1983 Buffalo Bills season

1983 Buffalo Bills season
Head coach	Kay Stephenson
Owner	Ralph Wilson
Home field	Rich Stadium
Results
Record	8–8
Division place	2nd AFC East
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 1983 Buffalo Bills season was the 24th season for the club and its 14th in the National Football League (NFL). It was the first of three seasons for head coach Kay Stephenson.

Bills running back Joe Cribbs was both the Bills' leading rusher (1131 yards), and the team's leader in receptions and receiving yards (57 catches for 524 yards).^[1]

Offseason

NFL draft

The Bills drafted future Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly, the third of a record six quarterbacks taken in the first round of the 1983 draft. Kelly would play for the USFL's Houston Gamblers from 1983–1985, before making his first start with the Bills in Week One of the 1986 season. The Bills later retired Kelly's #12, the only time the franchise ever retired a player's number. Linebacker Darryl Talley played for twelve years with the Bills. He was a two-time Pro Bowler, in 1990 and 1991. He was inducted into the Bills Wall of Fame.

1983 Buffalo Bills draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	12	Tony Hunter	Tight end	Notre Dame
1	14	Jim Kelly * ^†	Quarterback	Miami (FL)
2	39	Darryl Talley *	Linebacker	West Virginia
4	93	Trey Junkin	Linebacker	Louisiana Tech
4	112	Jimmy Payne	Defensive end	Georgia
5	126	Matt Vandenboom	Defensive back	Wisconsin
7	180	Gurnest Brown	Defensive tackle	Maryland
8	207	James Durham	Defensive back	Houston
9	234	George Parker	Running back	Norfolk State
10	260	Richard Tharpe	Defensive tackle	Louisville
11	293	Larry White	Defensive end	Jackson State
12	320	Julius Dawkins	Wide receiver	Pittsburgh
Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

^[2]

Personnel

Staff

1983 Buffalo Bills staff
	Front office President – Ralph Wilson Senior Executive Vice President – Pat McGroder Vice President of Football Operations – Kay Stephenson Vice President of Player Personnel – Norm Pollom Head coaches Head Coach – Kay Stephenson Offensive coaches Running Backs – Andy MacDonald Receivers – Milt Jackson Tight Ends – Al Sandahl Offensive Line – Jim Niblack Offensive Assistant – Perry Moss			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers – Bob Zeman Defensive Line – Don Lawrence Defensive Backfield – Jerry Glanville Defensive Assistant – Miller McCalmon Special teams coaches Special Teams – Miller McCalmon

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance	Notes
1	September 4, 1983	Miami Dolphins	L 12–0	78,715	Uwe von Schamann accounted for all points scored
2	September 11, 1983	at Cincinnati Bengals	W 10–6	46,839	Joe Ferguson threw a 14-yard touchdown
3	September 18, 1983	Baltimore Colts	W 28–23	40,937	Game lead changed seven times in final three quarters
4	September 25, 1983	Houston Oilers	W 30–13	60,070	Ferguson threw for only 127 yards
5	October 3, 1983	New York Jets	L 34–10	79,933	Buffalo's only Monday Night appearance of the year
6	October 9, 1983	at Miami Dolphins	W 38–35	59,948	Ferguson threw five touchdowns and 419 yards; first road win over Miami since 1966
7	October 16, 1983	at Baltimore Colts	W 30–7	38,565	Last trip to Baltimore until formation of Ravens
8	October 23, 1983	New England Patriots	L 31–0	60,424	Ferguson intercepted three times by Roland James
9	October 30, 1983	New Orleans Saints	W 27–21	49,413	Ferguson threw four touchdowns
10	November 6, 1983	at New England Patriots	L 21–7	42,604	Ferguson intercepted four times
11	November 13, 1983	at New York Jets	W 24–17	48,513	Bills outscored Jets 24–3 in second half
12	November 20, 1983	Los Angeles Raiders	L 27–24	72,393	Bills lost despite erasing 21-point Raiders lead in the fourth
13	November 27, 1983	at Los Angeles Rams	L 41–17	48,246	Eric Dickerson rushed for 125 yards
14	December 4, 1983	at Kansas City Chiefs	W 14–9	27,104	Joe Cribbs' 185 rushing yards constituted almost all of Buffalo's offense
15	December 11, 1983	San Francisco 49ers	L 23–10	38,039	Ferguson intercepted three times
16	December 18, 1983	at Atlanta Falcons	L 31–14	31,015	Matt Kofler threw for 125 yards

Season summary

Week 9

1 2 3 4 Total Saints 0 7 0 14 21 • Bills 7 13 7 0 27 Date: October 30 Location: Rich Stadium Game attendance: 49,413

Scoring summary Q1 4:06 BUF Butler 15 yard pass from Ferguson (Danelo kick) BUF 7–0 Q2 13:14 BUF Hunter 40 yard pass from Ferguson (Danelo kick) BUF 14–0 Q2 5:59 BUF Mosley 22 yard pass from Ferguson (kick failed) BUF 20–0 Q2 1:57 NO Tice 12 yard pass from Wilson (Andersen kick) BUF 20–7 Q3 0:19 BUF Mosley 8 yard pass from Ferguson (Danelo kick) BUF 27–7 Q4 7:33 NO Brenner 3 yard pass from Wilson (Andersen kick) BUF 27–14 Q4 3:34 NO Young 5 yard pass from Wilson (Andersen kick) BUF 27–21

The Bills knocked Ken Stabler out of the game at the end of the first quarter with a rib injury. ^[3]

Standings

AFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Miami Dolphins^(2)	12	4	0	.750	6–2	9–3	389	250	W5
New England Patriots	8	8	0	.500	4–4	6–6	274	289	L1
Buffalo Bills	8	8	0	.500	4–4	7–5	283	351	L2
Baltimore Colts	7	9	0	.438	3–5	5–9	264	354	W1
New York Jets	7	9	0	.438	3–5	4–8	313	331	L2

Awards and honors

All-Pros

• Fred Smerlas, Nose tackle
• Steve Freeman, Safety

References

1. 1983 was the last of Cribbs' three NFL Pro Bowl seasons before he left the NFL for the USFL's Birmingham Stallions in 1984.
2. "1983 Buffalo Bills draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
3. Eugene Register-Guard. 1983 Oct 31.

External links

• 1983 Buffalo Bills at Pro-Football-Reference.com