STEVE CHRISTIE
Outstanding Buffalo Bills Kicker
Steve Christie grew up in Oakville, Canada playing soccer and kicking footballs for Trafalgar High School and dreaming of becoming a professional athlete. He played for the Canadian Junior World Cup soccer team and qualified for a college scholarship at the College of William and Mary. He was an outstanding place-kicker and punter there for four years, setting records for most career points (279) and longest punt (69 yards) while earning Division 1-AA All-America honors as a punter and second-team All-America as a kicker in 1989.
Following his outstanding collegiate gridiron career, he was selected as a first-round draft choice of the Edmonton Eskimos of the CFL in 1990, but opted to sign a free-agent contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL instead.
Christie scored 163 points for the Bucs in 1990-91 and became an NFL free agent after two seasons, signing a free agent contract in 1992 with the Buffalo Bills. He went on to score 1108 points in 156 consecutive regular season and post-season games and still stands as the top scorer in Bills’ history. He scored 100 or more points in eight of his nine seasons in Buffalo and set the record for the longest successful field goal (59 yards) in Bills’ regular season play. His 54-yard FG against the Cowboys in January, 1994 set the Super Bowl record, which still stands today.
In his Bills’ career, Steve won games with a field goal in the final minute of regulation or in overtime 13 times. On nine of those occasions, his kick was the game’s final play. The most memorable kick would be his clutch 32-yard FG to propel the Bills to a thrilling 41-38 OT playoff win over the Houston Oilers in the greatest comeback game in NFL history.
Steve was honored numerous times during his Buffalo career. He was selected as the AFC “Special Teams Player of the Month” twice and was named AFC “Special Teams Player of the Week” seven times. He was honored as the Bills’ “Special Teams Player of the Year” four times by the Monday Quarterback Club.
Steve also made his mark in the WNY community. He was appointed in 1994 to the Board of Directors of the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society and helped raise thousands of dollars for Camp Good Days and Special Times.
Christie left the Bills after the 2000 season and went on to play for the NY Giants and San Diego Chargers before ending his 16-year career by retiring after the 2004 season.
The biographies contained on this website were written at the time of the honoree’s induction into the Hall of Fame. No attempt has been made to update these narratives to reflect more recent events, activities, or statistics.
