2010 Buffalo Bills season The 2010 Buffalo Bills season was the team ' s 41st season in the National Football League , and their 51st overall . It was Buffalo ' s first season with Buddy Nix in the role of general manager and head coach Chan Gailey . The Bills hoped to improve on their 6 – 10 record from the 2009 season , and attempt to make the playoffs for the first time since 1999 , the longest standing playoff drought in the NFL which is tied with the Detroit Lions . The Bills had the 9th pick in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft selecting C . J . Spiller a RB from Clemson . This season marks the first 0 – 8 start since 1984 . They were eliminated from playoff contention in Week 12 extending their playoff drought to 11 seasons . The 2010 season was marked by the emergence of wide receiver Stevie Johnson , who gained 1 , 073 receiving yards , and nose tackle Kyle Williams , an All - Pro in 2010 who gained status as an elite defensive tackle . Offseason . The Bills had fired head coach Dick Jauron after Week 10 of the 2009 season ; he had been replaced on an interim basis by defensive coordinator Perry Fewell . The remainder of the Jauron coaching staff was released at the end of the year . Former Dallas Cowboys and Georgia Tech head coach Chan Gailey was hired as the Bills ' new head coach , and Buddy Nix had taken over as general manager after a two - year vacancy in the position . ( Current team CEO Russ Brandon had handled GM responsibilities . ) Gailey installed the 3 - 4 defense ( although the team would play in a 4 – 3 on certain downs ) and the " Pistol " offensive formation . George Edwards was named defensive coordinator , and though Gailey stated he would call the offensive plays , Curtis Modkins was named the nominal offensive coordinator . On February 18 , 2010 , starting right tackle Brad Butler announced his retirement from professional football . Butler suffered a season ending ( ultimately a career ending ) knee injury vs . the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in week 2 of the 2009 season . The Bills held an open competition for the starting quarterback position between Trent Edwards , Ryan Fitzpatrick , and Brian Brohm during training camp . Edwards was named starter prior to the first preseason game , but was released from the team after two poor performances . Fitzpatrick took over in Week Three and , in 13 games , became the first Bills quarterback to throw for 3000 passing yards since Drew Bledsoe in 2002 . In - season transactions . Come week three Fitzpatrick was named starter against the Patriots as Edwards was benched . In the game Fitzpatrick had surpassed Edwards ' statistics for the first two games . This resulted in Edwards ' release from the roster the following day on Monday , a day after the game , when his success in the preseason didn ' t carry over into the first two games of the regular season . He was picked up by the Jacksonville Jaguars off waivers the next day on Tuesday . Similarly , Marshawn Lynch was one of the starting running backs at the beginning of the regular season . He was only to be traded to the Seattle Seahawks after four games into the regular season with the rise of running backs Fred Jackson and first - round draft pick C . J . Spiller created a logjam . The draft picks were at first undisclosed . It was later announced that the Bills would receive a fourth - round draft pick in the 2011 draft and a conditional pick in the 2012 draft . Schedule . Preseason . The Bills preseason schedule was announced on March 31 , 2010 . The second preseason game , against the Indianapolis Colts , was held at the Rogers Centre in Toronto as part of the Bills Toronto Series . Regular season . Though the Bills were the last team to record their first win in 2010 , starting the season with eight consecutive losses , they improved greatly in the second half of the season , with a record of 4 – 4 to finish the year . Football statistics site " Football Outsiders " calculates that the Bills had the toughest schedule in the league in 2010 , based on strength of opponent . Nine of the Bills ' twelve losses were to teams that qualified for the postseason , including both representatives in Super Bowl XLV – Pittsburgh and Green Bay . Six of