2009 Buffalo Bills season The 2009 Buffalo Bills season was the 50th Professional Football season for the original American Football League team , and its 40th in the NFL . The Bills were unable to improve upon their third consecutive 7 – 9 regular season record ( 2006 , 2007 , and 2008 ) and failed to make the playoffs for the 10th consecutive year , the longest standing playoff drought in the NFL ( tied with the Detroit Lions ) . Dick Jauron returned as head coach for a fourth season , the first Bills coach since Marv Levy to receive a contract extension beyond three years . He was fired on November 17 after a 3 – 6 start and replaced on an interim basis by defensive coordinator Perry Fewell . Offseason . NFL Draft . The Bills drafted three players – Eric Wood , Andy Levitre and Jairus Byrd – who would later become starters on the team . Byrd was runner - up in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting . Schedule . Preseason . The Bills were selected to play against the Tennessee Titans in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on August 9 , 2009 ; the game seeks to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the American Football League . Bills owner Ralph Wilson was among the 2009 inductees to the Hall and is one of the two surviving original AFL owners , along with Titans owner Bud Adams . Each team wore their AFL throwback uniforms , with the Titans in Houston Oilers uniforms . Regular season . The Bills played a 16 - game schedule in 2009 , in accordance with the NFL scheduling formula . The schedule consisted of six games against their AFC East divisional rivals ( two each against the Miami Dolphins , New England Patriots , and New York Jets ) , four intra - conference games versus the AFC South ( one game each against the Houston Texans , Indianapolis Colts , Jacksonville Jaguars , and Tennessee Titans ) , four inter - conference games against teams from the NFC South ( one game each against the Atlanta Falcons , Carolina Panthers , New Orleans Saints , and Tampa Bay Buccaneers ) , and two games against the remaining two AFC teams that , like Buffalo , finished fourth in their respective divisions in 2008 ( one game each versus the Cleveland Browns and Kansas City Chiefs ) . For the first time , the Bills faced the Buccaneers in Buffalo ; in the 33 - year history of the Tampa Bay franchise , all previous regular - season games between the two teams have been held in Tampa , Florida . Regular season results . Week 1 : at New England Patriots . The Bills began their season at Gillette Stadium for an AFL Legacy duel with their AFC East rival , the New England Patriots , in the first game of a MNF doubleheader . Buffalo got off to a fast start in the first quarter as quarterback Trent Edwards completed an 11 - yard touchdown pass to rookie tight end Shawn Nelson . The Patriots would respond in the second quarter as running back Fred Taylor got a 1 - yard touchdown run , yet Buffalo came right back as defensive end Aaron Schobel returned an interception 26 yards for a touchdown . New England would close out the half with kicker Stephen Gostkowski getting a 20 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , the Bills would add to their lead as kicker Rian Lindell made a 40 - yard field goal . In the fourth quarter , the Patriots replied with Gostkowski nailing a 28 - yard field goal . Buffalo would increase their lead as Edwards completed a 10 - yard touchdown pass to running back Fred Jackson . With just over 5 minutes to play , The Patriots would strike back as quarterback Tom Brady completed an 18 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Benjamin Watson ( with a failed two - point conversion ) . On the ensuing kickoff , cornerback Leodis McKelvin got the kickoff from his own endzone and got as far as the Bills 31 - yard line , where he was stripped of the ball and New England ' s Gostkowski recovered . This would eventually set up Brady ' s 16 - yard touchdown pass to Watson ( with another failed two - point conversion ) . With under a minute to play Buffalo tried to respond , but the Patriots ' defense was too much to overcome . With the bitter loss , the Bills began their season at 0 – 1 . Week 2 : vs . Tampa Bay Buccaneers . Hoping to rebound from a tough loss to the Patriots , the Bills would play their Week 2 home opener in an interconference duel