Wild Card Round: Jacksonville Jaguars at Buffalo Bills (Rich Stadium), the bracket opens here. Kickoff: Sat December 28, 1996 at 12:30pm. Winner advances to the divisional round. Loser starts the offseason early.[1][2]
Wild card weekend is the most chaotic football the calendar produces. Jacksonville Jaguars at Buffalo Bills at Rich Stadium is the kind of game that decides whether a season was a long buildup or a quick exit. These are the games where the second-tier playoff teams have to prove they belong. Most don't. The few who do define the rest of January.
The bracket has narrowed to the teams that survived the regular season. Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Rich Stadium shifts the rest of the tree: a road favorite winning rearranges seeding expectations; a home upset shows the bracket math underweights heart.
Jacksonville Jaguars versus Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card 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 Jacksonville Jaguars-Buffalo Bills 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 | 10-6 | L2 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 9-7 | W5 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 8-8 | W3 |
| Houston Oilers | 8-8 | W1 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 4-12 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| New England Patriots | 11-5 | W1 |
| Buffalo Bills | 10-6 | W1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 9-7 | L1 |
| Miami Dolphins | 8-8 | W2 |
| New York Jets | 1-15 | L7 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Denver Broncos | 13-3 | L1 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 9-7 | L3 |
| San Diego Chargers | 8-8 | W1 |
| Oakland Raiders | 7-9 | L2 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 7-9 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Carolina Panthers | 12-4 | W7 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 12-4 | W2 |
| St. Louis Rams | 6-10 | W2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 3-13 | L2 |
| New Orleans Saints | 3-13 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Green Bay Packers | 13-3 | W5 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 9-7 | L1 |
| Chicago Bears | 7-9 | L1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 6-10 | W1 |
| Detroit Lions | 5-11 | L5 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys | 10-6 | L1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 10-6 | W2 |
| Washington Redskins | 9-7 | W1 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 7-9 | -- |
| New York Giants | 6-10 | L2 |
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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 10 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 1017203030 |
| Buffalo Bills | 14 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 1417202727 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Bills | Thurman Thomas 7 yard pass from Jim Kelly ( Steve Christie kick) | 0-7 |
| Jaguars | Clyde Simmons 20 yard interception return ( Mike Hollis kick) | 7-7 |
| Bills | Thurman Thomas 2 yard rush ( Steve Christie kick) | 7-14 |
| Jaguars | Mike Hollis 27 yard field goal | 10-14 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Jaguars | Natrone Means 30 yard rush ( Mike Hollis kick) | 17-14 |
| Bills | Steve Christie 33 yard field goal | 17-17 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Bills | Steve Christie 47 yard field goal | 17-20 |
| Jaguars | Mike Hollis 24 yard field goal | 20-20 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Bills | Jeff Burris 38 yard interception return ( Steve Christie kick) | 20-27 |
| Jaguars | Jimmy Smith 2 yard pass from Mark Brunell ( Mike Hollis kick) | 27-27 |
| Jaguars | Mike Hollis 45 yard field goal | 30-27 |
Jacksonville Jaguars defeated Buffalo Bills 30-27 at Rich Stadium in the Wild Card Round. The final scoring play was Jaguars: Mike Hollis 45 yard field goal. The result came down to the final possession; Jacksonville Jaguars won by 3. Top line of the day: Mark Brunell: 239 pass yards on 18-of-33, 1 TD, 2 INT. Jacksonville Jaguars advance to the divisional round.[1][2]
Jacksonville Jaguars walked out of Rich Stadium as the team that survived a Wild Card Round Buffalo Bills will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 30-27. The game stayed within 3 points throughout, the kind of contest where every drive felt like a referendum and every defensive stop carried twice its usual weight. The final scoring play came from Jaguars: Mike Hollis 45 yard field goal. Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Jacksonville Jaguars advance to the divisional round.
