NFL

Buffalo Bills vs. Denver Broncos all-time series history

ballervisions 2026年1月17日

The six-seeded Buffalo Bills (12-5) face the one-seeded Denver Broncos (14-3) at 4:30 pm EST Saturday afternoon at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium in the Divisional round of the AFC playoffs, and this will be the third time these two franchises meet in the postseason.

This is the meeting of the founding members of the American Football League, as both the Bills and the Broncos began playing in the league starting in the 1960 season. Buffalo brings a 7-9 all-time record into the Divisional Round, while Denver is 10-6 in previous Divisional Round games.

Before this playoff game, let’s revisit the history of the series, recall some of the more memorable matchups, break down those familiar connections, and go through the list of players who played for both teams. Hint: there are 85 players who have seen action for both the Bucks and the Broncos.

Debts vs. Broncos series history

Saturday’s game will be the 43rd straight, Buffalo is 24-17-1 in the series. The Bills are 22-17-1 against the Broncos in the regular season, including five of their last seven games, and 2-0 against the Broncos in the playoffs.

The first ever postseason matchup was a defensive slugfest in the 1992 AFC Championship, played at Rich Stadium. The Bills advanced to their second straight Super Bowl thanks to a relentless defense that held quarterback John Elway and the high-octane Broncos offense scoreless until late in the fourth quarter in a 10-7 victory. David Treadwell, the Broncos’ usually accurate kicker, scored three goals in the first half, with two of his kicks going wide right, as Denver’s offense squandered one scoring opportunity after another.

On a day when quarterback Jim Kelly, running back Thurman Thomas, wide receiver Andre Reed and the high-flying K-Gun Bills were held scoreless by a stout Broncos defense until the fourth quarter, it was an undrafted member of Buffalo’s defense that came up with the biggest play that led to the first score. Linebacker Carlton Bailey intercepted Elway’s pass to nose tackle Jeff Wright and returned it 11 yards for a 7-0 Bills lead with 5:28 left in the third quarter.

Scott Norwood then kicked a 44-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead five minutes into the fourth. Buffalo’s defense, which sacked Elway three times and held him to just 121 yards, eventually took the future Pro Football Hall of Famer out of the game with a deep thigh injury early in the fourth. Backup quarterback Gary Kubiak capped the Broncos’ only scoring drive when he capped an eight-play, 85-yard drive for a three-yard touchdown with 1:43 left.

Denver recovered an onside kick, but on the first offensive play, defensive end Kirby Jackson hit running back Steve Sewell after a short pass, stripped the ball and fell into the fumble to seal the win and send the sold-out crowd into Fandemonium.

The Bills won despite Kelly throwing two interceptions and completing just 13-of-25 passes for 117 yards, and despite Thomas rushing for just 72 yards on 26 carries. Buffalo failed to score an offensive touchdown at home for the first time in more than three years, but did enough to advance to Super Bowl XXVI.

Last postseason matchup: The Bills secured a 31-7 victory over Sean Payton, Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos in the Wild Card round of the 2024 NFL season playoffs.

Denver struck first as Nix found wide receiver Troy Franklin for a 43-yard touchdown pass 2:24 into the contest, but from there it was Josh Allen and the Bills. Buffalo scored six of the first seven, starting with a 26-yard field goal from Tyler Bass and a five-yard run from running back James Cook III early in the second quarter as the Bills took a 10-7 halftime lead.

In the second half, following another Bass field goal, Allen stepped up his game, passing for two touchdowns, including a 24-yard touchdown pass to running back Ty Johnson on fourth down late in the third to give the Bills a 21-7 lead after Allen connected with rookie wide receiver Keon Coleman on a two-point try.

The final blow came early in the fourth quarter, when Allen threw a dime to wide receiver Curtis Samuel, who went 55 yards for a score and a 28-7 Bills lead. Allen completed 20-of-26 passes for 272 yards, Cook ran for 120 yards, and Buffalo’s ground game finished with 210 yards on the day as the Bills held a 23-minute lead in possession.

Cook became the first Bill to eclipse 100 yards rushing in a playoff game since Thomas’ 158-yard run in the Wild Card win over Miami in the 1995 season, and Allen (23) passed Kelly for the most playoff touchdowns in franchise history in the victory.

