2008 Buffalo Bills season The 2008 Buffalo Bills season was the 39th season for the team in the National Football League and their 49th season overall . They finished with a record of 7 – 9 for the third consecutive year . They started the season 4 – 0 before a 3 – 9 stretch . The team was eliminated from playoff contention in week 15 , which secured their ninth straight year without a playoff appearance . Coaching staff . Head coach Dick Jauron entered his third year ( 2006 to 2009 ) with the Bills . Turk Schonert began his first year as offensive coordinator . Offseason . NFL Draft . Buffalo found some impact players in the 2008 NFL Draft . Leodis McKelvin was named to the Sporting News All - NFL team in his rookie year . Demetrius Bell eventually won a starting job at offensive tackle in Buffalo , a position he holds as of 2011 . Stevie Johnson had a breakout year in 2010 . Preseason schedule . As part of the 5 year Toronto deal the Bills will play a pre - season game every other year there . This season ' s pre - season game in Toronto is week 2 . Schedule . One regular season home game per year will be played at the Rogers Centre in Toronto , Ontario as part of a five - year deal . For 2008 , December 7 ' s matchup with the Miami Dolphins was staged in Toronto . Regular season . Week 1 : vs . Seattle Seahawks . The Bills began their 2008 campaign at home against the Seattle Seahawks . In the first quarter , Buffalo drew first blood as running back Marshawn Lynch got a 21 - yard touchdown run . In the second quarter , the Bills increased their lead with wide receiver / punt returner Roscoe Parrish returning a punt 63 yards for a touchdown . The Seahawks would respond with quarterback Matt Hasselbeck completing a 20 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Nate Burleson . Buffalo would close out the half with kicker Rian Lindell getting a 35 - yard and a 38 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , Seattle responded with kicker Olindo Mare nailing a 45 - yard field goal . Afterwards , Buffalo dug into their bag of tricks . Appearing to attempt a 32 - yard field goal , holder Brian Moorman completed a 19 - yard touchdown pass to defensive end Ryan Denney . The Bills would pull away with quarterback Trent Edwards completing a 30 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Robert Royal . With this impressive win , the Bills start off their season with a 1 – 0 record . Week 2 : at Jacksonville Jaguars . Coming off an impressive home win over the Seahawks , the Bills flew to Jacksonville Municipal Stadium for a Week 2 duel with the Jacksonville Jaguars . In the first quarter , Buffalo drew first blood as RB Marshawn Lynch got an 11 - yard TD run . In the second quarter , the Jaguars would respond with kicker Josh Scobee getting a 28 - yard field goal . The Bills would close out the half with kicker Rian Lindell kicking a 21 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , Jacksonville took the lead with RB Maurice Jones - Drew getting a 2 - yard TD run and Scobee getting a 50 - yard field goal . In the fourth quarter , the Jaguars increased their lead with Scobee nailing a 39 - yard field goal . Fortunately , Buffalo rallied as QB Trent Edwards completed a 7 - yard TD pass to rookie WR James Hardy , along with Lindell nailing a 45 - yard field goal . With yet another impressive win , the Bills improved to 2 – 0 . Week 3 : vs . Oakland Raiders . Coming off their road win over the Jaguars , the Bills went home , donned their throwback uniforms , and played a Week 3 duel with the Oakland Raiders . In the first quarter , Buffalo trailed early as Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski got a 23 - yard and a 35 - yard field goal . In the second quarter , the Bills got on the board with RB Marshawn Lynch getting a 14 - yard TD run . Oakland responded with Janikowski kicking a 32 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , the Raiders increased their lead with QB JaMarcus Russell getting a 1 - yard TD run . In the fourth quarter , Buffalo began to rally as Lynch got a 3 - yard TD run . Oakland immediately responded with Russell completing an 84 - yard TD pass to WR Johnnie Lee Higgins . Afterwards , the Bills completed its rally with QB Trent Edwards completing a 14 - yard TD pass to WR Roscoe Parrish . Then , Buffalo sealed the win with kicker Rian Lindell nailing the game - winning 38 - yard field goal . With the win , the Bills improved to 3 – 0 for the first time since 1992 . Also , during halftime , former Bills DE Bruce Smith ( the NFL ' s All - Time Sack Leader ) was added to the Bills Wall of Fame . Week 4 : at St . Louis Rams . Coming off their last - second home win over the Raiders , the Bills flew to the Edward Jones Dome for a Week 4 interconference duel with the winless St . Louis Rams . In the first quarter , Buffalo drew first blood as kicker Rian Lindell got a 45 - yard field goal . The Rams