Bills player history: Looking back at running back Kenneth Davis

The Buffalo Bills have been in existence since 1960. There have been 1,800 players and counting that have worn a Bills uniform in a game. The rich history, splendid tapestry, good times, and bad times all bring us together every gameday. We have rooted for one-game wonders, fan-favorites, All-Pros, Pro Bowlers, and Hall of Famers. So, lets refresh your memories and remember another former Buffalo Bills player.

This week we are going to ‘remember a Bill’. The recurring piece that will jog your memories and bring back the fondness of watching this player put on the pads and play for our beloved Bills. Now, the players we will remember are not necessarily all-stars or Hall of Famers but just a someone that will make you stop and say, “hey, I remember him.”

This weeks remember a Bill: RB Kenneth Davis

Drafted in the 2nd round, 41st overall in the 1986 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers, Kenneth Davis played 3 seasons with the Packers and put together 1,386 total yards and 5 total touchdowns. In 1989, Davis joined the Buffalo Bills and would be apart of a dynamic backfield with Thurman Thomas and be apart of the unprecedented four straight Super Bowl appearances the Bills had from 1990-1993.

In his early days, Davis was a three-year starter for Temple High School in Texas from 1979-1981. Starting at cornerback then emerging as a star running back in his final two seasons. He was Temple’s all-time leading rusher with 2,898 yards and ranked second with 34 touchdowns. eventually leading to induction into the Texas High School Hall of Fame in 2009.

He brought his tremendous talent to TCU from 1982-1985. His junior year he rushed for 1,611 yards and 16 touchdowns, a school record for yards rushing not broken until 1999 by a guy named LaDainian Tomlinson. Davis was 5th in Heisman Trophy voting his junior year also. He missed all but the first game of his senior season when he was suspended with six teammates after confessing he received cash payments from boosters. Davis still finished his college career with 2,904 yards and 24 touchdowns. He left TCU second in school history in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns. Today he ranks 5th.

His Buffalo Bills tenure would be defined as being a player the Bills could count on when he was needed most. In a now infamous playoff game against the Houston Oilers, Davis filled in for an injured Thurman Thomas and rushed for 68 yards, catching 2 passes for 25 yards, and scored the first touchdown of the game for Buffalo which got the Bills rolling to complete the biggest comeback in playoff history at the time. Davis was a threat every time he touched the ball.

In six seasons with Buffalo, Davis amassed 2,460 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns, adding 545 receiving yards and 4 touchdowns. Post playing career, he spent more than a decade as Bishop Dunne High School’s Athletic Director in Dallas, Texas. If you have watched the documentary Four Falls of Buffalo (as Bills fans I know you have), Kenneth Davis has the greatest theory on why Scott Norwood missed that field goal against the Giants in 1990. Davis mentioned how the ball may have been moved by a helicopter that was in the air and blowing the wind around.

Kenneth Davis, one of the great college football players. Apart of one of the best running back tandems in NFL history and from all accounts an even better person. Kenneth Davis, we remember you fondly.

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