the twelve losses were by eight points or less . Four Buffalo losses had a margin of three points or less and three losses were in overtime , all to eventual playoff teams ( Week 7 at Baltimore , Week 8 at Kansas City and Week 12 vs . Pittsburgh ) . COLOR KEY AND NOTES : Regular season results . Week 1 : vs . Miami Dolphins . The Buffalo Bills began their season at home with an AFC East duel with the Miami Dolphins . In the 1st quarter , Buffalo trailed early when Dolphins kicker Dan Carpenter nailed a 32 - yard field goal . The deficit was increased in the 2nd quarter when running back Ronnie Brown got a 1 - yard TD run . The Bills eventually replied when kicker Rian Lindell made a 51 - yard field goal . In the 4th quarter , Miami increased their lead with Carpenter hitting a 43 - yard field goal . Buffalo replied with a touchdown pass from quarterback Trent Edwards making a 31 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Roscoe Parrish . The final score was made when long snapper Garrison Sanborn snapped the ball to Brian Moorman out of bounds for a safety , giving the Dolphins 2 more points and the Bills a loss . With the loss , the Bills began at 0 – 1 . Week 2 : at Green Bay Packers . Hoping to rebound from their loss to the Dolphins , the Bills flew to Lambeau Field for an interconference duel with the Packers . In the 1st quarter Buffalo trailed early as kicker Mason Crosby made a 44 and a 24 - yard field goal , followed by RB Brandon Jackson getting a 1 yard TD run . The Bills made their only score of the game in the 2nd quarter when RB Fred Jackson made a 3 yard TD run . In the third quarter the Bills struggled further when QB Aaron Rodgers completed a 7 yard TD pass to WR Donald Driver , followed by Rodgers scrambling 9 yards to the endzone for a touchdown . The Packers increased their lead in the fourth when Rodgers made a 30 - yard touchdown pass to WR James Jones . With the loss , Buffalo fell to 0 – 2 . Week 3 : at New England Patriots . Still looking for a win the Bills flew to Gillette Stadium for an AFC East rivalry match against the Patriots . In the first quarter Buffalo took the early lead when kicker Rian Lindell nailed a 39 - yard field goal . Then they fell behind when QB Tom Brady made a 7 - yard TD pass to WR Randy Moss . The Bills replied in the second quarter with Lindell making another 39 - yard field goal , which was followed by QB Ryan Fitzpatrick getting a 5 - yard TD pass to RB C . J . Spiller . The Patriots replied and took the narrow lead when Danny Woodhead made a 22 - yard TD run . The Bills got the lead back when Lindell made a 34 - yard field goal , which didn ' t last very long after kicker Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 43 - yard field goal . The Bills fell further behind in the third quarter when Brady found Moss again on a 35 - yard TD pass , but straight after the PAT , Buffalo scored when C . J . Spiller returned a kickoff and ran 95 yards to the endzone for a touchdown . The Patriots increased their narrow lead when Brady made a 5 - yard TD pass to TE Rob Gronkowski , followed in the fourth quarter by RB BenJarvis Green - Ellis getting a 7 - yard TD run . The Bills tried to come back into the game when Fitzptrick made a 37 - yard touchdown pass to WR Steve Johnson , but the Patriots defense prevented anything else from happening , giving the Bills a loss and their 14th straight vs . the Patriots . With the loss , Buffalo fell to 0 – 3 . The next day Trent Edwards was released . He was picked up by the Jacksonville Jaguars off wavers the next day . Week 4 : vs . New York Jets . Still looking for their first win of the season , the Bills went home , donned their throwback uniforms , and played a Week 4 AFC East duel with the New York Jets . Buffalo would trail early in the first quarter as Jets running back LaDainian Tomlinson got a 1 - yard touchdown run . New York would add on to their lead in the second quarter as kicker Nick Folk nailed a 19 - yard field goal , followed by quarterback Mark Sanchez completing a 41 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Braylon Edwards . Buffalo would close out the half as quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick connected with tight end David Martin on a 4 - yard touchdown