would respond with WR Donnie Avery getting a 37 - yard TD run . The Bills would answer with Lindell ' s 35 - yard field goal . In the second quarter , St . Louis increased its lead with RB Steven Jackson getting a 29 - yard TD run . In the third quarter , Buffalo began to rally as RB Fred Jackson got a 22 - yard TD run . In the fourth quarter , the Bills completed their comeback with CB Jabari Greer returning an interception 33 yards for a touchdown , QB Trent Edwards completing a 39 - yard TD pass to WR Lee Evans , and Lindell nailing a 45 - yard field goal . With the win , Buffalo got its first 4 – 0 start since 1992 . Week 5 : at Arizona Cardinals . Coming off their road win over the Rams , the Bills flew to the University of Phoenix Stadium for a Week 5 interconference duel with the Arizona Cardinals . In the first quarter , Buffalo trailed early as Cardinals QB Kurt Warner completed a 2 - yard TD pass to WR Larry Fitzgerald . In the second quarter , Arizona increased its lead as RB Tim Hightower got a 17 - yard TD run . The Bills would respond as QB J . P . Losman completing an 87 - yard TD pass to WR Lee Evans , yet the Cardinals replied with RB Edgerrin James getting a 1 - yard TD run . Buffalo would answer right back with Losman getting a 1 - yard TD run , yet Arizona closed out the half with kicker Neil Rackers getting a 47 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , the Bills tried to catch up as kicker Rian Lindell got a 48 - yard field goal , but the Cardinals answered with Warner completing a 2 - yard TD pass to Fitzgerald . In the fourth quarter , Arizona pulled away as Rackers nailed a 38 - yard field goal , along with Hightower getting a 2 - yard TD run , With the loss , Buffalo went into their bye week at 4 – 1 . QB Trent Edwards ( 3 / 3 for 18 yards ) , who originally started , was knocked out the game on the Bills ' third offensive play by Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson with a concussion . Week 7 : vs . San Diego Chargers . Coming off their bye week , the Bills played a Week 7 duel with the San Diego Chargers . In the first quarter , Buffalo drew first blood as kicker Rian Lindell got a 38 - yard field goal . The Chargers responded with QB Philip Rivers completing a 14 - yard TD pass to WR Malcom Floyd . In the second quarter , the Bills regained the lead with QB Trent Edwards ( fully recovered from his concussion ) completing a 2 - yard TD pass to WR Lee Evans , along with Lindell getting a 27 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , San Diego regained the lead with Rivers completing a 12 - yard TD pass to WR Vincent Jackson . Buffalo would answer with RB Marshawn Lynch getting a 9 - yard TD run . In the fourth quarter , the Bills pulled away with Lindell nailing a 44 - yard field goal . With the win , not only did Buffalo improve to 5 – 1 , they also got their first 3 – 0 home start since 1995 . A power outage at Ralph Wilson Stadium , caused by three helium balloons coming in contact with a transformer , led to portions of the game not being televised . For a short time during the first and second quarters , the game was played with no public address announcers , no scoreboard , and the time was kept by the officials on the field . Week 8 : at Miami Dolphins . Coming off their win over the Chargers , the Bills flew to Dolphin Stadium for a Week 8 AFC East duel with the Miami Dolphins . In the first quarter , Buffalo trailed early as Dolphins QB Chad Pennington completed a 2 - yard TD pass to TE Anthony Fasano . The Bills would respond with kicker Rian Lindell getting a 19 - yard field goal . In the second quarter , Buffalo took the lead as Lindell got a 43 - yard and a 47 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , the Bills increased their lead as RB Marshawn Lynch got an 8 - yard TD run . However , Miami began to respond as kicker Dan Carpenter got a 43 - yard field goal , while RB Ricky Williams got a 3 - yard TD run . In the fourth quarter , the Dolphins sealed Buffalo ' s fate as Carpenter made a 45 - yard field goal , LB Joey Porter causing QB Trent Edwards to fumble the ball in his own endzone ( leading to a safety ) , and Carpenter nailing a 35 - yard field goal . With the loss , the Bills fell to 5 – 2 . Week 9 : vs . New York Jets . Hoping to rebound from their embarrassing divisional road loss to the Dolphins , the Bills went home for a Week 9 AFC East duel with the New York Jets . In the first quarter , Buffalo trailed early as Jets kicker Jay Feely got a 37 - yard field goal . Buffalo would respond as QB Trent Edwards completed a 9 - yard TD pass to rookie TE Derek Fine . However , New York responded as Feely got a 26 - yard field goal , along with safety Abram Elam returning an interception 92 yards for a touchdown . After a scoreless second quarter , the Bills ' deficit increased in the third quarter as Feely got a 20 - yard field goal . Buffalo would respond with