with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers . This would be the first time that Buffalo ever hosted Tampa Bay in a regular season game , since they played a preseason game with each other in 1977 . In the first quarter , the Bills came out firing as quarterback Trent Edwards completed a 32 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lee Evans , safety Donte Whitner returning an interception 76 yards for a touchdown , and kicker Rian Lindell making a 31 - yard field goal . The Buccaneers would get on the board in the second quarter as quarterback Byron Leftwich completed a 42 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Kellen Winslow , while Buffalo replied with Lindell getting a 43 - yard field goal . Tampa Bay would close out the half as Leftwich completed an 8 - yard touchdown pass to running back Carnell " Cadillac " Williams . After a scoreless third quarter , the Bills began to pull away as Lindell got a 43 - yard field goal and Edwards completed a 43 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Terrell Owens . The Buccaneers tried to rally as Leftwich completed a 6 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Jerramy Stevens ( with a failed two - point conversion ) , yet Buffalo closed out the game with Lindell nailing a 20 - yard field goal . With the win , the Bills improved to 1 – 1 . Week 3 : vs . New Orleans Saints . Coming off their win the Buccaneers , the Bills stayed at home for a Week 3 interconference duel with the New Orleans Saints . Buffalo would trail early as Saints running back Lynell Hamilton got a 1 - yard touchdown run . The Bills would answer in the second quarter on a fake field goal attempt , punter Brian Moorman threw a 25 - yard touchdown pass to defensive end Ryan Denney . New Orleans would close out the half with kicker John Carney ' s 27 - yard field goal . After a scoreless third quarter , the Saints took control in the fourth quarter with running back Pierre Thomas ' 34 - yard touchdown run , Carney ' s 35 - yard field goal , and Thomas ' 19 - yard touchdown run . With the loss , Buffalo fell to 1 – 2 . Week 4 : at Miami Dolphins . Hoping to rebound from their home loss to the Saints , the Bills flew to Land Shark Stadium for a Week 4 AFC East duel with the Miami Dolphins . After a scoreless first quarter , Buffalo would find themselves trailing in the second as Dolphins kicker Dan Carpenter got a 33 - yard field goal , followed by cornerback Vontae Davis returning an interception 23 yards for a touchdown . The Bills would get on the board with a 35 - yard field goal from kicker Rian Lindell , but Miami would answer with running back Ronnie Brown ' s 1 - yard touchdown run . The Dolphins ' domination continued into the third quarter with quarterback Chad Henne completing a 5 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Brian Hartline , followed by a 1 - yard touchdown run by running back Ricky Williams . Buffalo tried to salvage the game in the fourth quarter with quarterback Trent Edwards completing a 3 - yard touchdown pass to wide recevier Josh Reed , but Miami would close out the game with Brown ' s 4 - yard touchdown pass . With the loss , the Bills fell to 1 – 3 . Week 5 : vs . Cleveland Browns . The Bills , hoping to shake off a loss to the winless Miami Dolphins on the road the week before , faced the 0 – 4 Cleveland Browns at Ralph Wilson Stadium . The wind played a factor throughout the game , making it difficult for both teams to sustain drives in the air . The Browns and Bills traded punts in the first quarter until the Bills had a drive end at their own 47 after turning it over on downs . This stop led to the only points of the first half by the Browns , a 24 yard field goal by backup kicker Billy Cundiff . Cundiff was the starter at kicker for the Browns due to the injury to their regular kicker Phil Dawson . In the second half , the longest drive by the Bills in the game was in their opening possession , which led to a successful 36 yard field goal by Bills kicker Rian Lindell to tie the game at 3 . Later in the third quarter , each quarterback threw an interception , first Trent Edwards of the Bills to cornerback Eric Wright of the Browns , and then Derek Anderson of the Browns to Bills ' safety Jairus Byrd . Deadlocked at 3 apiece going into the fourth quarter , both offenses continued to be stifled . However , a special teams blunder by Bills punt returner Roscoe Parrish allowed the Browns to set up at the Buffalo 16 yard line after Parrish muffed the punt . From this turnover , the Browns were able to win the game on an 18 yard field goal by Cundiff with 23 seconds left to play . This loss dropped the Bills ' record to 1 – 4 , with the division rival New York Jets next up on the schedule in the Meadowlands . The Browns improved their record to 1 – 4 . During the game , the Bills lost two defensive starters to injury who were carted off the field - linebacker Kawika Mitchell and linebacker Marcus Buggs . In this loss , the Bills earned the dubious distinction of losing to a quarterback with the worst completion percentage in NFL history in a win , the Browns Derek Anderson , who completed just 2 out of 17 passes for just 23 yards - a percentage of 11 % . Week 6 : at New York Jets . Trying to snap a three - game losing streak , the Bills flew to The Meadowlands for a Week 6 AFC East duel with the New York Jets . In the first quarter , Buffalo got the initial strike as kicker Rian Lindell got a 33 - yard field goal . The Jets would answer with a 23 - yard field goal from kicker Jay Feely . New York would take the lead in the second quarter Feely ' s 41 - yard field goal and running back Thomas Jones ' 71 - yard touchdown run . In the third quarter , the Bills fought back as Lindell nailed a 25 - yard field goal , followed by quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick completing a 37 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lee Evans . Both teams would fight hard throughout the fourth quarter and eventually , Lindell got a chance to kick a last - second field goal . However , his 46 - yard attempt went wide right , sending the game into overtime . In overtime , both teams would slug it out with each other throughout most of the quarter . In the end , Buffalo emerged victorious as Lindell booted the game - winning 47 - yard field goal . With the win , not only did the Bills improve to 2 – 4 , but the defense managed to record five interceptions ( two for rookie safety Jairus Byrd , one for safety George Wilson , one for cornerback Reggie Corner , and one for linebacker Paul Posluszny ) . Starting quarterback Trent Edwards ( 5 / 5 for 43 yards ) left the game in the second quarter with a concussion . Week 7 : at Carolina Panthers . Coming off their thrilling overtime road win over the Jets , the Bills flew to Bank of America Stadium for a Week 7 interconference duel with the Carolina Panthers . With quarterback Trent Edwards recovering from a concussion , quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick was given the start . Buffalo delivered the opening charge in the first quarter with a 7 - yard touchdown run from running back Marshawn Lynch . In the second quarter , the Panthers got on the board as defensive tackle Hollis Thomas tackled running back Fred Jackson in his own endzone for a safety . After a scoreless third quarter , the Bills increased their lead in the fourth quarter with Fitzpatrick completing a 2 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lee Evans , followed by a 29 - yard field goal from kicker Rian Lindell . Carolina tried to rally as running back DeAngelo Williams got a 15 - yard touchdown run , yet Buffalo pulled away with Lindell ' s 22 - yard field goal . With the win , the Bills improved to 3 – 4 . Week 8 : vs . Houston Texans . Coming off their road win over the Panthers , the Bills went home for a Week 8 duel with the Houston Texans . In the first quarter , Buffalo struck first as wide receiver Terrell Owens got a 29 - yard touchdown run . The Texans would answer in the second quarter with a 42 - yard and a 22 - yard field goal from kicker Kris Brown . The Bills would end the half with kicker Rian Lindell ' s 21 - yard field goal . Houston would creep closer in the third quarter with Brown booting a 26 - yard field goal . In the fourth quarter , the Texans would take the lead and never look back as running back Ryan Moats got three touchdown runs of 11 yards ( followed by quarterback Matt Schaub ' s 2 - point conversion pass to wide receiver Andre Johnson ) , 1 yard , and 3 yards . With the loss , Buffalo went into their bye week at 3 – 5 . Despite the loss , rookie safety Jairus Byrd once again had two interceptions . He would become