Instruct: Given a question, retrieve documents that can help answer the question.
Query: Have the Buffalo Bills ever won a Super Bowl?
The Buffalo sports curse is an explanation for Buffalo's inability to win a Super Bowl, Stanley Cup, or an NBA championship. Those who believe in the Buffalo curse cite as examples the four consecutive Super Bowl losses by the Buffalo Bills for the 1990–1993 seasons (and the team's failure to qualify for the NFL playoffs from 2000 to 2017), as well as the failure of the Buffalo Sabres ever to win the Stanley Cup (despite winning the Presidents' Trophy for most regular-season points in 2006–07). The Bills, however, won two American Football League (AFL) titles (1964 and 1965), the latter occurring just months before an agreement was reached to merge the AFL and the National Football League (NFL) (Bills owner Ralph Wilson initiated the talks to merge the two leagues, according to the Pro Football Hall of Fame). In spite of that, it has been argued that this was achieved when the AFL was in its infancy as an upstart league, garnering little, if any, national attention before merging with the established NFL, and that even if they are considered to be at par, since there would be no Super Bowl until after the 1966 season, the Bills could be no greater than co-champions. There have been conflicting suggestions on how the Bills would have fared against the Green Bay Packers or Cleveland Browns, much as there have been disputes over how well the San Diego Chargers would have played against the Bears in 1963, had the Super Bowl existed at that time.
At the end of the 1966 season, the Super Bowl began to be played between the AFL champion and the NFL champion. After the AFL/NFL merger in 1970, the Super Bowl continued to be played between the AFC champion and the NFC champion. The AFL champion lost the first two Super Bowls. The 1968 AFL champion New York Jets with Joe Namath at quarterback became the first AFL team to win the Super Bowl. Starting with that Super Bowl, the AFL or AFC champion won 11 out of 13 Super Bowls. However, the AFC champion lost 13 consecutive Super Bowls, from the 1984 AFC champion Miami Dolphins through the 1996 AFC champion New England Patriots. Overall, the AFL or AFC champion has won 25 of the 52 Super Bowls played through the end of the 2017 season.
Instead, Miami’s defeat in the ‘Sea of Hands’ game ended their historic run; there would be no fourth straight Super Bowl, and to date only the Buffalo Bills have ever advanced to four straight Super Bowls (XXV, XXVI, XXVII, and XXVIII). The Dolphins would not return to the Super Bowl until January 1983, when they would meet (and be defeated by) the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl XVII. The Raiders would not advance to Super Bowl IX, either: They would be defeated in the AFC Championship Game by the Pittsburgh Steelers, 24-13, thus beginning Pittsburgh's historic run of four Super Bowl appearances (and victories) in six years.
The Washington Redskins have won three Super Bowl championships, the most recent coming in Super Bowl XXVI over the Buffalo Bills. However, since that time, the Redskins have not appeared in a Super Bowl or even a Conference Championship Game, and have only made the playoffs six times, losing in the First Round in three of those seasons. That Super Bowl season also represents the last time the Redskins got either the 1 or 2 seeds in the playoffs, as well as the last time they got 12 or more wins in a season.
By winning the 1967 NFL Championship Game, the Packers achieved a "three-peat" (three consecutive league championships) for only the second time in franchise history and the first time since they were named league champions following the 1929–31 seasons. To this day, no other NFL team has matched or surpassed this record. The Packers' back-to-back wins in the first two Super Bowls remains a Super Bowl record, and has since been tied seven times by six other franchises: the Miami Dolphins won Super Bowls VII and VIII following the 1972 and 1973 seasons, the Pittsburgh Steelers won Super Bowls IX and X following the 1974 and 1975 seasons as well as Super Bowls XIII and XIV following the 1978 and 1979 seasons and remain, to date, the only team to win back-to-back Super Bowl titles more than once, the San Francisco 49ers won Super Bowls XXIII and XXIV following the 1988 and 1989 seasons, the Dallas Cowboys won Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII following the 1992 and 1993 seasons, the Denver Broncos won Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII following the 1997 and 1998 seasons, and most recently, the New England Patriots won Super Bowls XXXVIII and XXXIX following the 2003 and 2004 seasons.
Super Bowl X was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Dallas Cowboys and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1975 season. The Steelers defeated the Cowboys by the score of 21–17 to win their second consecutive Super Bowl. They were the third team to win back-to-back Super Bowls. (The Miami Dolphins won Super Bowls VII and VIII, and the Green Bay Packers won Super Bowls I and II.) It was also the first Super Bowl in which both participating teams had previously won a Super Bowl, as the Steelers were the defending champions and the Cowboys had won Super Bowl VI.
