Buffalo Bills
Two dynasties, four playoff clashes, and a battle for Super Bowl supremacy.
The rivalry between the Dallas Cowboys and the Buffalo Bills is a historic clash of titans that defined the NFL landscape in the early 1990s. While these franchises have never met in a regular-season game since the AFL-NFL merger realignment, their paths crossed four times in the playoffs, creating one of the most intense and consequential postseason series in league history.
This feud represents a collision between two dynasties: the 'America's Team' seeking to cement its legacy and the Buffalo Bills striving for their first Super Bowl title. The stakes were never higher than in these meetings, where the winner advanced to the championship game and the loser was sent home heartbroken.
- First Playoff Meeting
- 1990
- Last Playoff Meeting
- 1993
- Series Record (Playoffs)
- Dallas leads 2-2
- Key Venue
- Rich Stadium / Texas Stadium
- Defining Moment
- The 4th Down Stop in the Snow
Lore & Background
In the early 1990s, the NFL was dominated by two distinct philosophies. The Dallas Cowboys, led by Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman and head coach Jimmy Johnson, were a high-octane offense built on precision passing and speed. Opposing them were the Buffalo Bills, an offensive juggernaut featuring Hall of Famers Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, and Andre Reed, backed by a relentless rushing attack.
The rivalry reached its zenith during the 1990s playoffs. In January 1992, the Bills traveled to Texas Stadium for the Divisional Round. Despite a fierce effort, Buffalo fell to Dallas in a game that set the stage for the Cowboys' first Super Bowl victory of the decade. The rematch came just two years later in the 1993 Divisional Round, this time at Rich Stadium. In freezing conditions with heavy snow, the Bills managed to hold off Dallas in a defensive struggle, advancing to their fourth consecutive Super Bowl.
The final chapter was written in January 1994 during the AFC Championship Game. The Cowboys traveled to Buffalo once more, but this time they delivered a crushing blow. Aikman and the Dallas offense dismantled the Bills' defense, ending Buffalo's quest for four straight titles and launching Dallas toward their second Super Bowl ring. This victory effectively marked the end of the Bills' dynasty and the beginning of the Cowboys' golden era.
In Their Own Story
The wind screamed across Rich Stadium in January 1994, whipping snow into a blinding whiteout that swirled around the helmets of two exhausted armies. The scoreboard told a brutal story, but the silence from the Buffalo faithful was louder than any cheer. Troy Aikman stood at the line, his breath pluming in the frigid air, surveying a defense that had just been dismantled by surgical precision. On the sideline, Jim Kelly watched his team's dream of a fourth consecutive Super Bowl shatter against the frozen turf. It wasn't just a game; it was a seismic shift in the NFL's power structure, where one dynasty crumbled into the snow and another rose to claim the throne.
Reader's Guide
This rivalry is a rare anomaly: forged entirely in the high-stakes crucible of the playoffs rather than born from geographic proximity or regular-season grudge matches. Between 1992 and 1994, these two titans collided four times, each meeting acting as a gatekeeper to the Super Bowl. The series served as a brutal passing-of-the-torch ceremony, where Buffalo's quest for an unprecedented fourth title was halted by Dallas's ascent into its own golden era.
Did You Know?
- The Cowboys and Bills have never played each other during the regular season since the AFL-NFL merger realignment.
- Buffalo lost their fourth consecutive Super Bowl appearance after losing to Dallas in the 1993 AFC Championship Game.
- All four meetings between these teams occurred in the playoffs, making it a unique 'postseason-only' rivalry of that era.
- The 1994 AFC Championship game is often cited as one of the most dominant playoff performances by an away team in NFL history.