The 1990s Buffalo Bills Trivia Quiz

Answer: Four

The Bills played in an amazing four consecutive Super Bowls in the 1990-1993 seasons, and was the first team to do so. The first of their Super Bowls in which they faced the New York Giants was their best appearance, losing 20-19. It was the smallest Super Bowl victory margin at that time. It was also the first Super Bowl in which two teams from the same state competed.
Incidentally, this was the Super Bowl in which Whitney Houston performed her famous rendition of the national anthem.

Answer: Dallas Cowboys

The Bills played the Cowboys twice in 1993 and 1994. The ending scores were 52-17 and 30-13, respectively, in the Cowboys' favor. The Cowboys went on to win a third Super Bowl in 1990s. In 1996, they faced the Pittsburgh Steelers and won 27-17. This resulted in the Cowboys being called the 'Team of the Decade', but with four Super Bowl appearances, this title clearly belonged to the Bills.
Incidentally, besides the Giants and the Cowboys, the Bills also faced the Washington Redskins in the 1992 Super Bowl, with an ending score of 37-24, sadly not in the Bills' favor.

Answer: Jim Kelly

The 1983 draft earned its nickname due to six quarterbacks being selected in the first round. Jim Kelly was selected by the Buffalo Bills as the 14th pick overall, but he initially signed with the United States Football League's (USFL) Houston Gamblers. He was the Most Valuable Player for that league in 1984, but after that league folded a couple of years later, he joined the Bills where he was a four-time Pro Bowler. He retired in 1996 and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 2002.

Incidentally, all four quarterbacks listed above played in Super Bowls, but only John Elway was victorious, winning the 1998 and 1999 games (the 1997 and 1998 seasons).

Answer: Bruce Smith

11-time Pro Bowler Bruce Smith was the number one pick in the 1985 draft. As a Buffalo Bill, Smith racked up many awards including being named to the 1980s and 1990s All-Decade Team. He left the Bills in 1999 and played with the Redskins until 2003.

He was the NFLs all-time sack leader at the time of his retirement in 2003, and he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2009 in his first year of eligibility.

Answer: Thurman Thomas

How good was Thurman Thomas? The legendary Barry Sanders was his backup at Oklahoma State (although Sanders went on to win the Heisman Trophy for the outstanding college player of the year in 1988, something that eluded Thomas in 1987). Thomas was drafted by the Bills in 1988 and was selected as the league's Most Valuable Player in 1991.

He left the Bills in 1999 to briefly play for the Miami Dolphins, but he re-signed with his old team for a day so he that he could retire as a Buffalo Bill. Thomas was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007 in his second year of eligibility.

Answer: Marv Levy

Before joining the Bills in 1986, Marv Levy had been the head coach with the Kansas City Chiefs, the USFLs Chicago Blitz and the Canadian Football League's Montreal Alouettes. He turned the Bills around from a 7-8 record to a 12-4 record in 1988, earning Coach of the Year honors.

He retired as the Bills coach in 1997, stating that the losses had become too painful but briefly returned as a general manager in 2006. Levy was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2001.

Answer: "Wide right!"

Much like the Red Sox' Bill Buckner and Cubs' fan Steve Bartman, Scott Norwood entered the world of infamy thanks to a mishap during a postseason game. In Super Bowl XXV, the Bills trailed the New York Giants by one point in the final seconds of the game.

A 47-yard field goal would win it, but the kick went wide right. In fairness to Norwood, the distance was barely within his kicking range, and the Bills had plenty of opportunities to win the game without relying on that last minute field goal. The other phrases are football movie quotes: "Don't throw it to stone hands!" is from "Necessary Roughness". "Oh no! We suck again!" is from "The Waterboy". "Laces Out!" is from "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective", the plot of which was reportedly inspired by Scott Norwood's missed kick.

Answer: Frank Reich

Frank Reich was the backup quarterback to Jim Kelly for nine years. Following a late season injury in 1992, Reich stepped in for Kelly and led the Bills to one of the greatest comebacks in the history of the National Football League. The Oilers were leading 28-3 at halftime of the 1993 wild card playoff game, and they scored again a minute into the third quarter to make it 35-3.

Then Reich led the Bills on a 35-3 run, with Steve Christie kicking the game-winning field goal in overtime to give the Bills the 41-38 win. Interestingly, Reich also had an amazing comeback in college football in 1984 when he stepped in for injured Maryland quarterback, Stan Gelbaugh, and led his team back from a 31-0 deficit to a 42-40 win.

Answer: None

Sadly, the Bills had no Super Bowl wins in the 1990s (or in the 1980s, 1970s, or 1960s for that matter). Still, their four straight Super Bowl appearances was an incredible achievement, and the Hall of Fame recognition earned by the main members of the 1990s Bills was an indication of how great they were.

Answer: The Music City Miracle

The Bills were facing the Tennessee Titans in the Wild Card playoff game. With 16 seconds left in the game, a Steve Christie field goal gave the Bills a 16-15 lead. On the ensuing kickoff, the kick returner, Lorenzo Neal, handed the ball off to tight end Frank Wycheck, who then threw an apparent lateral pass to wide receiver Kevin Dyson who ran it in for a 75-yard touchdown.

The pass was reviewed and was determined to truly be a lateral and not an illegal forward pass (as every Buffalo Bills fan maintained). And that was the end to a truly memorable (and painful) decade for the Buffalo Bills.