December 7, 2003
Ralph Wilson Stadium (Capacity: 73,967)
Buffalo, NY
Buffalo Bills vs New York Jets
Final Score: 17 – 6
* The stadium was renamed Highmark Stadium
** Last Revisit: 2016
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My first visit to my beloved Buffalo Bills came on August 31, 1997 when Buffalo opened the season against Minnesota. The stadium was then known as Rich Stadium and I wanted to wait until after major renovations were completed in the late 90s to do an official review. It wasn’t until 2003 when I made it back and it came on a very cold, 25-degree day. The 4 PM start didn’t help matters with no sun, however the calm wind was beneficial. Since that game, I’ve been back to the stadium several times, the last coming in 2016. The franchise started in the AFL with a couple championships before that league merged with the NFL. Buffalo experienced its most successful period from 1988-1995 when many future Hall of Famers played on a team that won four straight AFC Championships and engineered the greatest comeback in NFL history against Houston in 1992. After the 1990s, the history has been un-remarkable with a lengthy playoff drought leading into 21st century. The Bills spent years at the Rockpile (War Memorial Stadium), before moving to the suburbs as Orchard Park became their home in 1973. Though Highmark Stadium is outdated, there is a college atmosphere both inside and out which makes for a great place to visit.
Prestige Ranking: 4.5 out of 5
Location
Orchard Park is a residential village south of downtown Buffalo, about a 20-minute drive away. The stadium is really the centerpiece of a quaint neighborhood as there is little else that brings people to town (though it is a nice area to live). Located close to the community college, the Bills’ stadium and adjoining parking lots are on the northwest side of town with just a few small sports bars nearby.
Location Ranking: 3 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
There are a couple ways to get to the stadium. Depending upon where you are coming from, most routes generally include the Thruway (I-90). Abbott Road is the goal as that brings fans to the stadium parking lots, of which there are plenty and obtaining a space is no problem. Nearby houses also offer up parking spaces on their lawns for cheaper prices and the lure of an easier out when leaving. Even with a team attempt at improving traffic organization and patterns, the small town roads still get jammed and traffic is inevitable, especially after the game as cars try to get back to Rt 219. Not to mention, the parking lots are chaotic to navigate.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 5 out of 8
Exterior
The outside of the stadium is interesting because the field is set way below the ground, so it doesn’t appear to be a massive or impressive complex. There really is not much attractive about the outside as the sidelines feature the back of the upper-deck seats and a pair of wall towers. Each end zone is mostly open, except for the back of the scoreboard. Aesthetics are poor as the background paint is black (no blue or red) and the Bills logos are overshadowed by New Era marketing.
Exterior Ranking: 3 out of 10
Concourse
Despite improvement to points of entry, fans should go into the stadium early as major jam-ups occur about 15-20 minutes before gametime. Gates are a ways before the stadium, so that leaves a lot of room to walk around the paved walkways at ground level. It is nice that you enter into the middle of the seating bowl, so not a lot of up and down walking is needed to reach your seat. Unobtrusive ramps and stairs lead up to the upper concourse, or down to the lower concourse. The top one only extends from sideline to sideline, while the bottom concourse circles the stadium. Both are cramped and enclosed with plenty of exposed concrete from the seating bowl, along with visible piping. But space has improved over the years and splashes of red paint help to add color. Recent renovations also enhanced bathrooms and added team store space, but make no mistake these concourses weren’t well designed for 70,000 people.
Concourse Ranking: 3 out of 5
Food
Food options have really improved as many of Buffalo’s unique delicacies can be found. Fans have the ability to enjoy a Beef on Weck or Duff’s Famous Wings, which are both synonymous with Buffalo. Dinosaur Bar-B-Que adds a regional flavor with items like pulled pork, ribs and chicken that are nationally acclaimed. The rest of the food selection has the usual stuff and beer could use some of that local flavor too. Though, it is nice to have Tim Horton’s coffee available.