The 1985 NFL season was the 66th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XX when the Chicago Bears defeated the New England Patriots 46–10 at the Louisiana Superdome. The Bears became the second team in NFL history (after the previous season's San Francisco 49ers) to win 15 games in the regular season and 18 including the playoffs."W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against"The following players set all-time records during the season:
Super Bowl 50 was an American football game to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2015 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champions Denver Broncos defeated the National Football Conference (NFC) champions Carolina Panthers, 24–10. The game was played on February 7, 2016, at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California (located in the San Francisco Bay Area). As this was the 50th Super Bowl game, the league emphasized the "golden anniversary" with various gold-themed initiatives during the 2015 season, as well as suspending the tradition of naming each Super Bowl game with Roman numerals (under which the game would have been known as "Super Bowl L"), so the logo could prominently feature the Arabic numerals 50.
In winning the Super Bowl, the Giants became the first team to have won Super Bowl games broadcast on all four U.S. national networks (CBS, ABC, Fox, and now NBC), as well as the first team to win Super Bowls in four different decades. The Giants-Patriots game was the 11th time that there was a rematch in a Super Bowl. In doing so, the 2011 Giants became the first team with fewer than 10 wins (9 wins – 7 losses) in the regular season to win a Super Bowl. Furthermore, Super Bowl XLVI marked just the second time in Super Bowl history that opening score of the title game occurred with a safety when Justin Tuck pressured Tom Brady, and he was called for intentional grounding; the first instance was Super Bowl IX, when Pittsburgh registered a safety on Hall of Fame coach Bud Grant's Vikings. Eli Manning won his second Super Bowl MVP award in four years after orchestrating another game-winning touchdown drive in the game's final moments.
Super Bowl XXXVI was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion St. Louis Rams and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 2001 season. The Patriots defeated the Rams by the score of 20–17. It was New England's first Super Bowl championship, and the franchise's first league championship of any kind. The game was also notable for snapping the AFC East's long streak of not being able to win a Super Bowl championship, as the division's teams had lost eight Super Bowls in total (prior to the Patriots victory in XXXVI). It would be the last time the Rams reached a Super Bowl during their time in St. Louis; the team would return to Super Bowl LIII as the Los Angeles Rams 17 years later, where they will play a rematch the Patriots.
The New York Giants took possession with four seconds left and ran out the clock for a 20–19 victory, making this Super Bowl the closest ever. Had Norwood successfully scored it would have likely given the Bills a 22–20 victory, and it would also have been the first Super Bowl to be decided by a game-ending field goal since Jim O'Brien's 32-yard kick which gave the Baltimore Colts a 16–13 victory against the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl V.
Super Bowl XLIX was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2014 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Conference (NFC) champion and defending Super Bowl XLVIII champion Seattle Seahawks, 28–24, to earn their fourth Super Bowl title and their first in ten years. The game was played on February 1, 2015 at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. It was the second time the stadium has hosted a Super Bowl, and the third one held in the Phoenix metropolitan area.
The game is regarded as one of the biggest upsets in the history of professional sports, as well as one of the finest Super Bowl games. The Patriots entered the game as 12-point favorites after becoming the first team to complete a perfect regular season since the 1972 Miami Dolphins, and the only one since the league expanded to a 16-game regular season schedule in 1978. The Giants, who finished the regular season with a 10–6 record, were seeking to become the first NFC wild card team to win a Super Bowl, and were also looking for their third Super Bowl victory and first since they won Super Bowl XXV seventeen years earlier. This Super Bowl was also a rematch of the final game of the regular season, in which New England won, 38–35.
In 2006, he won a super bowl ring after winning Super Bowl XLI with the Colts.
Super Bowl XXXIX was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 2004 season. The Patriots defeated the Eagles by the score of 24–21. The game was played on February 6, 2005, at Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, the first time the Super Bowl was played in that city.
After being named head coach of the Jets in early 2000, Belichick resigned after only one day on the job to accept the head coaching job for the New England Patriots on January 27, 2000. Since then, Belichick has led the Patriots to 16 AFC East division titles, 13 appearances in the AFC Championship Game, and nine Super Bowl appearances. He was named the AP NFL Coach of the Year for the 2003, 2007, and 2010 seasons. His teams won Super Bowls XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX, and LI and lost Super Bowls XLII, XLVI, and LII. Belichick's appearance in Super Bowl LII extended his record to eight Bowls as a head coach, as well as being a record eleventh participation in a Super Bowl in any capacity. This also tied him with Neal Dahlen for the most Super Bowl wins in any capacity with seven. In addition, the Patriots' appearance in Super Bowl LIII will be their eleventh, the most of any team.