the first rookie and only the second player in NFL history to have three - straight multi - interception games . Week 10 : at Tennessee Titans . Coming off their bye week , the Bills flew to LP Field , donned their throwbacks , and played a Week 10 AFL Legacy game with the Tennessee Titans . In the first quarter , Buffalo struck first with a trick play as running back Fred Jackson completed a 27 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lee Evans . The Titans would answer with a 28 - yard touchdown run from running back Chris Johnson and quarterback Vince Young ' s 14 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Nate Washington . Tennessee would add onto their lead in the second quarter with a 38 - yard field goal from kicker Rob Bironas . The Bills would close out the half with quarterback Trent Edwards ' 8 - yard touchdown pass to Evans . Buffalo would tie the game in the third quarter with kicker Rian Lindell nailing a 25 - yard field goal , but the Titans would pull away in the fourth quarter with Johnson ' s 1 - yard touchdown run , Bironas ' 51 - yard field goal , safety Vincent Fuller returning an interception 26 yards for a touchdown , and cornerback Rod Hood returning an interception 31 yards for a touchdown . With the loss , not only did the Bills fall to 3 – 6 , but head coach Dick Jauron would get fired two days later . Week 11 : at Jacksonville Jaguars . Hoping to rebound from their loss to the Titans , the Bills flew to Jacksonville Municipal Stadium for an Intraconference duel with the Jacksonville Jaguars . In the 1st quarter Buffalo trailed early as kicker Josh Scobee made a 29 - yard field goal . Then the Bills came on top with kicker Rian Lindell hitting a 26 and a 28 - yard field goal . The Bills fell behind in the 2nd quarter when RB Maurice Jones - Drew got a 3 - yard touchdown run . Then the Bills would score to end the half with Lindell nailing a 22 - yard field goal . In the third quarter Buffalo took the lead with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick making a 98 - yard touchdown pass to WR Terrell Owens ( with a failed 2 - point conversion attempt ) . In the fourth quarter Buffalo fell behind again with QB David Garrard making a 3 - yard touchdown pass to WR Mike Sims - Walker ( With a successful QB sneak to make the two - point conversion ) . With the loss , the Bills fell to 3 – 7 . Week 12 : vs . Miami Dolphins . Trying to snap a three - game losing streak , the Bills went home , donned their throwback uniforms , and played a Week 12 AFC East rematch with the Miami Dolphins . After a scoreless first quarter , Buffalo would trail early in the second quarter as Dolphins quarterback Chad Henne threw a 4 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Brian Hartline . The Bills would tie the game with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick getting an impressive 31 - yard touchdown run . Miami would retake the lead in the third quarter with a 1 - yard touchdown run from running back Ricky Williams , yet Buffalo ' s offense would explode with points in the fourth quarter . It would begin with running back Fred Jackson ' s 3 - yard touchdown run and continued with kicker Rian Lindell booting a 56 - yard field goal . Afterwards , Fitzpatrick would hook up with wide receiver Terrell Owens on a 51 - yard touchdown pass , while Jackson got a 7 - yard touchdown run . With the win , the Bills improved to 4 – 7 . Week 13 : vs . New York Jets . In their second - ever regular season game north of the border , Buffalo traveled to Toronto to take on divisional rivals the New York Jets . The team traded field goals in the first quarter before the Bills took a 10 – 6 lead after a 15 yard touchdown run from Marshawn Lynch . The Jets regained the lead after quarterback Mark Sanchez threw a 13 yard touchdown pass to Braylon Edwards . The teams went scoreless in the third quarter that was notable for Sanchez suffering a sprained Posterior cruciate ligament to his right knee . The team again traded field goals in the final quarter . Buffalo had a chance to take the lead or at least tie in the final two minutes , but quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick threw an interception to Darrelle Revis which sealed the victory for the Jets . With the loss , Buffalo fell to 4 – 8 , and are 1 – 2 since firing former head coach Dick Jauron .