kicker Rian Lindell getting a 53 - yard field goal , but the Jets replied with RB Thomas Jones getting a 7 - yard TD run . In the fourth quarter , the Bills tried to rally as CB Jabari Greer returned an interception 31 yards for a touchdown . However , New York pulled away with Feely making a 31 - yard field goal . With the loss , Buffalo fell to 5 – 3 . Week 10 : at New England Patriots . Trying to snap their two - game losing streak , the Bills wrapped up their three - straight divisional games in Gillette Stadium with a Week 10 AFC East duel with the New England Patriots . In the first quarter , Buffalo trailed early as Patriots QB Matt Cassel got a 13 - yard TD run . In the second quarter , New England increased their lead as kicker Stephen Gostkowski got a 32 - yard field goal . The Bills would close out the half with kicker Rian Lindell getting a 25 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , the Patriots answered with Gostkowski nailing a 37 - yard field goal . In the fourth quarter , New England pulled away with RB BenJarvus Green - Ellis getting a 1 - yard TD run . Buffalo ended the game with QB Trent Edwards completing a 14 - yard TD pass to rookie WR James Hardy . With their third - straight loss , the Bills fell to 5 – 4 . Week 11 : vs . Cleveland Browns . Trying to snap a three - game losing streak , the Bills went home for a Week 11 MNF duel with the Cleveland Browns . In the first quarter , Buffalo struggled early as early interceptions from QB Trent Edwards helped Browns kicker Phil Dawson get a 40 - yard and a 33 - yard field goal . In the second quarter , Cleveland increased their lead as WR / KR Joshua Cribbs got a 2 - yard TD run . The Bills would answer as Edwards completed an 18 - yard TD pass to RB Marshawn Lynch , along with kicker Rian Lindell getting a 26 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , the Browns answered with Dawson getting a 43 - yard field . Buffalo would reply with Lindell getting a 31 - yard field goal . In the fourth quarter , Cleveland greatly answered as RB Jerome Harrison got a 72 - yard TD run . Fortunately , the Bills immediately replied as rookie CB Leodis McKelvin returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown . The Browns would respond as Dawson got a 22 - yard field goal . Buffalo would take the lead as Edwards got a 1 - yard TD run . Cleveland regained the lead as Dawson nailed a 56 - yard field goal . The Bills would try to rally , but in the haunting image of Super Bowl XXV , Lindell missed a 47 - yard field goal wide right . With their fourth - straight loss , Buffalo fell to 5 – 5 . Week 12 : at Kansas City Chiefs . Hoping to snap a four - game losing streak , the Bills flew to Arrowhead Stadium for a Week 12 duel with the Kansas City Chiefs . In the first quarter , Buffalo trailed early as Chiefs QB Tyler Thigpen completed a 36 - yard TD pass to RB Jamaal Charles . The Bills would respond with RB Marshawn Lynch getting a 1 - yard TD run . In the second quarter , Buffalo took the lead as kicker Rian Lindell made a 21 - yard field goal . Kansas City answered with Thigpen completing a 2 - yard TD pass to TE Tony Gonzalez . Buffalo would regain the lead as Lindell got a 39 - yard field goal , while rookie CB Leodis McKelvin returned an interception 64 yards for a touchdown . The Chiefs struck back with kicker Connor Barth getting a 45 - yard field goal , yet the Bills continued their offensive explosion as Lindell got a 34 - yard field goal , along with QB Trent Edwards getting a 15 - yard TD run . In the third quarter , Buffalo continued its poundings with Edwards getting a 5 - yard TD run , while Lindell got himself a 38 - yard field goal . Kansas City tried to rally as Thigpen completed a 45 - yard TD pass to WR Mark Bradley , yet the Bills replied with Edwards completing an 8 - yard TD pass to WR Josh Reed . In the fourth quarter , Buffalo pulled away as Edwards completed a 17 - yard TD pass to TE Derek Schouman . The Chiefs tried to come back as QB Quinn Gray completed a 3 - yard TD pass to WR Dwayne Bowe , yet the Bills ' lead was too much for Kansas City to overcome . With the win , Buffalo improved to 6 – 5 . This marked the first time the Bills scored 50 + points on an opponent since Sept . 