Divisional Round: Buffalo Bills at Pittsburgh Steelers (Three Rivers Stadium), with a Conference Championship spot at stake. Kickoff: Sat January 6, 1996 at 12:30pm. Winner advances to the Conference Championship. The losing team's season is over.[1][2]
The divisional round is where the bracket is supposed to take its real shape. Buffalo Bills traveling to Pittsburgh Steelers at Three Rivers Stadium, with the league watching to see whether the better team or the better matchup wins. Bye-week home favorites carry the weight of expectation; the visiting wild-card winner walks in with no one expecting them and nothing to lose.
The bracket has narrowed to the teams that survived the regular season. Buffalo Bills and Pittsburgh Steelers are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Three Rivers Stadium shifts the rest of the tree: a road favorite winning rearranges seeding expectations; a home upset shows the bracket math underweights heart.
Buffalo Bills versus Pittsburgh Steelers in the Divisional Round. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of Buffalo Bills-Pittsburgh Steelers cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 11-5 | L1 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 7-9 | W1 |
| Houston Oilers | 7-9 | W2 |
| Cleveland Browns | 5-11 | L1 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 4-12 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Bills | 10-6 | L1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 9-7 | W1 |
| Miami Dolphins | 9-7 | W1 |
| New England Patriots | 6-10 | L2 |
| New York Jets | 3-13 | L4 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Chiefs | 13-3 | W2 |
| San Diego Chargers | 9-7 | W5 |
| Denver Broncos | 8-8 | W1 |
| Oakland Raiders | 8-8 | L6 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 8-8 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | 11-5 | L1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 9-7 | W1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 7-9 | L1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 7-9 | W1 |
| St. Louis Rams | 7-9 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Green Bay Packers | 11-5 | W2 |
| Detroit Lions | 10-6 | W7 |
| Chicago Bears | 9-7 | W2 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 8-8 | L2 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 7-9 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys | 12-4 | W2 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 10-6 | L1 |
| Washington Redskins | 6-10 | W2 |
| New York Giants | 5-11 | L2 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 4-12 | -- |
1995 - AFC Divisional - Buffalo Bills at Pittsburgh Steelers
1995 AFC Divisional Playoff Buffalo Bills vs Pittsburgh Steelers Jan 6, 1996. Full Game on NBC NFL
1/6/1996 Buffalo Bills at Pittsburgh Steelers AFC Divisional Playoff
1995 NFL Season || Bills vs Steelers Divisional Playoff Matchup (1996)
Thurman Thomas TD - 1995 AFC Divisional Steelers vs. Bills
Tony Cline TD - 1995 AFC Divisional Steelers vs. Bills
Pittsburgh Steelers Buffalo Bills 1996 Playoffs Preview 1995 Season
NFL on NBC Pregame 1995 Divisional Playoffs Buffalo Bills at Pittsburgh Steelers Jan 6 1996Buffalo Bills None, Pittsburgh Steelers None
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Bills | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 07142121 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 7 | 16 | 3 | 14 | 723264040 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | John Williams 1 yard rush ( Norm Johnson kick) | 0-7 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | Ernie Mills 10 yard pass from Neil O'Donnell ( Norm Johnson kick) | 0-14 |
| Steelers | Norm Johnson 45 yard field goal | 0-17 |
| Steelers | Norm Johnson 38 yard field goal | 0-20 |
| Bills | Thurman Thomas 1 yard rush ( Steve Christie kick) | 7-20 |
| Steelers | Norm Johnson 34 yard field goal | 7-23 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | Norm Johnson 39 yard field goal | 7-26 |
| Bills | Tony Cline 2 yard pass from Alex Van Pelt ( Steve Christie kick) | 14-26 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Bills | Thurman Thomas 9 yard pass from Jim Kelly ( Steve Christie kick) | 21-26 |
| Steelers | Bam Morris 13 yard rush ( Norm Johnson kick) | 21-33 |
| Steelers | Bam Morris 2 yard rush ( Norm Johnson kick) | 21-40 |
Pittsburgh Steelers defeated Buffalo Bills 40-21 at Three Rivers Stadium in the Divisional Round. The final scoring play was Steelers: Bam Morris 2 yard rush ( Norm Johnson kick). Top line of the day: Neil O'Donnell: 262 pass yards on 19-of-35, 1 TD, 2 INT. Pittsburgh Steelers move on to the conference final.[1][2]
Pittsburgh Steelers walked out of Three Rivers Stadium as the team that survived a Divisional Round Buffalo Bills will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 40-21. The final scoring play came from Steelers: Bam Morris 2 yard rush ( Norm Johnson kick). Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Pittsburgh Steelers move on to a conference championship.
