The Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams don’t have the kind of rivalry that comes from playing twice a season, but their occasional meetings have produced some pretty memorable moments. There have been last-second touchdowns, Hall of Fame milestones, a Super Bowl celebration spoiled, and a six-touchdown performance that somehow wasn’t enough to win.
The two franchises have met 15 times since 1970, with Buffalo holding a 9–6 advantage. The Bills have won five of the last six, although the Rams claimed
the most recent meeting in a game that might still give Buffalo fans a headache.
With the Bills headed to Los Angeles for Monday Night Football, it’s time to open the Time Capsule and revisit some of the history between these two teams.
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The early years: Los Angeles gets the better of Buffalo
The Bills and Rams first crossed paths on September 27, 1970, during the NFL’s first season following the AFL-NFL merger. Buffalo had spent the previous decade in the AFL, winning back-to-back championships in 1964 and 1965, while Los Angeles had been part of the NFL since 1937.
The Rams weren’t especially welcoming. They traveled to Buffalo and handed the Bills a 19–0 shutout, beginning a stretch in which Los Angeles won three of the first four meetings between the franchises.
Buffalo’s first win didn’t come until December 7, 1980, when the Bills earned a 10–7 win at home. It was hardly an offensive showcase, but it finally put Buffalo in the win column against a team that had reached the Super Bowl the previous season.
The Rams responded with a 41–17 victory in 1983, leaving Buffalo trailing the series 3–1. It would be another six years before the two teams met again, and by then the Bills were building a roster that would eventually lead them to four consecutive Super Bowls.
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The Super Bowl years: Reich, Thomas, and a little Monday night magic
The Rams had gotten the better of Buffalo through the first four meetings, but that changed in 1989. The Bills would win the next three matchups, including a Monday night thriller and a blowout that put a future Hall of Famer into the NFL record books.
On October 16, 1989, an undefeated Rams team arrived at Rich Stadium for Monday Night Football. Jim Kelly was sidelined with a shoulder injury, leaving backup Frank Reich to make his first NFL start.
For most of the evening, Reich did enough to keep Buffalo competitive. A fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Thurman Thomas gave the Bills a 16–13 lead, and when Buffalo recovered possession late in the game, it appeared the outcome was settled.
Then Thomas fumbled.
Los Angeles recovered, and Jim Everett connected with Flipper Anderson for a 78-yard touchdown. Suddenly, the Rams led 20–16 with just 1:22 remaining.
Reich, who had never started an NFL game before that evening, responded by completing seven consecutive passes. The final one went eight yards to Andre Reed for the winning touchdown with 16 seconds left on the clock. Buffalo won 23–20, handing Los Angeles its first defeat of the season.
It wasn’t the comeback that would eventually make Reich famous, but it was an early demonstration of what the Bills had waiting behind Kelly on the depth chart.
Three years later, the Rams returned to Buffalo for the 1992 season opener. This time, there would be no need for a dramatic finish.
The Bills rolled to a 40–7 win, the largest margin in the history of the series. Thomas scored four touchdowns, three on the ground and one through the air, while Buffalo’s defense intercepted Rams quarterback Jim Everett four times.
But the afternoon wasn’t entirely about the scoreboard.
Veteran receiver James Lofton, already one of the NFL’s most accomplished pass catchers, surpassed Steve Largent to become the league’s all-time leader in career receiving yards that day. Lofton finished the afternoon with six catches for 56 yards, adding an NFL record to a game that also marked the beginning of Buffalo’s third consecutive Super Bowl run.
The Bills would add another win over the Rams in 1995, winning 45–27 in the franchises’ first meeting after the Rams relocated to St. Louis.
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The St. Louis years: Buffalo maintains the upper hand
The Rams moved to St. Louis in 1995, where they would eventually become the Greatest Show on Turf, win a Super Bowl with Kurt Warner, and spend 21 seasons before returning to Los Angeles.
Interestingly, the Bills never faced that championship team.
The franchises met five times while the Rams called St. Louis home, with Buffalo winning three of those matchups. The Bills took the first meeting in 1995 with a 45–27 win, but the Rams squeaked out a 34–33 victory in 1998. Buffalo responded with wins in 2004 and 2008 before St. Louis got the last word in 2012, winning 15–12 in what would be the teams’ final meeting before the Rams returned to Los Angeles.
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The Josh Allen era: Big wins, bigger numbers, and one painful loss
By the time the Bills and Rams met again in September 2020, Buffalo had a new franchise quarterback and was beginning to establish itself as an AFC contender.
The first meeting of the Allen era almost became a disaster.
Buffalo built a 28–3 lead in the third quarter at Bills Stadium, only to watch Jared Goff and the Rams score 29 unanswered points. Los Angeles led 32–28 with less than five minutes remaining, leaving Allen to rescue a game that he had seemed to have had comfortably in hand.
The quarterback directed a 75-yard touchdown drive, aided by a controversial fourth-down pass interference call, and found Tyler Kroft in the end zone with 15 seconds remaining. Buffalo escaped with a 35–32 victory and a 3–0 start to the season.
Two years later, the Bills returned to face the Rams under considerably brighter lights.
Los Angeles was coming off its victory in Super Bowl LVI, and the NFL had selected Buffalo as the opponent for the league’s traditional Thursday night season opener. The Rams were raising a championship banner at SoFi Stadium, but the Bills had no intention of contributing to the celebration.
The teams went into halftime tied at 10, despite Buffalo turning the ball over three times in the first two quarters. The second half was a completely different game.
Allen threw three touchdown passes and added another score on the ground, while the Buffalo defense intercepted Matthew Stafford three times and sacked him seven times. The Bills scored 21 unanswered second-half points and left Los Angeles with a convincing 31–10 victory.
The Bills returned to Los Angeles two years later, and Allen had an even bigger game. Unfortunately for Buffalo, the Rams had a pretty good day, too.
On December 8, 2024, the Bills returned to SoFi Stadium riding a seven-game winning streak. Allen was in the middle of what would become his first NFL MVP season, and he delivered one of the most remarkable individual performances in league history.
He threw for 342 yards and three touchdowns. He rushed for 82 yards and three more scores. In doing so, he became the first player in NFL history to throw three touchdown passes and rush for three touchdowns in the same game.
Six touchdowns. No turnovers. And a loss.
Stafford threw for 320 yards and two touchdowns, while Puka Nacua caught 12 passes for 162 yards and scored twice, once receiving and once rushing. The Rams built a 38–21 lead entering the fourth quarter, forcing Buffalo into another desperate comeback attempt.
Allen nearly pulled it off. His third rushing touchdown brought the Bills within two points in the final minute, but Los Angeles recovered the ensuing onside kick and held on for the 44–42 win.
The teams combined for 86 points and more than 900 yards of offense. Buffalo scored more points than any losing team in franchise history.
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Another Monday night chapter awaits
That 44–42 loss was the last time the Bills and Rams shared a field. Now, nearly two years later, Buffalo is headed back to SoFi Stadium for another prime-time matchup, and Allen will have another chance to get the better of Matthew Stafford.
There’s also a little more hardware between the two quarterbacks this time around. Allen won NFL MVP honors for the 2024 season, and Stafford followed him with the award in 2025.
The Bills and Rams have never met in the postseason, but who’s to say a Super Bowl matchup isn’t somewhere in their future? For now, we’ll settle for another Monday night game. Hopefully, this one ends with the Bills on the right side of the scoreboard, no matter how many touchdowns Allen scores.
