The 2004 Buffalo Bills season was their 45th in the National Football League. The team improved upon their previous season's output of 6–10, finishing 9–7. However, this was the fifth straight season in which the team missed the playoffs. According to Football Outsiders, who has tracked every play in the NFL since the early 1990s, the 2004 Bills are statistically the best NFL team (in their record-keeping history) to have failed to qualify for the playoffs. The Bills set an NFL record by returning six kickoffs for touchdowns in 2004.