It took four tries and came on the sixth Sunday of the season but the Buffalo Bills earned their first win in front of home fans on this date in 1960 besting the Oakland Raiders 38-9.
The Bills' offense jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the second quarter on the arm of QB Johnny Green (pictured above as number 18, sitting just behind head coach Buster Ramsey). Two of his three early TD passes were to Wray Carlton (38 and 23 yards) and Green's third scoring throw was a 55-yarder to Elbert "Golden Wheels" Dubenion. After the Raiders scored on a one yard TD plunge Green capped of the first half scoring by throwing another touchdown pass to Carlton. Green also scored Buffalo's final touchdown on a two yard run.
Green's stat line for the day wasn't awesome in any other category, he went 14 of 32 for 243 yards and threw two picks, but five touchdowns was pretty awesome.
Green's four TD passes in a single game wouldn't be matched until Daryle Lamonica and Jack Kemp combined for four in 1966 and no Bills QB would throw four by himself until Dennis Shaw during garbage time in 1971. It wasn't until 1979 that Green's record would be broken by Joe Ferguson's five touchdown passes against the Jets. Green, Cookie Gilchrist, Ferguson, Rob Johnson, and Jim Kelly are the only players in Buffalo Bills history to score five touchdowns in a single game.
The Bills defense was sound on the day forcing five turnovers, including two picks by Archie Matsos, and holding the Raiders to just 219 total yards.
Due to steady rain, only 8876 people saw the game in the stadium says the Buffalo News.
The team would finish 5-8-1, including a 20-7 loss to the Raiders in Oakland, sixth in the AFL. Green's five touchdowns were more than a quarter of the team's 19 total trips to the end zone on the season though the QB finished the year with a 39% completion percentage.