The 1964 Buffalo Bills season was the team’s fifth season. Buffalo was 12–2 in the regular season and won the first of two consecutive championships in the American Football League.
The 1964 Bills' defense set an AFL record by giving up the fewest rushing yards in league history, with only 918, or 65.5 yards per game.[1] They also led the league in points allowed (242), total yards allowed (3,878), first downs surrendered (206), and rushing touchdowns allowed (four).[2]
Buffalo's offense also led the AFL in total yards (5,206), passing yards (2,040) and total points (400).[3]
Personnel
Staff
| 1964 Buffalo Bills staff |
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Front Office
Head Coaches
Offensive Coaches
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Defensive Coaches
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Roster
| 1964 Buffalo Bills roster |
| Quarterbacks
Running Backs
Wide Receivers
Tight Ends
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Offensive Linemen
Defensive Linemen
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Linebackers
Defensive Backs
Special Teams
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| Note: Rookies in italics |
Regular season
Season schedule
| Week |
Date |
Opponent |
Result |
Attendance |
| 1 |
September 13 |
Kansas City Chiefs |
W 34–17 |
30,157 |
| 2 |
September 20 |
Denver Broncos |
W 30–13 |
28,501 |
| 3 |
September 26 |
San Diego Chargers |
W 30–3 |
40,167 |
| 4 |
October 3 |
Oakland Raiders |
W 23–20 |
36,461 |
| 5 |
October 11 |
at Houston Oilers |
W 48–17 |
26,218 |
| 6 |
October 18 |
at Kansas City Chiefs |
W 35–22 |
20,904 |
| 7 |
October 24 |
New York Jets |
W 34–24 |
39,621 |
| 8 |
November 1 |
Houston Oilers |
W 24–10 |
40,119 |
| 9 |
November 8 |
at New York Jets |
W 20–7 |
61,929 |
| 10 |
November 15 |
Boston Patriots |
L 36–28 |
42,308 |
| 11 |
November 22 |
Bye |
| 12 |
November 26 |
at San Diego Chargers |
W 27–24 |
34,865 |
| 13 |
December 6 |
at Oakland Raiders |
L 16–13 |
18,134 |
| 14 |
December 13 |
at Denver Broncos |
W 30–19 |
14,431 |
| 15 |
December 20 |
at Boston Patriots |
W 24–14 |
38,021 |
Game summaries
Week 1
| |
1 |
2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Chiefs |
0 |
3 | 14 | 0 |
17 |
| • Bills |
31 |
0 | 0 | 3 |
34 |
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| Scoring summary |
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| | Q1 | | BUF | Gogolak 13 yard field goal | BUF 3–0 |
| | Q1 | | BUF | Bass 10 yard pass from Kemp (Gogolak kick) | BUF 10–0 |
| | Q1 | | BUF | Dubenion 6 yard pass from Kemp (Gogolak kick) | BUF 17–0 |
| | Q1 | | BUF | Bass 17 yard pass from Kemp (Gogolak kick) | BUF 24–0 |
| | Q1 | | BUF | Sestak 15 yard interception return (Gogolak kick) | BUF 31–0 |
| | Q2 | | KC | Brooker 12 yard field goal | BUF 31–3 |
| | Q3 | | KC | Arbanas 5 yard pass from Dawson (Brooker kick) | BUF 31–10 |
| | Q3 | | KC | Haynes 44 yard pass from Dawson (Brooker kick) | BUF 31–17 |
| | Q4 | | BUF | Gogolak 13 yard field goal | BUF 34–17 |
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[4]
Week 2
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1 |
2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| Broncos |
3 |
7 | 3 | 0 |
13 |
| • Bills |
3 |
10 | 7 | 10 |
30 |
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| Scoring summary |
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| | Q1 | | DEN | Mingo 51 yard field goal | DEN 3–0 |
| | Q1 | | BUF | Gogolak 33 yard field goal | Tie 3–3 |
| | Q2 | | BUF | Gilchrist 15 yard run (Gogolak kick) | BUF 10–3 |
| | Q2 | | BUF | Gogolak 21 yard field goal | BUF 13–3 |
| | Q2 | | DEN | Taylor 46 yard pass from Lee (Mingo kick) | BUF 13–10 |
| | Q3 | | DEN | Mingo 49 yard field goal | Tie 13–13 |
| | Q3 | | BUF | Gilchrist 1 yard run (Gogolak kick) | BUF 20–13 |
| | Q4 | | BUF | Gogolak 17 yard field goal | BUF 23–13 |
| | Q4 | | BUF | Lamonica 8 yard run (Gogolak kick) | BUF 30–13 |
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[5]
Week 3
| |
1 |
2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| Chargers |
0 |
3 | 0 | 0 |
3 |
| • Bills |
7 |
7 | 3 | 13 |
30 |
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| Scoring summary |
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| | Q1 | | BUF | Byrd 85 yard interception return (Gogolak kick) | BUF 7–0 |
| | Q2 | | SD | Blair 12 yard field goal | BUF 7–3 |
| | Q2 | | BUF | Clarke 53 yard punt return (Gogolak kick) | BUF 14–3 |
| | Q3 | | BUF | Gogolak 13 yard field goal | BUF 17–3 |
