Buffalo Bills' all-time Mount Rushmore: 4 best players in franchise history
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Buffalo Bills became the seventh franchise to join the AFL in 1959 before the league merged with the NFL in 1970 and are, to-date, the only team in the league to appear in four consecutive Super Bowls.
Despite reaching what some might consider the peak of success in the early 1990s with four straight appearances, head coach Marv Levy and the dynamic Bills were never able to take home the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
Still, the Bills dominated the AFC East in the late 1980s and early 1990s, having won five division titles in six years -- an era that current head coach Sean McDermott is hoping to recreate with quarterback Josh Allen
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}But who would make a Mount Rushmore of Bills players? Take a look at the list below.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}JIM KELLY
Jim Kelly was the best QB in team history. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
Jim Kelly is arguably the best quarterback the Bills have ever had (sorry Josh) as he was force behind every Super Bowl appearance.
The Pennsylvania native was selected in the first round of the 1983 draft by the Bills -- a team he had explicitly said he had no desire in playing for simply because of the cold weather. After contract negotiations fell through, Kelly played a short stint in the United States Football League before returning to the Bills in 1986.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The five-time Pro Bowler threw for 13,512 yards with 98 touchdowns in the years Buffalo made it to the Super Bowl and his 35,467 yards and 237 touchdowns are both the most in franchise history.
He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002 and his No. 12 has been retired by the Bills.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}BRUCE SMITH
Bruce Smith is one of the top pass-rushers in history. (Photo by David Madison/Getty Images)
Bruce Smith was a part of the Levy dream team that saw the Bills reach four Super Bowls.
Arguably one of the best defensive ends in NFL history, the Virginia Tech star was selected first overall in the 1985 draft by the Bills.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In his 15 seasons with the Bills, Smith was an 11-time Pro Bowler and had eight First-team All-Pro selections in addition to being named NFL Defensive Player of the Year twice.
To this day, he still is the NFL’s All-time sack leader with 200. He became a Hall of Famer in 2009.
O.J. SIMPSON
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}1978: Buffalo Bills' running back O.J. Simpson #32 runs during a game. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
Regardless of the controversy that surrounded O.J. Simpson after his career, his time spent in the NFL makes him the greatest runningback the Bills have ever seen.
After winning just one game in the 1968 season, the Bills were desperate for change and that meant using the No. 1 draft pick to select Simpson out of the University of Southern California.
In his nine seasons with the Bills, Simpson was named to six Pro Bowls and five All-Pro selections. He wowed in 1973 when he became the first player to rush for over 2,000 in a season. He was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1985.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}ANDRE REED
Andre Reed #83 of the Buffalo Bills runs with the ball after a catch against the Dallas Cowboys during Super Bowl XXVII at the Georgia Dome January 30, 1994 in Atlanta, Georgia. The Cowboys won the Super Bowl 30-13. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
The Bills are not shy of Hall of Famers.
A late-round draft pick, Andre Reed played for the Bills from 1985 to 1999 where he was named to seven Pro Bowls and still maintains the franchise record for catches (941), yards (13,095) and touchdowns (86).
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Reed started out strong his rookie season but would go to become the team’s leading wide receiver for seven seasons straight beginning in 1988.