ORCHARD PARK, New York (Ticker) -- They came to see Bruce Smith rush the passer. Instead, they watched Travis Henry run over the Washington Redskins.
Henry rushed for a career-high 167 yards and two touchdowns to help spoil Smith's return to Buffalo, leading the Bills to a 24-7 victory over the Redskins.
One of the game's great defensive ends, Smith spent 15 seasons with the Bills and entered the contest two sacks shy of breaking Reggie White's all-time record 198.
"It was certainly an emotional experience from me, coming back and seeing so many fans yelling and chanting and saying polite words," Smith said. "It certainly was a memorable experience for me. It was an honor to be back in this stadium, it was a great treat for me."
Smith was held without a sack even though he applied plenty of pressure against Bills quarterback Drew Bledsoe. But while Smith was getting up field, Henry was running around him.
Henry gave a huge boost to the NFL's worst-ranked rush offense that entered the game averaging just 57.5 yards per contest. He carried 31 times, including scoring runs of four yards in the second quarter and 14 yards in the fourth.
"It's been a long time coming for us," Henry said. "We came out, played with a sense of urgency. The offensive line blocked great and we ran the ball really well."
Sparked by their running game, the Bills held a lopsided 432-169 advantage in total yards. They also had 25 first downs, compared to eight for the Redskins.
"We finally got it going in all three phases, we played hard, guys enjoyed playing," Bills coach Gregg Williams said.
Bledsoe also passed for a touchdown for the Bills (4-3), who had lost three of their last four games.
Patrick Ramsey completed just 9-of-26 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown for Washington (3-4), which dropped its third straight game. Ramsey also left the contest in the fourth quarter with a bruised right hand.
Redskins coach Steve Spurrier was disappointed with his team.
"We have to regroup and find out who really wants to play," Spurrier said. "I don't know how much fight we had today. I thought we were going to do, but obviously we didn't have the fight the whole game."
Ranked 30th in the NFL in total offense and coming off last week's 30-3 loss at the New York Jets, the Bills got their offense going against the Redskins.
On the game's opening possession, Bledsoe directed an 11-play, 68-yard drive. The march featured Bledsoe going 3-of-3 for 39 yards and Henry carrying seven times for 27 yards.
But the drive stalled at the Redskins 2 and Rian Lindell kicked a 20-yard field goal.
After the Redskins failed to move the ball on their first two possessions, Henry capped a six-play, 59-yard drive with a four-yard TD run 1:17 into the second quarter to give the Bills a 10-0 advantage.
On the ensuing possession, it looked like the Redskins would get on the board when they reached the Bills 1. But Ramsey fumbled a snap and strong safety Lawyer Milloy recovered for the Bills.
"I was reversing the ball off and something hit the ball," Ramsey said. "I don't know what happened."
The Bills dominated the entire first half, holding a 240-76 advantage in total yards while amassing 15 first downs, compared to just two for Washington.
Henry carried 18 times for 86 yards in the first half. He had failed to rush for at least 86 yards in his previous five games. On their ensuing possession of the third quarter, the Redskins matched their yardage total from the opening half by going 76 yards in 12 plays.
Seldom-used Chad Morton started the drive with four straight runs for 22 yards. Morton finished as the Redskins' leading rusher with 32 yards on seven carries.
Trung Candidate missed the game with a sprained ankle and Ladell Betts suffered an apparent forearm injury in the first half.
Ramsey capped the Redskins' best drive of the day with a 25-yard touchdown pass to Rod Gardner with 9:12 left in the quarter, cutting the Bills' lead to 10-7.
Gardner and Laveranues Coles both were contained by the Bills' secondary. Gardner had just two catches for 28 yards and Coles three for 58.
But the Bills quickly recaptured the momentum, going 80 yards in six plays. Henry had runs of 13 and 21 yards and Bledsoe a 25-yard completion to tight end Ryan Neufeld to the Redskins 10.
On the next play, Bledsoe found Josh Reed in the right flat for a 10-yard touchdown, giving the Bills a 17-7 lead with 5:36 left in the third quarter.
Bledsoe finished 19-of-26 for 244 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Reed was his favorite target as he caught eight passes for 109 yards.
Bledsoe once again was without star receiver Eric Moulds, who missed his second straight game with a groin injury.
Henry capped an eight-play, 62-yard drive with a 14-yard TD run 4:26 into the fourth quarter, giving the Bills the final margin.
"You've got to keep going, keep doing the same thing," Bledsoe said. (Offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride) put us in some great schemes. We had some advantages in the running game."
After Ramsey was knocked out of the game with just over nine minutes left, former Bill Rob Johnson went the rest of the way at quarterback. He was loudly booed by the crowd at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