| | Q4 | | BUF | Auer 2 yard run (Gogolak kick) | BUF 24–3 |
| | Q4 | | BUF | Dubenion 40 yard pass from Lamonica (kick failed) | BUF 30–3 |
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[6]
Week 4
| |
1 |
2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| Raiders |
3 |
0 | 7 | 10 |
20 |
| • Bills |
0 |
7 | 7 | 9 |
23 |
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| Scoring summary |
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| | Q1 | | OAK | Mercer 25 yard field goal | OAK 3–0 |
| | Q2 | | BUF | Kemp 9 yard run (Gogolak kick) | BUF 7–3 |
| | Q3 | | OAK | Davidson 6 yard run (Mercer kick) | OAK 10–7 |
| | Q3 | | BUF | Lamonica 1 yard run (Gogolak kick) | BUF 14–10 |
| | Q4 | | OAK | Mercer 19 yard field goal | BUF 14–13 |
| | Q4 | | BUF | Dubenion 44 yard pass from Lamonica (Gogolak kick) | BUF 21–13 |
| | Q4 | | BUF | Safety, Davidson tackled by McDole in end zone | BUF 23–13 |
| | Q4 | | OAK | Herock 4 yard pass from Davdison (Mercer kick) | BUF 23–20 |
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[7]
Week 5
| |
1 |
2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| • Bills |
14 |
17 | 17 | 10 |
58 |
| Oilers |
7 |
3 | 7 | 0 |
17 |
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| Scoring summary |
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| | Q1 | | BUF | Gilchrist 1 yard run (Gogolak kick) | BUF 7–0 |
| | Q1 | | HOU | Blanks 4 yard run (Blanda kick) | Tie 7–7 |
| | Q1 | | BUF | Bass 9 yard pass from Kemp (Gogolak kick) | BUF 14–7 |
| | Q2 | | BUF | Dubenion 19 yard pass from Kemp (Gogolak kick) | BUF 21–7 |
| | Q2 | | HOU | Blanda 47 yard field goal | BUF 21–10 |
| | Q2 | | BUF | Bass 94 yard pass from Kemp (Gogolak kick) | BUF 28–10 |
| | Q2 | | BUF | Gogolak 18 yard field goal | BUF 31–10 |
| | Q3 | | HOU | Hennigan 53 yard pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) | BUF 31–17 |
| | Q3 | | BUF | Gilchirst 3 yard run (Gogolak kick) | BUF 38–17 |
| | Q4 | | BUF | Gogolak 26 yard field goal | BUF 41–17 |
| | Q4 | | BUF | Ross 1 yard run (Gogolak kick) | BUF 48–17 |
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[8]
Standings
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Postseason
AFL Championship Game
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1 |
2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| Chargers |
7 |
0 | 0 | 0 |
7 |
| • Bills |
3 |
10 | 0 | 7 |
20 |
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[9]
Player stats
Passing
| Player | Comp | Att | Yds | Completion % | TD | INT |
| Jack Kemp | 119 | 269 | 2285 | 44.2 | 13 | 26 |
| Daryle Lamonica | 55 | 128 | 1137 | 43.0 | 6 | 8 |
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Rushing
| Player | Att | Yds | Average | Long | TD |
| Cookie Gilchrist | 230 | 981 | 4.3 | 67 | 6 |
| B. Smith | 62 | 306 | 4.9 | 37 | 4 |
| Daryle Lamonica | 55 | 289 | 5.3 | 18 | 6 |
| Joe Auer | 63 | 191 | 3.0 | 21 | 2 |
| Jack Kemp | 37 | 124 | 3.4 | 14 | 5 |
| Wray Carlton | 39 | 114 | 2.9 | 11 | 1 |
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Special teams
Kicking
| Player | FG | Att | XP | XP Att | Pts |
| Pete Gogolak | 19 | 29 | 45 | 46 | 102 |
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Punting
| Player | No. | Yards | Avg. | Long |
| Paul Maguire | 65 | 2777 | 42.7 | 64 |
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Awards and Records
- Lou Saban, Coach of the Year
References
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| Franchise | |
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| Stadiums | |
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| Culture | |
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| Lore | |
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| Rivalries | |
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| Division championships (10) | |
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| Conference championships (4) | |
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| League championships (2) | |
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| Wall of Fame | |
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| Media | |
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| Owners | |
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| Current league affiliations | |
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| Former league affiliation | |
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| Seasons (58) | |
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Championship seasons in bold
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