1961 Buffalo Bills season

The 1961 Buffalo Bills season was the team's second year in the American Football League. The Bills played in the Eastern division, winning six games, losing eight, and missing the postseason.

1961 Buffalo Bills season
Head coachBuster Ramsey
OwnerRalph Wilson
Home fieldWar Memorial Stadium
Results
Record6–8
Division place4th Eastern
Playoff finishDid not qualify

The Bills didn't have a winning record at any point in the season; they played their final five games of the season on the road.

Season summary

The Bills had a problematic quarterback situation, with former Redskin M.C. Reynolds, second-year Bills QB Johnny Green and ex-Lion Warren Rabb all struggling at the passer position. None completed more than 46% of their passes, and only Reynolds had a winning record (2–1) and threw for more than 1,000 yards.[1]

Punter Billy Atkins led the league in punts, with 85; he also led the league with 44.5 yards per punt. Atkins also played safety for the Bills in 1961, and led the league with 10 interceptions, and was 2nd-Team All-AFL on defense.[2]

Middle linebacker Archie Matsos was 1st-Team All-AFL for the second consecutive year, as was defensive tackle Chuck McMurtry. Defensive tackle LaVerne Torczon was 2nd-Team All-AFL in 1961.[3]

Offseason

Personnel

Staff
1961 Buffalo Bills staff

Front Office

Head Coaches

Offensive Coaches

  

Defensive Coaches

Final roster
1961 Buffalo Bills roster
Quarterbacks

Running Backs

Wide Receivers

Tight Ends

 Offensive Linemen

Defensive Linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive Backs

Special Teams

  • 20 Billy Atkins SS/K/P
*Note: Rookies in italics

AFL Draft

The Bills amassed a great deal of talent on their offensive line in the 1961 draft. Four of their first seven picks—Rice, Shaw, Barber and Bemiller, all offensive linemen—would go on to make at least one All-AFL team in the next five years. This draft would form the nucleus for the Bills' power running game over the next five years.

Rice was All-AFL as a rookie in 1961.

= All-AFL [4]
RoundPlayerPositionCollege
1Ken RiceKen Rice[5]TackleAuburn
2Billy ShawBilly Shaw[6]TackleGeorgia Tech
3Art BakerArt BakerFullbackSyracuse (from New York)
3Tom GilburgTom GilburgTackleSyracuse
4Stew BarberStew Barber [7]TacklePenn State
5Norm SneadNorm Snead*[8]QuarterbackWake Forest
6Fred BrownFred BrownHalfbackGeorgia
7Albert BemillerAlbert Bemiller [9]CenterSyracuse
8Charles LinningCharles LinningTackleMiami
9William MajorsWilliam MajorsHalfbackTennessee
10Don KernDon KernHalfbackVMI
11Roy WallRoy WallHalfbackNorth Carolina
12Floyd PowersFloyd PowersGuardMississippi State
13Tom CauseyTom CauseyOffensive endLouisiana Tech
14Ron KostelnikRon Kostelnik*[10]TackleCincinnati
15Jerry FryeJerry FryeOffensive endSouth Carolina
16Vincent ScottVincent ScottOffensive endMaryland
17Wayne WolffWayne WolffTackleWake Forest
18John BodkinJohn BodkinGuardSouth Carolina
19Charles BarnesCharley BarnesOffensive endNE Louisiana State
20Everett CloudEverett CloudHalfbackMaryland
21Larry VargoLarry VargoOffensive endDetroit
22Charles BakerCharles BakerTackleTennessee
23William MackWilliam MackHalfbackNotre Dame
24Frank JackunasFrank JackunasCenterDetroit
25Jack HarbaughJack HarbaughHalfbackBowling Green
26Lorenzo StanfordLorenzo StanfordTackleNorth Carolina A & I
27Bob AllenBob AllenOffensive endWake Forest
28Jason HarnessJason HarnessOffensive endMichigan State
29Mike StockMike StockHalfbackNorthwestern
30William MartinWilliam MartinHalfbackMinnesota

Standings
AFL Eastern Division
W L T PCT DIV PF PA STK
Houston Oilers 1031.7694–1–1513242W9
Boston Patriots 941.6922–3–1413313W4
New York Titans 770.5003–3301390L2
Buffalo Bills 680.4292–4294342L1

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Game-by-game results

The 1961 preseason was notable for the Bills as they became the only AFL (or NFL) team to lose to a CFL team, and it was the last game between the CFL and AFL/NFL met in history.[11]

Preseason
Week Date Opponent Result Stadium Attendance
August 8, 1961 Hamilton Tiger-Cats (CFL) L 38–21 [12] Ivor Wynne Stadium 12,000

Regular season
Week Date Opponent Result Stadium Record Attendance
1 September 10, 1961 Denver Broncos L 22–10 War Memorial Stadium 0–1
16,636
2 September 17, 1961 New York Titans W 41–31 War Memorial Stadium 1–1
15,584
3 September 23, 1961 Boston Patriots L 23–21 War Memorial Stadium 1–2
21,504
4 September 30, 1961 San Diego Chargers L 19–11 War Memorial Stadium 1–3
20,742
5 October 8, 1961 at Houston Oilers W 22–12 Jeppesen Stadium 2–3
22,761
6 October 15, 1961 Dallas Texans W 27–24 War Memorial Stadium 3–3
20,678
7 October 22, 1961 at Boston Patriots L 52–21 Boston University Field 3–4
9,398
8 October 29, 1961 Houston Oilers L 28–16 War Memorial Stadium 3–5
21,237
9 November 5, 1961 Oakland Raiders L 31–22 War Memorial Stadium 3–6
17,027
10 November 12, 1961 at Dallas Texans W 30–20 Cotton Bowl 4–6
15,000
11 November 19, 1961 at Denver Broncos W 23–10 Bears Stadium 5–6
7,645
12 November 23, 1961 at New York Titans L 21–14 Polo Grounds 5–7
12,023
13 December 3, 1961 at Oakland Raiders W 26–21 Candlestick Park 6–7
8,011
14 December 10, 1961 at San Diego Chargers L 28–10 Balboa Stadium 6–8
24,486

Final roster

References
  1. Pro-Football-Reference.com: 1961 Buffalo Bills
  2. Pro-Football-Reference.com: 1961 AFL Leaders and Leaderboards
  3. Pro-Football-Reference.com: 1961 AFL Pro Bowlers
  4. Players are identified as All-AFL if they were selected to the All-AFL at any time in their career.
  5. All-AFL 1961
  6. 8x AFL All-Star
  7. 5x AFL All-Star
  8. 4x NFL Pro Bowler for Washington Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants
  9. 1965 AFL All-Star
  10. Inducted into Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame (NFL) in 1989
  11. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on January 19, 2008. Retrieved July 4, 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 369
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