BY DAN GEYER, CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The Buffalo Bills: the only NFL team that plays in New York State
No, the New York Giants and the New York Jets don’t count. They play in New Jersey.
Bills fans have seen it all: Wide Right, the Comeback (known to now Tennessee Titans fans as the choke, or 35-3), Music City Miracle – Oh! And let’s add a 17-year playoff drought to the mix – and, most recently, unfortunately, 13 seconds (thanks Kansas City).
Despite all of the ups and downs, there is one thing that hasn’t changed: the constant support that Bills fans give their team.
Regardless of where the game is, you can rest assured that Bills fans will be there. Most recently, the Bills took on the defending Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams, and most of the stadium was full of Bills fans. Bills fans are everywhere – LA, Denver, Miami, etc.
As a Bills fan myself, some of the notable fans include “Pinto Ron” Johnson, known for his crazy tailgate shenanigans and love for the Bills. From 1994 to the beginning of the 2020 season, Pinto Ron had made 426-consecutive Buffalo Bills games both at home and on the road – even the 2015 London game. Unfortunately, COVID-19 ended his streak when fans were prohibited from attending games.
One significant and loyal fan was Ezra Castro, known as “Pancho Billa.” Ezra was a passionate Bills fan from Dallas who worked as a funeral director. Despite battling Stage-four pancreatic cancer, Castro, in his Bills attire and luchador mask, announced the team’s third round pick at the 2018 draft and called in the Bills 2019 draft pick of Ed Oliver. Castro passed away in 2019, but his legacy lives on.
Others include John Lang, known as “Bills Elvis,” who is always in the end zone with his guitar sign.
Don’t get me wrong – everyone criticizes our fanbase, the “Bills Mafia,” due to our outrageous tailgate antics. We throw ourselves through folding tables, sometimes flaming tables. Despite the criticisms, the Bills Mafia has begun to become more generous and has donated to charities.
In 2017, after Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd caught Andy Dalton’s game-winning touchdown pass that sent Buffalo into the playoffs, Bills fans began donating to Dalton’s foundation, in symbolic $17 amounts. Dalton would then repay the favor in 2018 by donating to Roswell Park.
In 2020, after hearing about the passing of Josh Allen’s grandmother the night before a game against Seattle, Bills Mafia began donating increments of $17 to Oishei Children’s Hospital, a hospital that Allen has visited countless times. By the end of 2020, over $1.1 million has been raised, and, as a result, a wing in the hospital bears the name of Josh Allen’s grandmother.
Bills fans also donated to Lamar Jackson’s fund after he was hurt in the divisional round game against Buffalo, to Tre’davious White’s food bank after he tore his ACL in the Thanksgiving game and, most recently, to Dawson Knox’s foundation after the unfortunate passing of his brother, Luke.
Say what you want about the Buffalo Bills fan base. The fact of the matter is that we love our team. We don’t just drink and throw ourselves through tables at the pregame tailgate, but we also donate to worthy causes and charities.
The Bills will always be my team so… Go Bills!
geyerd18@bonaventure.edu