1991 against the Pittsburgh Steelers ( 52 – 34 ) . Week 13 : vs . San Francisco 49ers . Coming off a road win over the Chiefs , the Bills went home for a Week 13 interconference duel against the San Francisco 49ers . In the first quarter , Buffalo trailed early as 49ers QB Shaun Hill completed a 12 - yard TD pass to WR Isaac Bruce . In the second quarter , the Bills continued to trail as kicker Joe Nedney made a 50 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , Buffalo tried to rally as kicker Rian Lindell nailed a 22 - yard field goal , but the team struggled offensively for the rest of the game . With the loss , the Bills fell to 6 – 6 . QB Trent Edwards ( 10 / 21 for 112 yards ) didn ' t play the second half , due to a groin injury . Week 14 : vs . Miami Dolphins . Hoping to rebound from their home loss to the 49ers , the Bills flew to the Rogers Centre for their first game of their Canadian International series , with an AFC East rematch against the Miami Dolphins . In the first quarter , Buffalo trailed early as Dolphins QB Chad Pennington completed a 20 - yard TD pass to TE Anthony Fasano . The Bills would answer with kicker Rian Lindell . After that , Miami pulled away as kicker Dan Carpenter made three field goals ( 50 , 35 , and 27 yards ) . With the loss , Buffalo fell to 6 – 7 . Week 15 : at New York Jets . Hoping to snap a two - game losing streak , the Bills flew to The Meadowlands for a Week 15 AFC East rematch with the New York Jets . With Trent Edwards still recovering from a groin injury , J . P . Losman was given the start . Early on in the first quarter , Buffalo trailed as Jets running back Thomas Jones got a 2 - yard touchdown run . The Bills would respond with a 34 - yard field goal from kicker Rian Lindell , but New York would answer with quarterback Brett Favre completing an 11 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery . In the second quarter , Buffalo took the lead as Losman got an 8 - yard touchdown run and completed a 2 - yard touchdown pass to rookie wide receiver Steve Johnson . However , the Jets got the halftime lead with a 47 - yard touchdown run from running back Leon Washington . In the third quarter , the Bills would keep pace as Lindell made a 48 - yard field goal . In the fourth quarter , New York would respond with kicker Jay Feely nailing a 31 - yard field goal . Buffalo would regain the lead as running back Fred Jackson powered his way for an 11 - yard touchdown run . However , the Jets prevailed as safety Abram Elam forced a fumble , allowing DE Shaun Ellis to return the ball 11 yards for a touchdown . With the loss , not only did the Bills fall to 6 – 8 , but they were eliminated from the playoff race . Week 16 : at Denver Broncos . Hoping to snap a three - game losing streak , the Bills flew to Invesco Field at Mile High for a Week 16 duel with the Denver Broncos . Buffalo would trail early in the first quarter as Broncoso quarterback Jay Cutler got a 2 - yard touchdown run , followed by kicker Matt Prater getting a 23 - yard field goal . Denver would increase its lead in the second quarter with Prater making a 30 - yard field goal . The Bills would respond with a 37 - yard field goal from kicker Rian Lindell , followed by running back Marshawn Lynch ' s 2 - yard touchdown run . In the third quarter , Buffalo took the lead with Lindell ' s 49 - yard and 28 - yard field goal , but the Broncos answered with Cutler ' s 6 - yard touchdown run . The Bills would strike right back in the fourth quarter as quarterback Trent Edwards completed a 3 - yard touchdown pass to rookie wide receiver Steve Johnson . Denver would tie the game with Prater nailing a 43 - yard field goal . Fortunately , Buffalo rallied with running back Fred Jackson getting an 8 - yard touchdown run , followed the defense surviving the Broncos ' late - game drive . With the win , the Bills improved to 7 – 8 . Week 17 : vs . New England Patriots . Coming off their road win over the Broncos , the Bills closed out their season at home with a Week 17 AFC East rematch with the New England Patriots . Buffalo would trail early in the first quarter as Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski got a 33 - yard field goal . After a scoreless second quarter , the Bills ' deficit increased in the third quarter as running back LaMont Jordan got a 2 - yard touchdown run . In the fourth quarter , New England would add onto their lead as Gotkowski nailed a 23 - yard field goal . Try as they might , Buffalo was unable to get much momentum within the game . With the loss , the Bills closed out their season at 7 – 9 for the third - straight season . NFL Draft . Going into the 2008 NFL Draft the teams biggest needs are at wide receiver , cornerback , and tight end . Specifically , the team ' s top three wide receivers were all under 5 ' 11 " in height , and a large wide receiver was a high priority for the team . The Bills had a large number of selections in the 2008 draft and addressed these needs by selecting Leodis McKelvin , considered by many to be the top cornerback in the draft , in round 1 , and James Hardy , a 6 ' 5 " playmaking receiver also considered to be among the best in the class , in round 2 . Tight end , however , was not addressed until Round 4 , with the selection of Derek Fine . Depth picks filled out the rest of the draft order . Draft Results . ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper , Jr . gave the Buffalo Bills a C + grade for their 2008 NFL Draft , praising the selections of McKelvin and Hardy but criticizing the selections of Corner and Fine as reaches in the 4th round .