick / 1971 |
| 61 | Tom Lynch | 26 | G | 5 | 2 | 256 | 6-5 | Boston Col. | 5/24/1955 | 4 | Seattle Seahawks / 2nd / 30th pick / 1977 |
| 30 | Lawrence McCutcheon | 31 | RB | 6 | 3 | 205 | 6-1 | Colorado St. | 6/2/1950 | 9 | Los Angeles Rams / 3rd / 70th pick / 1972 |
| 67 | Reggie McKenzie | 31 | G | 6 | 6 | 255 | 6-4 | Michigan | 7/27/1950 | 9 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 27th pick / 1972 |
| 5 | Nick Mike-Mayer | 31 | K | 16 | 0 | 186 | 5-8 | Temple | 3/1/1950 | 8 | Atlanta Falcons / 10th / 248th pick / 1973 |
| 59 | Shane Nelson | 26 | LB | 10 | 10 | 226 | 6-1 | Baylor | 5/25/1955 | 4 | |
| 38 | Jeff Nixon | 25 | DB | 13 | 0 | 190 | 6-3 | Richmond | 10/13/1956 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 87th pick / 1979 |
| 62 | Ervin Parker | 23 | LB | 16 | 0 | 236 | 6-4 | South Carolina St. | 8/19/1958 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 93rd pick / 1980 |
| 89 | Lou Piccone | 32 | WR | 14 | 0 | 175 | 5-9 | West Liberty St. | 7/17/1949 | 7 | |
| 40 | Robb Riddick | 24 | RB | 10 | 0 | 195 | 6-0 | Millersville | 4/26/1957 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 9th / 241st pick / 1981 |
| 51 | Jim Ritcher | 23 | G | 14 | 3 | 273 | 6-3 | North Carolina St. | 5/21/1958 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 16th pick / 1980 |
| 58 | Isiah Robertson | 32 | LB | 16 | 16 | 225 | 6-3 | Southern | 8/17/1949 | 10 | Los Angeles Rams / 1st / 10th pick / 1971 |
| 17 | Matt Robinson | 26 | QB | 15 | 0 | 196 | 6-2 | Georgia | 6/28/1955 | 4 | New York Jets / 9th / 227th pick / 1977 |
| 26 | Charles Romes | 27 | DB | 16 | 16 | 191 | 6-1 | North Carolina Central | 12/16/1954 | 4 | Buffalo Bills / 12th / 309th pick / 1977 |
| 57 | Lucius Sanford | 25 | LB | 16 | 16 | 216 | 6-2 | Georgia Tech | 2/14/1956 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 89th pick / 1978 |
| 45 | Bill Simpson | 30 | DB | 16 | 16 | 184 | 6-1 | Michigan St. | 12/5/1951 | 7 | Los Angeles Rams / 2nd / 50th pick / 1974 |
| 76 | Fred Smerlas* | 24 | NT-DT | 16 | 16 | 277 | 6-3 | Boston Col. | 4/8/1957 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1979 |
| 41 | Phil Villapiano | 32 | LB | 16 | 4 | 225 | 6-2 | Bowling Green | 2/26/1949 | 10 | Oakland Raiders / 2nd / 45th pick / 1971 |
| 65 | Tim Vogler | 25 | G-C | 14 | 0 | 259 | 6-3 | Ohio St. | 10/2/1956 | 2 | |
| 83 | Sherman White | 33 | DE | 16 | 16 | 250 | 6-5 | California | 10/6/1948 | 9 | Cincinnati Bengals / 1st / 2nd pick / 1972 |
| 77 | Ben Williams | 27 | DE-NT | 16 | 16 | 251 | 6-3 | Mississippi | 9/1/1954 | 5 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 78th pick / 1976 |
| Team Total | 26.9 | 16 | 221.0 | 6-1.8 | 4.1 |