1962 Buffalo Bills season

1962 Buffalo Bills season
Head coach	Lou Saban
Owner	Ralph Wilson
Home field	War Memorial Stadium
Results
Record	7–6–1
Division place	3rd AFL Eastern
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 1962 Buffalo Bills season was the team’s third season in the American Football League. The Bills finished the season with a 7–6–1 record, third place in the AFL East; it was the Bills' first-ever season finishing with a winning record.

The Bills lost their first five games of the season, but finished the final nine games with only one loss (and one tie).

Season Summary

The Bills were a run-heavy offense in 1962; they led the league in rushing yards, with 2,480. The Bills ran the ball 58.8 percent of the time on offense. The Bills gained 5.0 yards per carry as a team, tied for the league lead.

Bills running back Cookie Gilchrist, who came to the Bills in 1962 from the Canadian Football League, led the AFL in rushing yards with 1,096 yards. and 13 rushing touchdowns. Running back Wray Carlton ran for 530 yards, but led the league with 5.6 yards per rushing attempt.

The Bills' defense got a major infusion of talent on defense, as rookies Tom Sestak, Mike Stratton, Ray Abruzzese, and Booker Edgerson won starting jobs.

Offseason

During the offseason, the Bills removed former coach Buster Ramsey and hired Lou Saban to helm the team.

The Bills also picked up former Chargers quarterback Jack Kemp off the waiver wire. Kemp had a broken hand, and as such could not play until the twelfth game of the season, but he would prove to be the best Bills quarterback of the 1960s.

AFL Draft

Main article: 1962 American Football League Draft

Defensive lineman Tom Sestak and linebacker Mike Stratton started for the Bills on defense as rookies; both would go on to be AFL All-Stars multiple times.

Ernie Davis

Main article: Ernie Davis

The Bills selected Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis from Syracuse with their first draft pick, and Davis may have very well signed with his hometown Bills (Davis grew up in nearby Elmira), since the National Football League team that drafted him, the Washington Redskins, was led by avowed racist George Preston Marshall and had only drafted Davis as a token black to avoid losing the Redskins' stadium lease; Davis refused to play for the Redskins. The Redskins traded Davis's rights to the Cleveland Browns, and Davis instead signed with the Browns. Unfortunately for all parties, Davis was diagnosed with acute monocytic leukemia in the summer of 1962, and the Browns barred him from playing for the team (despite the cancer being in remission by the time the preseason began). The cancer later returned, and Davis died May 18, 1963, having never played a down of professional football.

= AFL All-Star

Round	Player	Position	College
1	Ernie DavisErnie Davis	Halfback	Syracuse
2	Glenn GlassGlenn Glass	Halfback	Tennessee
3	John ElwellJohn Elwell	End	Purdue
5	Tom DellingerTom Dellinger	Halfback	North Carolina State
6	Dave VitiDave Viti	End	Boston University
7	Jim LeCompteJim LeCompte	Guard	North Carolina
8	Paul WhitePaul White	Halfback	Florida
9	Bill SaulBill Saul	Center	Penn State
10	Amos BullocksAmos Bullocks	Halfback	Southern Illinois
11	Jerry CroftJerry Croft	Guard	Bowling Green
11	Tom PenningtonTom Pennington	End	Georgia
13	Ron GassertRon Gassert	Tackle	Virginia
13	Mike StrattonMike Stratton	End	Tennessee
14	Ron ScufcaRon Scufca	Tackle	Purdue
15	Roger KochmanRoger Kochman	Halfback	Penn State
16	Frank ImperialeFrank Imperiale	Tackle	Southern Illinois
17	Tom SestakTom Sestak	End	McNeese State
18	Joe KehoeJoe Kehoe	End	Virginia (VOIDED) Carolina
19	Bill JohnsonBill Johnson	Linebacker	Southeast Louisiana
20	Sam TidmoreSam Tidmore	End	Ohio State
21	Carey HenleyCarey Henley	Halfback	Chattanooga
22	Tom HallTom Hall	End	Minnesota
23	Ray AbruzzeseRay Abruzzese	Halfback	Alabama
24	Stan SczurekStan Sczurek	Guard	Purdue
25	Dave GashDave Gash	End	Kentucky
26	Ed ReynoldsEd Reynolds	Tackle	Tulane
27	Claude CrabbClaude Crabb	Halfback	Colorado
28	Roy WalkerRoy Walker	Fullback	Purdue
29	Jim BeaverJim Beaver	Guard	Florida
30	Cody BinkleyCody Binkley	Center	Vanderbilt
31	Jim CollierJim Collier	End	Arkansas
32	Ken EricksonKen Erickson	End	Syracuse
33	Tony ParilliTony Parilli	Guard	Illinois
34	Ben CharlesBen Charles	Quarterback	USC

Personnel

Staff

1962 Buffalo Bills staff
Front Office President – Ralph Wilson Head Coaches Head Coach – Lou Saban Offensive Coaches Running Backs/Wide Receivers – John Mazur Offensive Line – Red Miller			Defensive Coaches Defensive Line – Jerry Smith Linebackers/Defensive Backs – Joe Collier

Season schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 9, 1962	Houston Oilers	L 28–23	31,236
2	September 15, 1962	Denver Broncos	L 23–20	30,577
3	September 22, 1962	New York Titans	L 17–6	24,024
4	September 30, 1962	at Dallas Texans	L 41–21	25,500
5	October 7, 1962	at Houston Oilers	L 17–14	26,350
6	October 13, 1962	San Diego Chargers	W 35–10	20,074
7	October 20, 1962	Oakland Raiders	W 14–6	21,037
8	October 28, 1962	at Denver Broncos	W 45–38	26,051
9	November 3, 1962	Boston Patriots	T 28–28	33,247
10	November 11, 1962	at San Diego Chargers	W 40–20	22,204
11	November 18, 1962	at Oakland Raiders	W 10–6	11,700
12	November 23, 1962	at Boston Patriots	L 21–10	20,021
13	December 2, 1962	Dallas Texans	W 23–14	35,261
14	December 8, 1962	at New York Titans	W 20–3	16,453

Standings

AFL Eastern Division
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	PF	PA	STK
Houston Oilers	11	3	0	.786	5–1	387	270	W7
Boston Patriots	9	4	1	.692	4–1–1	346	295	L1
Buffalo Bills	7	6	1	.538	1–4–1	309	272	W2
New York Titans	5	9	0	.357	1–5	278	423	L3

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

Roster

Buffalo Bills roster
Quarterbacks Running Backs Wide Receivers Tight Ends		Offensive Linemen Defensive Linemen Defensive Backs Special Teams

References

• Buffalo Bills on Pro Football Reference
• Buffalo Bills on jt-sw.com