Pittsburgh Steelers 40, Buffalo Bills 21. Round: Divisional Round. Attendance: 59072. Q1: 1 scoring play. Q2: 5 scoring plays. Q3: 2 scoring plays. Q4: 3 scoring plays. Top performers:
- Neil O'Donnell: 262 pass yards on 19-of-35, 1 TD, 2 INT
- Bam Morris: 106 rush yards on 25 carries
- Yancey Thigpen: 3 catches for 77 yards
Divisional Round, played at Three Rivers Stadium. Final: Buffalo Bills 21, Pittsburgh Steelers 40, with Pittsburgh Steelers taking the result by 19. **First quarter**
- Steelers: John Williams 1 yard rush ( Norm Johnson kick)
Second quarter
- Steelers: Ernie Mills 10 yard pass from Neil O'Donnell ( Norm Johnson kick)
- Steelers: Norm Johnson 45 yard field goal
- Steelers: Norm Johnson 38 yard field goal
- Bills: Thurman Thomas 1 yard rush ( Steve Christie kick)
- Steelers: Norm Johnson 34 yard field goal
Third quarter
- Steelers: Norm Johnson 39 yard field goal
- Bills: Tony Cline 2 yard pass from Alex Van Pelt ( Steve Christie kick)
Fourth quarter
- Bills: Thurman Thomas 9 yard pass from Jim Kelly ( Steve Christie kick)
- Steelers: Bam Morris 13 yard rush ( Norm Johnson kick)
- Steelers: Bam Morris 2 yard rush ( Norm Johnson kick)
Top performers
- Neil O'Donnell: 262 pass yards on 19-of-35, 1 TD, 2 INT
- Bam Morris: 106 rush yards on 25 carries
- Yancey Thigpen: 3 catches for 77 yards
| Bills | Steelers | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 18 | 23 |
| Total Yards | 250 | 409 |
| Turnovers | 4 | 2 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 18/39 | 19/35 |
| Pass yards | 162 | 262 |
| Pass TD | 2 | 1 |
| Interceptions | 3 | 2 |
| Sacks taken | 2 | 0 |
| Sack yards lost | 6 | 0 |
| Net pass yards | 156 | 262 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 21 | 43 |
| Rush yards | 94 | 147 |
| Rush TD | 1 | 3 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 3 | 1 |
| Fumbles lost | 1 | 0 |
| Penalties | 5 | 5 |
| Penalty yards | 25 | 41 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUF | |||||
| Jim Kelly | 14/29 | 135 | 1 | 3 | |
| Alex Van Pelt | 4/10 | 27 | 1 | 0 | |
| PIT | |||||
| Neil O'Donnell | 19/35 | 262 | 1 | 2 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUF | ||||
| Thurman Thomas | 13 | 46 | 1 | 13 |
| Steve Tasker | 1 | 40 | 0 | 40 |
| Darick Holmes | 4 | 14 | 0 | 12 |
| Alex Van Pelt | 2 | 8 | 0 | 4 |
| Chris Mohr | 1 | -14 | 0 | -14 |
| PIT | ||||
| Bam Morris | 25 | 106 | 2 | 13 |
| Erric Pegram | 8 | 33 | 0 | 17 |
| Kordell Stewart | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Ernie Mills | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| John Williams | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Neil O'Donnell | 4 | -3 | 0 | 0 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUF | ||||
| Steve Tasker | 2 | 38 | 0 | 26 |
| Tony Cline | 3 | 36 | 1 | 17 |
| Bill Brooks | 3 | 28 | 0 | 16 |
| Lonnie Johnson | 5 | 28 | 0 | 8 |
| Andre Reed | 2 | 20 | 0 | 15 |
| Thurman Thomas | 3 | 12 | 1 | 9 |
| PIT | ||||
| Yancey Thigpen | 3 | 77 | 0 | 43 |
| Ernie Mills | 5 | 66 | 1 | 22 |
| Andre Hastings | 3 | 39 | 0 | 17 |
| Kordell Stewart | 2 | 27 | 0 | 19 |
| Erric Pegram | 2 | 21 | 0 | 23 |
| Jonathan Hayes | 1 | 17 | 0 | 17 |
| John Williams | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| Bam Morris | 2 | 7 | 0 | 5 |
Find or start the canonical thread for this game on r/49ers. The thread title is deterministic so anyone running this Rewatch lands on the same place.
Find the thread Start the threadCanonical title: [Rewatch Party] 1995 Divisional Round - Buffalo Bills at Pittsburgh Steelers - Game Thread
