How Elite Were They? #54- Jim Kelly’s 12-win 1988 Season

Photo Credit: Sports History Weekly

By Zane Miller

After being drafted by the Buffalo Bills with the 14^th overall pick of the 1983 NFL Draft, quarterback Jim Kelly was not initially on board with starting his pro football career in Buffalo. Instead, he opted to join the newly formed United States Football League and, more specifically, the Houston Gamblers, following an intense bidding war for his services. He would lead the Gamblers to back-to-back playoff appearances in 1984 and 1985, but the team was knocked out in the first round on both occasions. Perhaps even more troubling for Kelly, the USFL was forced to fold after the 1985 season, thus leaving him without a viable alternative for making big money playing in the pros. With the Bills still holding his NFL rights, Kelly relented and joined the team for the 1986 campaign.

Kelly would immediately take over the starting job after both of the Bills’ quarterbacks in 1985, Vince Ferragamo and Bruce Mathison, left in free agency. His rookie season at the NFL level saw him post strong individual numbers, but the Bills as a whole were unable to capitalize as they finished at a 4-12 record. He then sat out three games in 1987 due to the players’ strike, getting an impressive 19 passing touchdowns and 2,798 yards with just 11 interceptions in his 12 starts. However, Buffalo still missed out on the playoffs with a 7-8 finish. In 1988, Kelly, along with a little help from an improved defense, ensured that the Bills would not be on the outside looking in again.

In the September 4th season opener against the Minnesota Vikings, Kelly posted a solid start with 204 passing yards, albeit without any touchdowns. Still, the Bills held on to win in a defensive struggle 13-10 as defensive linemen Fred Smerlas and Art Still recorded two sacks apiece. The next two weeks would play out quite similarly to opening week, as Kelly and the Bills took the win in low-scoring affairs against the AFC East rival Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots. However, their contest involving the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 25th would be a change of pace, as Kelly threw for one touchdown and 288 yards in a battle against Steelers quarterback Bubby Brister. Pittsburgh mounted a comeback attempt in the fourth quarter, but the Bills would outlast their neighbors to the southwest by a score of 36-28.

The undefeated run for the Bills came to an end the next week against the Chicago Bears, but quickly bounced back in the following week while facing the Indianapolis Colts on October 9th. In a 34-23 win, Kelly threw for three touchdowns and 315 yards, with emerging star wideout Andre Reed getting two touchdowns for 124 yards. Kelly retained his hot hand for October 17^th’s Monday Night Football matchup versus the New York Jets, passing for three touchdowns and 302 yards on the night. The Jets could do little to keep up as Buffalo took it handily 37-14.

By the halfway point of the season, the Bills were both large and in charge with a 7-1 record. However, Kelly in particular hit a bit of a wall in the second half, as he only had one game the rest of the way with multiple touchdown passes and more than 250 passing yards. At first, the Bills defense was able to cover for the sputtering offense, but the dam finally burst going into December as the team lost three of their final four contests. Despite the late-season difficulties, the Bills made the playoffs easily with a 12-4 record, three games ahead of the Colts and Patriots for the AFC East crown. Kelly was the starter for all 16 games, ending the year with 15 touchdown passes to place him 15^th in the league in a four-way tie with the Vikings’ Wade Wilson, the Jets’ Ken O’Brien and Doug Williams of the Washington Redskins (now Washington Commanders). Kelly’s passing yardage was significantly better than his touchdown totals, as his 3,380 yards were good for sixth, just 15 behind fifth-place Neil Lomax of the Phoenix (now Arizona) Cardinals. The sharp decline in Buffalo’s passing game in the latter half of the year coupled with a mediocre rushing attack meant the team finished right in the middle of the NFL pack in total offense at 14^th in the 28-team league, but the defense was third-best as linebacker Cornelius Bennett and future Hall of Famer Bruce Smith were each award first-team All-Pro honors. After closing out the regular season on a sort of high note with two touchdown passes against the Colts, Kelly was ready to continue the rebound into the playoffs.

On New Year’s Day of 1989, the Bills were all business as they hosted the wild-card-winning Houston Oilers (now Tennessee Titans) at Rich Stadium (now Highmark Stadium) for the divisional round. After clinging to a 7-3 lead at halftime, the Bills scored a crucial touchdown in the third quarter thanks in large part to Kelly finding wide receiver Chris Burkett for a 26-yard gain, with fellow future Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas running it in from 11 yards out. The defense kept the Oilers at bay in the second half, only allowing one touchdown as the Bills won it 17-10, advancing to the AFC Championship Game for the first time in franchise history. Kelly put together a solid day overall, getting 244 yards through the air against just one interception, as Oilers quarterback Warren Moon had a strikingly similar 240 passing yards and an interception. Neither quarterback was able to pass for a touchdown during the afternoon.

With the Bills having the chance at their first Super Bowl appearance in franchise history, they headed down to Riverfront Stadium for their January 8^th AFC title bout against the AFC Central-winning Cincinnati Bengals. At first, the Bills were able to keep up with their fellow 12-4 team, as Kelly found Reed for a nine-yard touchdown strike, but would eventually trail 14-10 at the half.  However, the Bengals defense, which had not been particularly good throughout the regular season, came through big time in the second half as they held Buffalo off the board for the remainder of the afternoon. The Bills’ excellent season came to an end just short of the Super Bowl with the 21-10 loss, with Kelly throwing for 163 yards and a touchdown while giving up three interceptions. Bengals quarterback Boomer Esiason also struggled in the cold and windy conditions, going for just 94 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions, but still managed well enough to grab the win. Although the 1988 campaign came to an unfortunate conclusion for Kelly and the Bills, he wouldn’t need to wait long for another 12-win season to come his way.