New York (WBEN) - "Bills Mafia" is well represented in New York City for the Buffalo Bills' season opener Monday night against the New York Jets.
WKBW-TV Sports Director, Matt Bové arrived in New York City over the weekend and saw people sporting Bills colors everywhere.
"We were at a Bills Backer bar Sunday in midtown Manhattan and there were dozens of Bills fans. As you walk around the city, you see Bills hats and Josh Allen jerseys everywhere," he said.
The Bills have the most prime time games possible on the schedule. They are also not getting the attention that they've received in recent years. Bové said make no mistake, they like being under the radar.
"They love it. They absolutely love it. And they will use anything they can as a little extra motivation. You can be sure that Sean McDermott and the rest of the coaching staff were showing all the clips of national media picking the Jets to win."
Bové admits it is definitely a different division. The competition has gotten tougher in the AFC East. But, he said, until someone can beat the Bills and knock them off the top of the division, it is still theirs.
"I always say it's a lot easier to be the hunter than the hunted. I think the Bills have struggled with that the last couple of years. They struggled adjusting to being the hunted, but now they get to go back to the role of the hunter."
This game on Monday night feels significantly bigger than last year's opener to Bové.
"A year ago it was against the defending Super Bowl champion Rams. Now it's New York City, Aaron Rodgers debut as a Jet, and on the anniversary of 9/11. As far as regular season games go, this is a big one," he said.
Still, regardless of what happens, win or lose, Bové said the Bills should not be planning a parade for the Super Bowl yet, and the sky is not falling. It's one game, even though it's a very, very big game.
"When you look at the scope of the entire season, teams start with a loss and end up bouncing back. The best chance the Bills have had at winning a Super Bowl, is the year they lost the 13 second game to Kansas City. They lost the opener at home that year, to the Steelers," he added.
Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m. ET at MetLife Stadium. Fans in Western New York will be able to watch the game live on Channel 7.
Related