Jacksonville Jaguars 30, Buffalo Bills 27. Round: Wild Card Round. Attendance: 70213. Q1: 4 scoring plays. Q2: 2 scoring plays. Q3: 2 scoring plays. Q4: 3 scoring plays. Top performers:
- Mark Brunell: 239 pass yards on 18-of-33, 1 TD, 2 INT
- Natrone Means: 175 rush yards on 31 carries
- Quinn Early: 9 catches for 122 yards
Wild Card Round, played at Rich Stadium. Final: Jacksonville Jaguars 30, Buffalo Bills 27, with Jacksonville Jaguars taking the result by 3. **First quarter**
- Bills: Thurman Thomas 7 yard pass from Jim Kelly ( Steve Christie kick)
- Jaguars: Clyde Simmons 20 yard interception return ( Mike Hollis kick)
- Bills: Thurman Thomas 2 yard rush ( Steve Christie kick)
- Jaguars: Mike Hollis 27 yard field goal
Second quarter
- Jaguars: Natrone Means 30 yard rush ( Mike Hollis kick)
- Bills: Steve Christie 33 yard field goal
Third quarter
- Bills: Steve Christie 47 yard field goal
- Jaguars: Mike Hollis 24 yard field goal
Fourth quarter
- Bills: Jeff Burris 38 yard interception return ( Steve Christie kick)
- Jaguars: Jimmy Smith 2 yard pass from Mark Brunell ( Mike Hollis kick)
- Jaguars: Mike Hollis 45 yard field goal
Top performers
- Mark Brunell: 239 pass yards on 18-of-33, 1 TD, 2 INT
- Natrone Means: 175 rush yards on 31 carries
- Quinn Early: 9 catches for 122 yards
A 3-point margin in Wild Card Round is the kind of result that defines reputations on both sidelines.
| Jaguars | Bills | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 18 | 19 |
| Total Yards | 409 | 308 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 3 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 18/33 | 22/36 |
| Pass yards | 239 | 246 |
| Pass TD | 1 | 1 |
| Interceptions | 2 | 1 |
| Sacks taken | 2 | 3 |
| Sack yards lost | 14 | 30 |
| Net pass yards | 225 | 216 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 35 | 29 |
| Rush yards | 184 | 92 |
| Rush TD | 1 | 1 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 0 | 4 |
| Fumbles lost | 0 | 2 |
| Penalties | 6 | 6 |
| Penalty yards | 42 | 39 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JAX | |||||
| Mark Brunell | 18/33 | 239 | 1 | 2 | |
| BUF | |||||
| Jim Kelly | 21/32 | 239 | 1 | 1 | |
| Todd Collins | 1/4 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JAX | ||||
| Natrone Means | 31 | 175 | 1 | 62 |
| Mark Brunell | 3 | 9 | 0 | 5 |
| James Stewart | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| BUF | ||||
| Thurman Thomas | 14 | 50 | 1 | 14 |
| Jim Kelly | 4 | 18 | 0 | 15 |
| Darick Holmes | 9 | 10 | 0 | 7 |
| Steve Tasker | 1 | 9 | 0 | 9 |
| Tim Tindale | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JAX | ||||
| Keenan McCardell | 4 | 76 | 0 | 26 |
| Pete Mitchell | 3 | 64 | 0 | 47 |
| Jimmy Smith | 5 | 58 | 1 | 15 |
| Le'Shai Maston | 2 | 21 | 0 | 12 |
| Willie Jackson | 1 | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| Derek Brown | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| James Stewart | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Natrone Means | 1 | -4 | 0 | -4 |
| BUF | ||||
| Quinn Early | 9 | 122 | 0 | 25 |
| Andre Reed | 3 | 32 | 0 | 16 |
| Steve Tasker | 3 | 30 | 0 | 19 |
| Lonnie Johnson | 3 | 27 | 0 | 14 |
| Thurman Thomas | 3 | 24 | 1 | 10 |
| Darick Holmes | 1 | 11 | 0 | 11 |
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