pass . In the third quarter , the Jets would greatly extend their lead with tight end Dustin Keller catching a 3 - yard touchdown pass from wide receiver / quarterback Brad Smith , followed by his 2 - yard touchdown reception from Sanchez . Afterwards , Tomlinson would help secure the win for New York with his 26 - yard touchdown run . The Bills would close out the game in the fourth quarter as Fitzpatrick completed a 13 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Steve Johnson . With the loss , Buffalo fell to 0 – 4 . Two days later , Marshawn Lynch was traded to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for a fourth - round draft pick in the 2011 draft and a conditional pick in the 2012 draft , and tackle Jamon Meredith was waived . Week 5 : vs . Jacksonville Jaguars . Still looking for a win the Bills played on home ground for an AFC duel with the Jaguars . In the first quarter the Bills took the lead as QB Ryan Fitzpatrick made a 45 - yard TD pass to WR Lee Evans ; followed by kicker Rian Lindell making a 29 - yard field goal . The Jaguars replied with kicker Josh Scobee nailing a 49 - yard field goal , but in the second quarter the lead had expanded again with Lindell ' s 22 - yard field goal . After that , the Jaguars rallied with Scobee getting another 49 - yard field goal , then QB David Garrard made a 1 - yard TD pass to TE Marcedes Lewis ; followed in the third quarter by Garrard again finding Lewis on a 27 - yard TD pass . Buffalo re - tied the game with Fitzpatrick completing a 5 - yard TD pass to WR Steve Johnson , but the Jaguars pulled away with Garrard making a 7 - yard TD pass to WR Mike Sims - Walker , followed in the fourth quarter by Scobee making a 34 , 40 and a 46 yard field goal . Buffalo tried to tie the game with Fitzpatrick making a 7 - yard TD pass to Johnson , but with a failed 2 - point conversion , it became a 2 - possession game which in turn became very difficult for Buffalo to recover . With the loss , Buffalo entered their bye week with their first 0 – 5 start since 1985 . Week 7 : at Baltimore Ravens . Still looking for a win the Bills flew to M & T Bank Stadium for an AFC duel against the Ravens . In the 1st quarter the Bills trailed early as kicker Billy Cundiff made a 41 - yard field goal . But they pulled ahead with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick completing a 33 - yard TD pass to WR Lee Evans , followed by kicker Rian Lindell hitting a 21 - yard field goal . The lead was increased in the second quarter with Fitzpatrick finding WR Steve Johnson on a 33 - yard TD pass . The Ravens replied with QB Joe Flacco making a 26 - yard TD pass to TE Todd Heap . Then Fitzpatrick found Evans again on a 20 - yard TD pass to put the Bills up 24 – 10 . The lead was narrowed when Cundiff hit a 48 - yard field goal , followed by Flacco throwing a 14 - yard TD pass to Heap . In the third quarter the Bills fell behind with Flacco completing a 34 - yard TD pass to WR Anquan Boldin , followed by RB Willis McGahee getting a 2 - yard TD run . The Bills managed to tie the game in the 4th quarter with Fitzpatrick making a 17 - yard TD pass to Evans , and with Lindell getting a 50 - yard field goal . After overtime , the decision was made when Cundiff successfully put away a 38 - yard field goal to keep the Bills winless after 6 games . With the loss , the Bills fell to 0 – 6 . After a win by the Carolina Panthers the same week , the Bills became the only team still in contention for an imperfect season . Week 8 : at Kansas City Chiefs . Still looking for a win the Bills flew to Arrowhead Stadium for an AFC duel with the Chiefs . In the First quarter the Bills trailed early as QB Matt Cassel got a 1 - yard TD pass to WR Dwayne Bowe . The Bills narrowed the lead in the third quarter with kicker Rian Lindell making a 43 - yard field goal . The Chiefs scored with kicker Ryan Succop getting a 28 - yard field goal . The Bills responded and tied the game with Ryan Fitzpatrick throwing a 4 - yard TD pass to WR Steve Johnson . At overtime , Succop missed a 38 - yarder with 3 : 38 in the OT . Rian Lindell then kicked a 53 - yard field goal , which supposedly would ' ve given the Bills the win , but KC called a timeout . Lindell ' s second kick hit the right upright and