The Buffalo Bills and the Super Bowl have a complicated relationship.
The last time Buffalo reached the Super Bowl was in January 1994 – Super Bowl XXVIII – when they lost to the Dallas Cowboys 30-13.
That defeat marked the fourth-straight year in which the Bills lost in the Super Bowl, an ill-fated run unlikely to be seen again in the NFL.
No other team in NFL history has reached four-straight Super Bowls – only the Miami Dolphins (1971-73) and New England Patriots (2016-18) reached three-in-a-row. And both teams won two out of three.
Unfortunately for the Bills, the record achievement of reaching four-straight championship games is overshadowed by their ugly record. Buffalo remains one of 12 NFL franchises to never win a Super Bowl and is tied with Minnesota Vikings for the most Super Bowl appearances (four) without a win.
Buffalo’s first Super Bowl loss was the closest, and arguably the most painful.
In January 1991, Bills kicker Scott Norwood drifted a 47-yard field attempt wide right that would have won the game with mere seconds remaining. Instead, the New York Giants escaped with a 20-19 win, their second Super Bowl in franchise history.
The following year, Buffalo fell to Washington 37-24, a game they fell behind in 24-0 and never had much of a chance.
Then came back-to-back defeats to the Cowboys in SB XXVII and XXVIII, both of which were blowout defeats.
The first, a 52-17 drubbing, is the second-most points allowed by a team in the Super Bowl. In the second, Buffalo led by a touchdown at halftime but was outscored 24-0 in the second half to lose 30-13.
In 31 years since, the franchise hasn’t been back since.