Although the Bills didn’t force a turnover, they sacked Nix twice and applied pressure frequently. Nix completed just 13-of-22 passes for 144 yards while directing a Denver offense that fumbled four times and turned the ball over twice.

The Bills would defeat the Baltimore Ravens the following week in the AFC Divisional Round before falling to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game.

Matches from last regular season: The loss that ended Ken Dorsey’s tenure as Buffalo’s offensive coordinator was painful in Week 10 of the 2023 season. The Bills turned the ball over four times, but looked set to win the first time Monday Night Football when Will Lutz pushed the game-winning field goal wide right. But the Bills were marked with too many men on the field and, given a second chance, Lutz drilled a 36-yard field goal as time expired to send the Bills to their fourth loss in six games.

Allen overcame a sloppy game (he had two interceptions and a fumble) to build the go-ahead drive late in the fourth, rushing for a six-yard touchdown with 1:55 left to put Buffalo up 24-22. But quarterback Russell Wilson responded with a 10-play, 57-yard drive, highlighted by a pass interference call on an all-out blitz that put Denver at the Buffalo 17-yard line and led to Lutz’s game-winning field goal.

Allen completed 15-of-26 passes for 177 yards, including a 22-yard touchdown to tight end Dalton Kincaid, James Cook ran 12 times for 109 yards (but fumbled twice and lost one fumble), and veteran running back Latavius Murray ran nine times and a 68-yard touchdown. Led by defensive end AJ Epenesa (1.5 sacks), the Bills sacked Wilson four times in the loss.

It was the sixth straight game in which Allen and the offense failed to score at least 26 points, matching the worst stretch since Allen’s 2018 season. The next day, Dorsey was fired as offensive coordinator and current offensive coordinator Joe Brady took over.

Franchise Comparison

	Debts	The Broncos
Year Built	1960	1960
Overall Record	498-510-8	532-475-10
Playoff record	22-22	23-20
Super Bowls Won (The Look)	0 (4)	3 (8)
Championships	2 AFL titles	3
The Hall of Kings	12	15

Who played for the Bills and Broncos?

There are 85 players who have appeared in both the Bills and Broncos games, including defensive back Butch Byrd (1964-1970 with the Bills, 1971 with the Broncos), defensive end Booker Edgerson (1962-69 with the Bills, 1970 with the Broncos6), and Girl96 Billist (1962-1969), and Gillie61 1965-67 with Broncos), defensive lineman Mike Lodish (1990-94 with Bills, 19995-2000 with Broncos), running back Willis McGahee (2004-06 with Bills, 2011-12 with Broncos), linebacker Von1111111 (Bronco20) 2022-24 with Bills), wide receiver Haven Moses (1968-1972 with the Bills, 1972-1981 with the Broncos), and defensive lineman Ted Washington (1994 with the Broncos, 1995-2000 with the Bills).

Among other notable players with ties to both the Bills and the Broncos:

Defensive lineman Sam Adams (2003-05 with Bills, 2007 with Broncos)
Defense battle Justin Bannan (2002-05 with Bills, 2010-12 with Broncos)
Quarterback/wide receiver Marlin Briscoe (1968 with Broncos, 1969-1971 with Bills)
Defensive lineman Dave Costa (1966-1974 with Bills, 1967-1971 with Broncos)
Running back Travis Henry (2001-04 with Bills, 2007 with Broncos)
Defensive back Tom Janik (1963-64 with Broncos, 1965-68 with Bills)
Artist Sam Martin (2020-21 with Broncos, 2022-24 with Bills)
Wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie (2017-18 with Broncos, 2018-2022 with Bills)
Quarterback Kyle Orton (2009-2011 with Broncos, 2014 with Bills)
Fighting Erik Pears (2006-07 with Broncos, 2010-14 with Bills)
Kicker Matt Prater (2007-13 with Broncos, 2025 with Bills)
George Saimes defensive end (1963-69 with Bills, 1970-72 with Broncos)
Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders (2014-19 with Broncos, 2021 with Bills)
Offensive lineman Trey Teague (1999-2001 with Broncos, 2002-05 with Bills)
Quarterback Dave Washington (1970-71 with Broncos, 1972-74 with Bills)