It was the first time since the 1996 postseason that the home team won both of the conference championship games. The Colts were the first dome team to win the Super Bowl in an outdoor game (the St. Louis Rams were the first dome team to win a Super Bowl, XXXIV inside the Georgia Dome in Atlanta). The 2006 Indianapolis Colts were the first division champion to win a Super Bowl with four postseason wins and the second division champion (2003 Carolina Panthers) to win a conference title with three postseason wins.
The 49ers attempted to follow the 2012 World Series championship victory of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants. The last time a metropolitan area won the World Series and Super Bowl in the same season was when the Boston Red Sox won the 2004 World Series followed by the Patriots winning Super Bowl XXXIX (and the Patriots won Super Bowl XXXVIII earlier in 2004).
Since joining the Patriots broadcast, Socci and Zolak have called three Super Bowl Championships. In February 2015 the Patriots won the franchises fourth Super Bowl defeating the Seattle Seahawks when rookie cornerback Malcolm Butler intercepted a pass at the goal line sealing the title. In February 2017 the duo called "The Greatest Comeback in Super Bowl History" when the Patriots rallied from a 28-3 third quarter deficit to beat the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in the first overtime game in 51 years of the Super Bowl.
Over the course of the Rams’ 71-year history, they have won 15 division titles. They have appeared in the postseason 27 times, winning three NFL Championships. During the Super Bowl era, they have played in three Super Bowls, winning one.
The Bulls were founded in 1988, under Louisville Bulls INC, by Don Hillerich. By 1994, the Louisville Bulls were incorporated as a non-profit organization. The team played as an independent in 1988 and 1989. In 1990, the Bulls joined the Hearts of Ohio Football League (HOFL). The following year, the Bulls won the HOFL championship. In 1992, the Bulls joined the Mid Continental Football League (MCFL). In 2004, the Bulls were nationally ranked as the 8th best semi-pro football team in the Midwest. In 2008, the Bulls would win the National Division of the MCFL and play the Detroit Seminoles in the championship game, their only appearance in the MCFL title game. In August 2011, the Bulls folded.
The Bills lost their first of four consecutive Super Bowl games, and this loss was the closest the team got as the next three Super Bowls ended with the Bills losing by considerable margins (13 points to the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl XXVI, 35 points to the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl XXVII, and 17 points to the Cowboys in Super Bowl XXVIII, respectively). The city of Buffalo had not won a Big 4 sports championship since 1965 (which became the longest such streak of futility for any city that has at least two major sports franchises once San Diego, whose last title came in 1963, lost one of its two teams in 2017), so Norwood's unsuccessful attempt had an even greater significance.
The Bills won the AFC East championship in 1993 with a 12–4 record, and again won playoff games against the Los Angeles Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs, setting up a rematch with the Cowboys in Super Bowl XXVIII on January 30, 1994. The Bills became the only team ever to play in four straight Super Bowls, and in this game became the first team to face the same team in 2 straight Super Bowls, and looked ready to finally win one when they led at halftime. A Thurman Thomas fumble returned for a touchdown by James Washington tied the game, with Super Bowl MVP Emmitt Smith taking over the rest of the game for the Cowboys and the Bills were stunned again, 30–13.
The Bills, established in 1959, played in War Memorial Stadium until 1973, when Rich Stadium, now New Era Field, opened. The team competes in the AFC East division. Since the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, the Bills have won the AFC conference championship four consecutive times (1990, 1991, 1992, 1993), resulting in four lost Super Bowls (Super Bowl XXV, Super Bowl XXVI, Super Bowl XXVII and Super Bowl XXVIII); they were the only NFL team without a playoff appearance in the 21st century from 2011 until 2017, having missed the playoffs each season since 2000.
This list of examples is not exhaustive; no team has ever qualified for the Super Bowl played in their home stadium.
Since 1993, few winning teams have followed up their Super Bowl appearances with a second Super Bowl appearance, or even advanced to a conference title game in the subsequent season (the 1994 Dallas Cowboys qualified for their conference title but did not qualify for the Super Bowl). Only seven teams have won back-to-back Super Bowl championships, and only one of these seven have made more than two consecutive winning appearances in the Super Bowl. The only franchise to reach more than three straight title games was the Buffalo Bills who lost four Super Bowls in a row from 1990–93.