Important dates in Bills history presented by M&T bank helps fans understand what's important. In the NFL, the history books are important. One name forever etched into the Bills history books is Marv Levy.
The Bills hired Levy to be the team's head coach after Week Nine of the 1986 season, but this story is not about Levy's arrival to the organization. It is about the day that he became the winningest coach in franchise history, December 12, 1992.
Levy earned his 71st win as head coach of the team when the Bills defeated the John Elway-less Broncos 24-17 at Denver. Levy's Bills jumped ahead of the Broncos early and never looked back. In the second quarter, quarterback Jim Kelly delivered a 64-yard bomb into the hands of wide receiver Don Beebe for the first score of the game. Later, Kelly capped of his team's second scoring drive with a two-yard touchdown rush to make it 14-0 Buffalo. The Bills found the end zone for the third time in the quarter when running back Thurman Thomas scampered 11 yards for the score.
In the third quarter, kicker Scott Norwood split the uprights for a 29-yard field goal to make it 24-0. Norwood connected on another field goal in the fourth quarter to give his team a 27-17 lead, where the score would remain.
Bills safety Mark Kelso also set a team record that day, as he intercepted Broncos fill-in quarterback Tommy Maddox three times. His record still stands today. During the same game, "the 12th man" (Bills fans) was inducted onto the organization's Wall of Fame.
Levy's trajectory as Bills head coach continued upward. By the time he retired after the 1997 season, he had racked up 112 wins in his career. His team reached four straight Super Bowls and was the winningest AFC organization in the 1990s. For all the success Levy would find later in his career, he first entered the Bills history books on December 12, 1992, with his the team record 71st win.
