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1988 Buffalo Bills
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Record: 12-4-0, Finished 1st in AFC East Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 329 points (20.6/g), 14th of 28 in the NFL.
Allowed 237 points (14.8/g), 3rd.
Differential of 92 points (5.8/g), 5th.
Expected W-L: 11.0-5.0.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential -1 (-0.1/g), 16th.
Coached by Marv Levy (12-4-0)
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1988 Statistics / Starters & Roster / Games & Schedule / Team Draftees
Starters
| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | Complete Team Stats | |||||
| QB | Jim Kelly* | 28 | 2 | 16 | 269 for 452, 3,380 yards, 15 td, 17 int, & 35 rushes for 154 yards and 0 td | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 14th pick / 1983 |
| RB | Thurman Thomas | 22 | Rook | 15 | 207 rushes for 881 yards, 2 td, & 18 catches for 208 yards and 0 td | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 40th pick / 1988 |
| FB | Jamie Mueller | 24 | 1 | 15 | 81 rushes for 296 yards, 0 td, & 8 catches for 42 yards and 0 td | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 78th pick / 1987 |
| WR | Trumaine Johnson | 28 | 3 | 10 | 37 catches for 514 yards, 0 td | San Diego Chargers / 6th / 141st pick / 1983 |
| WR | Andre Reed* | 24 | 3 | 14 | 71 catches for 968 yards, 6 td, & 6 rushes for 64 yards and 0 td | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 86th pick / 1985 |
| WR | Chris Burkett | 26 | 3 | 8 | 23 catches for 354 yards, 1 td | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 42nd pick / 1985 |
| TE | Pete Metzelaars | 28 | 6 | 16 | 33 catches for 438 yards, 1 td | Seattle Seahawks / 3rd / 75th pick / 1982 |
| LT | Will Wolford | 24 | 2 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 20th pick / 1986 |
| LG | Jim Ritcher | 30 | 8 | 16 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 16th pick / 1980 |
|
| C | Kent Hull* | 27 | 2 | 16 | ||
| RG | Tim Vogler | 32 | 9 | 10 | ||
| RT | Joe Devlin | 34 | 12 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 52nd pick / 1976 |
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Art Still | 33 | 10 | 15 | 6.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Kansas City Chiefs / 1st / 2nd pick / 1978 |
| NT | Fred Smerlas* | 31 | 9 | 16 | 4.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1979 |
| RDE | Bruce Smith*+ | 25 | 3 | 12 | 11.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 1st pick / 1985 |
| RDE | Leon Seals | 24 | 1 | 5 | 2.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 3 fumbles recovered | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 109th pick / 1987 |
| LOLB | Cornelius Bennett*+ | 23 | 1 | 16 | 9.5 sacks, 2 interceptions, 3 fumbles recovered | Indianapolis Colts / 1st / 2nd pick / 1987 |
| LILB | Shane Conlan* | 24 | 1 | 13 | 1.5 sacks, 1 interception, 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 8th pick / 1987 |
| RILB | Ray Bentley | 28 | 2 | 16 | 1.0 sacks, 1 interception, 1 fumble recovered | |
| ROLB | Darryl Talley | 28 | 5 | 15 | 2.5 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 39th pick / 1983 |
| LCB | Derrick Burroughs | 26 | 3 | 13 | 0.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 14th pick / 1985 |
| RCB | Nate Odomes | 23 | 1 | 16 | 0.0 sacks, 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 29th pick / 1987 |
| SS | Leonard Smith | 28 | 5 | 12 | 1.0 sacks, 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 17th pick / 1983 |
| FS | Mark Kelso | 25 | 2 | 16 | 0.0 sacks, 7 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Philadelphia Eagles / 10th / 261st pick / 1985 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Scott Norwood*+ | 28 | 3 | 0 | 32 of 37 field goals & 33 of 33 extra points | |
| P | John Kidd | 27 | 4 | 0 | 62 punts for a 39.5 average, 0 blocked | Buffalo Bills / 5th / 128th pick / 1984 |
