Question: when was the last time the buffalo bills played in a playoff game
Answer: The rise of the division rival New England Patriots under Tom Brady , along with numerous failed attempts at rebuilding in the 2000s and 2010s , prevented the Bills from reaching the playoffs in seventeen consecutive seasons between 2000 and 2016 , a 17 - year drought that was the longest active playoff drought in all major professional sports at the time it was broken when the Bills secured a wild - card berth on December 31 , 2017 .