bounced off . The decision was made with Succop successfully hitting a 35 - yard field goal with 3 seconds left on the clock to keep the Bills winless after 7 games . Starting offensive tackle Cornell Green was placed on injured reserve to clear a roster spot for linebacker Shawne Merriman , who the Bills picked up on waivers from the San Diego Chargers on November 3 . Week 9 : vs . Chicago Bears ( Bills Toronto Series ) . Still searching for their first win of the season , the Bills flew to the Rogers Centre for their Week 9 interconference duel with the Chicago Bears . After a scoreless first quarter , Buffalo trailed in the second quarter as Bears quarterback Jay Cutler completed a 4 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Greg Olsen . The Bills answered with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick hooked up with wide receiver Roscoe Parrish on a 14 - yard touchdown pass . Chicago retook the lead as running back Chester Taylor got a 1 - yard touchdown run . The Bills responded with a 4 - yard touchdown run from running back Fred Jackson ( with a blocked extra point ) . Buffalo took the lead in the fourth quarter with a 1 - yard touchdown run from fullback Corey McIntyre ( with a failed two - point conversion ) , but the Bears got the last laugh with Cutler completing a 2 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Earl Bennett , along with a two - point conversion pass to running back Matt Forté . With the loss , the Bills fell to 0 – 8 and became the first team to start out a season 0 – 8 since the Bengals and Lions in 2008 . Week 10 : vs . Detroit Lions . Still on the hunt for their first win of the season the Bills played on home ground for an interconference duel with the Lions . In the 2nd quarter the Bills took the lead after RB Fred Jackson got a 1 - yard TD run . In that quarter the Lions only came away with a 25 - yard field goal by Dave Rayner . The Bills increased their lead in the third quarter with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick completing a 16 - yard TD pass to Jackson . The Lions tried to come back in the 4th quarter with Rayner making a 45 - yard field goal and with QB Shaun Hill throwing a 20 - yard TD pass to WR Calvin Johnson . The two - point conversion attempt failed , giving the Bills their first victory of the season and eliminating their chances of a winless season . With the win , the Bills improved to 1 – 8 . Week 11 : at Cincinnati Bengals . After coming away with their first win the Bills flew to Paul Brown Stadium for an AFC duel with the Bengals . Ryan Fitzpatrick matched his career high with four touchdown passes during Buffalo ' s biggest comeback in 13 years , and the Bills won their second consecutive game Sunday , 49 – 31 over the bumbling Cincinnati Bengals . The Bengals ( 2 – 8 ) appeared to be in control after Johnathan Joseph ' s interception return put them ahead 28 – 7 in the second quarter . The Bengals ' smallest crowd since 2003 saw a vintage collapse . Buffalo ( 2 – 8 ) took advantage of Cincinnati ' s depleted secondary — Joseph and safety Chris Crocker went out late in the first half — for its biggest comeback since it overcame a 26 – 0 deficit and topped the Indianapolis Colts 37 – 35 on Sept . 21 , 1997 , according to STATS LLC . Steve Johnson caught three of the touchdown passes , including an 11 - yarder that put Buffalo ahead 35 – 31 early in the fourth quarter . Johnson finished with eight catches for 137 yards and 3 touchdowns . With the win , Buffalo improved to 2 – 8 and are still in postseason contention . After Week 11 , The Buffalo Bills won the GMC Never Say Never Moment of the Week and now are nominated for the Never Say Never moment of the 2010 season . Week 12 : vs . Pittsburgh Steelers . Coming off their win over the Bengals , the Bills went home , donned their throwbacks , and played a Week 13 intraconference duel with the Pittsburgh Steelers . Buffalo trailed early in the first quarter as Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall got a 1 - yard touchdown run . Pittsburgh added onto their lead in the second quarter with kicker Shaun Suisham getting a 45 - yard and a 46 - yard field goal . The Bills answered in the third quarter as quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick found running back Fred Jackson on a 65 - yard touchdown reception . Buffalo would tie the game in the fourth quarter with a 29 - yard and a 32 - yard field goal from kicker Rian Lindell . The Steelers would regain the lead as Suisham made a 48 - yard field goal , yet the Bills tied the game again with Lindell ' s 49 - yard field goal . Wide Receiver Stevie Johnson dropped what would have been a 40 - yard , game - ending touchdown pass in overtime . However , Pittsburgh got the last laugh in overtime as Suisham booted the game - winning 41 - yard field goal . With the loss , the Bills fell to 2 – 9 and were eliminated from postseason contention . Week 13 : at Minnesota Vikings . The Bills ' twelfth game was an interconference duel with the Vikings . The Bills took the lead with CB Drayton Florence returning an interception 40 yards for a touchdown . They soon fell behind with Jackson getting a 31 - yard TD pass to WR Sidney Rice . Followed in the second quarter by RB Adrian Peterson getting a 2 and a 3 - yard TD run . Then Jackson found Rice again on a 6 - yard TD pass , followed by kicker Ryan Longwell nailing a 38 - yard field goal . They continued to struggle in the fourth quarter when Peterson ran 43 yards to the endzone for a touchdown . The Bills responded with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick getting a 12 - yard TD pass to TE David Martin . With the loss , Buffalo fell to 2 – 10 . Week 14 : vs . Cleveland Browns . Hoping to snap a two - game losing streak the Bills played on home ground for an AFC duel against the Browns . The Bills trailed early as kicker Phil Dawson got a 19 - yard field goal , but they took the lead in the second quarter as QB Ryan Fitzpatrick completed an 11 - yard TD pass to WR David Nelson . The lead was narrowed when Dawson made a 25 - yard field goal , but was expanded after kicker Rian Lindell nailed a 30 and a 19 - yard field goal . With the win , the Bills improved to 3 – 10 . Week 15 : at Miami Dolphins . Coming off their win over the Browns the Bills flew south to Sun Life Stadium for an AFC East rivalry rematch against the Dolphins . The second quarter saw the Bills taking the early advantage with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick completing an 18 - yard TD pass to WR David Nelson . This was followed by kicker Rian Lindell nailing a 29 - yard field goal . The Dolphins responded with RB Ronnie Brown getting a 6 - yard TD run , but the Bills increased their lead in the third quarter with Fitzpatrick throwing a 15 - yard TD pass to WR Steve Johnson . The lead was narrowed in the fourth quarter with QB Chad Henne getting a 9 - yard TD pass to WR Brandon Marshall , but the Bills defense was solid enough to hang them on for the win . With the win , Buffalo improved to 4 – 10 . Week 16 : vs . New England Patriots . Coming off their win over the Dolphins the Bills played an AFC East rivalry rematch against the Patriots . In the first quarter the Bills had the early lead as kicker Rian Lindell hit a 26 - yard field goal , but failed to maintain this lead as the Patriots dominated the rest of the game with Danny Woodhead getting a 29 - yard TD run , followed by QB Tom Brady completing an 8 - yard TD pass to TE Rob Gronkowski , then with kicker Shayne Graham nailing a 34 - yard field goal , and with Brady completing a 4 and an 8 - yard TD pass to TE Alge Crumpler and to Gronkowski . After that Graham made a 26 - yard field goal . With the loss , the Bills fell to 4 – 11 . Week 17 : at New York Jets . The Bills ' final game was a division rivalry rematch against the Jets . The Bills trailed early with kicker Nick Folk making a 28 - yard field goal . Their offense struggled as CB Marquice Cole returned an interception 35 yards for a touchdown , which was then followed by QB Mark Brunell making a 17 - yard TD pass to WR Santonio Holmes . The Bills made their only score of the game with FS Jairus Byrd returning an interception 37 yards for a touchdown , but they fell further behind after Brunell found WR Braylon Edwards on a 52 - yard TD pass . This was followed by QB Kellen Clemens scrambling 10 yards for a touchdown , then with RB John Conner getting a 16 - yard TD run . With the loss , the Bills finish with a 4 – 12 record .