| PR | Flip Johnson | 25 | Rook | 0 | 16 punt returns for a 4.5 average and 0 td | |
| KR | Erroll Tucker | 24 | Rook | 0 | 15 kick returns for a 20.7 average and 0 td | Pittsburgh Steelers / 5th / 122nd pick / 1986 |
| No. | Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 54 | Carlton Bailey | 24 | LB | 6 | 0 | 242 | 6-3 | North Carolina | 12/15/1964 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 9th / 235th pick / 1988 |
| 75 | Howard Ballard | 25 | T | 16 | 0 | 325 | 6-6 | Alabama A&M | 11/3/1963 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 11th / 283rd pick / 1987 |
| 55 | Cornelius Bennett*+ | 23 | LB | 16 | 16 | 237 | 6-2 | Alabama | 8/25/1965 | 1 | Indianapolis Colts / 1st / 2nd pick / 1987 |
| 50 | Ray Bentley | 28 | LB | 16 | 16 | 240 | 6-2 | Central Michigan | 11/25/1960 | 2 | |
| 81 | Walter Broughton | 26 | WR | 1 | 0 | 180 | 5-10 | Jacksonville State | 10/20/1962 | 2 | |
| 85 | Chris Burkett | 26 | WR | 11 | 8 | 205 | 6-4 | Jackson State | 8/21/1962 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 42nd pick / 1985 |
| 29 | Derrick Burroughs | 26 | DB | 14 | 13 | 180 | 6-1 | Memphis | 5/18/1962 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 14th pick / 1985 |
| 61 | Leonard Burton | 24 | C | 16 | 4 | 275 | 6-3 | South Carolina | 6/18/1964 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 77th pick / 1986 |
| 35 | Carl Byrum | 25 | RB | 15 | 1 | 232 | 6-0 | Miss. Valley State | 6/29/1963 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 5th / 111th pick / 1986 |
| 20 | Sherman Cocroft | 27 | DB | 13 | 0 | 195 | 6-1 | San Jose State | 8/29/1961 | 3 | |
| 58 | Shane Conlan* | 24 | LB | 13 | 13 | 235 | 6-3 | Penn State | 3/4/1964 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 8th pick / 1987 |
| 21 | Wayne Davis | 25 | DB | 16 | 3 | 175 | 5-11 | Indiana State | 6/17/1963 | 3 | San Diego Chargers / 2nd / 39th pick / 1985 |
| 70 | Joe Devlin | 34 | T-G | 16 | 16 | 261 | 6-5 | Iowa | 2/23/1954 | 12 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 52nd pick / 1976 |
| 45 | Dwight Drane | 26 | DB | 16 | 4 | 200 | 6-1 | Oklahoma | 5/6/1962 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 14th pick / 1984 Supp |
| 53 | Tom Erlandson | 22 | LB | 4 | 0 | 220 | 6-1 | Washington | 6/19/1966 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 12th / 316th pick / 1988 |
| 99 | Hal Garner | 26 | LB | 12 | 1 | 228 | 6-4 | Utah State | 1/18/1962 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 63rd pick / 1985 |
| 59 | Don Graham | 24 | LB | 10 | 0 | 244 | 6-2 | Penn State | 1/31/1964 | 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 4th / 84th pick / 1987 |
| 49 | John Hagy | 23 | DB | 3 | 0 | 190 | 5-11 | Texas | 12/9/1965 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 8th / 204th pick / 1988 |
| 33 | Ronnie Harmon | 24 | RB-WR | 16 | 1 | 200 | 5-11 | Iowa | 5/7/1964 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 16th pick / 1986 |
| 71 | Dale Hellestrae | 26 | T-G-C | 16 | 2 | 282 | 6-5 | SMU | 7/11/1962 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 112th pick / 1985 |
| 67 | Kent Hull* | 27 | C | 16 | 16 | 284 | 6-5 | Mississippi State | 1/13/1961 | 2 | |
| 47 | Kirby Jackson | 23 | DB | 8 | 0 | 179 | 5-10 | Mississippi State | 2/2/1965 | 1 | New York Jets / 5th / 129th pick / 1987 |
| 80 | Flip Johnson | 25 | WR | 11 | 0 | 185 | 5-10 | McNeese State | 7/13/1963 | Rook | |
| 86 | Trumaine Johnson | 28 | WR | 16 | 10 | 196 | 6-1 | Grambling State | 11/16/1960 | 3 | San Diego Chargers / 6th / 141st pick / 1983 |
| 12 | Jim Kelly* | 28 | QB | 16 | 16 | 217 | 6-3 | Miami (FL) | 2/14/1960 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 14th pick / 1983 |
| 38 | Mark Kelso | 25 | DB | 16 | 16 | 181 | 5-11 | William & Mary | 7/23/1963 | 2 | Philadelphia Eagles / 10th / 261st pick / 1985 |
| 4 | John Kidd | 27 | P | 16 | 0 | 210 | 6-3 | Northwestern | 8/22/1961 | 4 | Buffalo Bills / 5th / 128th pick / 1984 |
| Adam Lingner | 28 | C | 16 | 0 | 268 | 6-4 | Illinois | 11/2/1960 | 5 | Kansas City Chiefs / 9th / 231st pick / 1983 |
|
| 84 | Keith McKeller | 24 | TE-WR | 12 | 0 | 240 | 6-6 | Jacksonville State | 7/9/1964 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 9th / 227th pick / 1987 |
| 88 | Pete Metzelaars | 28 | TE | 16 | 16 | 254 | 6-7 | Wabash | 5/24/1960 | 6 | Seattle Seahawks / 3rd / 75th pick / 1982 |
| 25 | Roland Mitchell | 24 | DB | 3 | 0 | 195 | 5-11 | Texas Tech | 3/15/1964 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 33rd pick / 1987 |
| 39 | Jamie Mueller | 24 | RB | 15 | 15 | 225 | 6-1 | Benedictine | 10/4/1964 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 78th pick / 1987 |
| 11 | Scott Norwood*+ | 28 | K | 16 | 0 | 207 | 6-0 | James Madison | 7/17/1960 | 3 | |
| 37 | Nate Odomes | 23 | DB | 16 | 16 | 188 | 5-9 | Wisconsin | 8/25/1965 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 29th pick / 1987 |
| 94 | Mark Pike | 25 | DE-LB | 16 | 0 | 272 | 6-4 | Georgia Tech | 12/27/1963 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 7th / 178th pick / 1986 |
| 79 | Dean Prater | 30 | DE | 4 | 0 | 225 | 6-5 | Oklahoma State | 9/28/1958 | 6 | Cleveland Browns / 10th / 271st pick / 1981 |
| 97 | Scott Radecic | 26 | LB | 16 | 3 | 243 | 6-3 | Penn State | 6/14/1962 | 4 | Kansas City Chiefs / 2nd / 34th pick / 1984 |
| 83 | Andre Reed* | 24 | WR | 15 | 14 | 190 | 6-2 | Kutztown Pennsylvania | 1/29/1964 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 86th pick / 1985 |
| 14 | Frank Reich | 27 | QB | 3 | 0 | 210 | 6-4 | Maryland | 12/4/1961 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 57th pick / 1985 |
| 40 | Robb Riddick | 31 | RB | 15 | 0 | 195 | 6-0 | Millersville | 4/26/1957 | 7 | Buffalo Bills / 9th / 241st pick / 1981 |
| 51 | Jim Ritcher | 30 | G | 16 | 16 | 273 | 6-3 | North Carolina State | 5/21/1958 | 8 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 16th pick / 1980 |
| 87 | Butch Rolle | 24 | TE | 16 | 0 | 242 | 6-3 | Michigan State | 8/19/1964 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 7th / 180th pick / 1986 |
| 96 | Leon Seals | 24 | DE | 16 | 5 | 265 | 6-5 | Jackson State | 1/30/1964 | 1 | Buffalo Bills / 4th / 109th pick / 1987 |
| 76 | Fred Smerlas* | 31 | NT-DT | 16 | 16 | 277 | 6-3 | Boston College | 4/8/1957 | 9 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1979 |
| 78 | Bruce Smith*+ | 25 | DE | 12 | 12 | 262 | 6-4 | Virginia Tech | 6/18/1963 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 1st pick / 1985 |
| 46 | Leonard Smith | 28 | DB | 13 | 12 | 200 | 5-11 | McNeese State | 9/2/1960 | 5 | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 17th pick / 1983 |
| 72 | Art Still | 33 | DE | 15 | 15 | 253 | 6-7 | Kentucky | 12/5/1955 | 10 | Kansas City Chiefs / 1st / 2nd pick / 1978 |
| 56 | Darryl Talley | 28 | LB | 16 | 15 | 235 | 6-4 | West Virginia | 7/10/1960 | 5 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 39th pick / 1983 |
| 89 | Steve Tasker | 26 | WR | 14 | 0 | 185 | 5-9 | Northwestern | 4/10/1962 | 3 | Houston Oilers / 9th / 226th pick / 1985 |
| 34 | Thurman Thomas | 22 | RB | 15 | 15 | 200 | 5-10 | Oklahoma State | 5/16/1966 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 40th pick / 1988 |
| 62 | Mark Traynowicz | 26 | G-C | 4 | 0 | 277 | 6-5 | Nebraska | 11/20/1962 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 2nd / 29th pick / 1985 |
| 22 | Erroll Tucker | 24 | DB | 9 | 0 | 169 | 5-8 | Utah | 7/6/1964 | Rook | Pittsburgh Steelers / 5th / 122nd pick / 1986 |
| 65 | Tim Vogler | 32 | G-C | 10 | 10 | 259 | 6-3 | Ohio State | 10/2/1956 | 9 | |
| 73 | Will Wolford | 24 | T-G | 16 | 16 | 294 | 6-5 | Vanderbilt | 5/18/1964 | 2 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 20th pick / 1986 |
| 91 | Jeff Wright | 25 | NT | 15 | 0 | 274 | 6-2 | Central Missouri State,Tulsa | 6/13/1963 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 8th / 213th pick / 1988 |
| Team Total | 26.1 | 16 | 228.6 | 6-2.0 | 2.9 |