Food Ranking: 6.5 out of 8
Interior
This is an intimate stadium that fits the fabric of Buffalo well and includes great sightlines. The completely enclosed facility features three main levels on the sideline with a club and suite section for the second level. At the ends, there is the lower deck and then the club level wraps around to regular individual seating. The seating bowl has a standard oval shape, with the exception of the upper deck on the sidelines which is a curved rectangular shape that wraps from goal line to goal line. Behind the seats on the ends are a pair of enclosed clubs. Though enough club and suite seating has allowed for Buffalo to remain with the times in terms of profit, it is hidden nicely here and the real fan enjoys many of the good seats. Seat colors are red, blue and white with uncomfortable bleachers for most of the upper-deck, These bleachers have blue backs to them and they also have a significant lack of leg room, likely making them the NFL’s most uncomfortable seats. Despite the complete enclosure, it is little protection from the poor weather and strong winds that frequent Western New York and there is no overhang either to help with the elements. There are plenty of inefficiencies here, but great sightlines and a rare throwback to a simple interior does well to represent the blue-collar nature of Buffalo.
Interior Ranking: 8 out of 14
Scoreboard
The largest widescreen videoboard is above the north end and even though it does the nice job you would expect of an NFL board, there was an issue as the number of timeouts were nowhere to be found. Also, this screen is reduced because about 1/5th of it goes to advertising during the game. Live video/replays, game stats and out-of-town scores are on the display during the run of play. Behind the other end zone are two corner videos, which are smaller and used for various tasks. In between them, is a ribbon board primary for advertising (team and sponsor).
Scoreboard Ranking: 3 out of 4
Displays
A nice touch that likely will go unnoticed by many are the rocks surrounding the outside of the stadium. This is done in tribute to the old War Memorial Stadium, better known as The Rockpile. The stadium highlight is the Wall of Fame, located on the white walls above each end section of seating. The names written in black are numerous and the honoring of each is taken very seriously. Recently added are the many great players that were Bills during the 1990s. This is Buffalo’s signature for displays, meaning there is a lot missing from the franchise’s storied (and tortured) past. Finding AFC championship honors are challenging and not enough is done to display team accomplishments. I’m surprised the renovation in 2014 did not do more in the Display department.
Displays Ranking: 1.5 out of 6
Cost
Team quality has led to prices among some of the lowest in the league, but that does not mean a game is affordable. This is the NFL we are talking about. Dynamic pricing is utilized and in 2016, five out of the eight games were marked as “Gold” or “Silver”. This means that the cheapest tickets range from $60 – $88, while the seats closer to midfield run over $100 (maxing out at $140 in the Gold Package). Parking prices are $25, though compared to the rest of the league, that ranks Buffalo in the lower third of parking fees. Concessions are expensive as a jumbo hot dog is $7, a beer is $9.50 and the Beef on Weck sandwich (with chips) is a pricy $13.
Cost Ranking: 5.5 out of 8
Fan Support
Fan support both locally and regionally is excellent and though there may not be a huge number of fans nationwide, transplants from Western New York help give the Bills support in road stadiums. Whenever I am out-of-town with my family, my wife is always astounded that we find a Bills fan. Even on distanced vacations, we’ll get a “Go Bills” and I hear a “there’s always one” from the peanut gallery. In the stadium, if the team is mediocre to good, you won’t find an empty seat. When the Bills are struggling, sellouts are not always a given as some weeks find the team struggling to sell the last thousand tickets or so. Regardless, the stadium looks full on a week-to-week basis and those crazy fans make for a terrific atmosphere.
Fan Support Ranking: 8 out of 8
Atmosphere
The fantastic atmosphere in Buffalo starts before heading inside. Tailgating is a pastime here and it starts a few days prior, making for a college-like feel. Though some fans tend to get too rowdy and drunk, the overall tailgating scene is impressive. Inside, crowd noise is awesome as it becomes a very loud and intimidating stadium. Fans are borderline obnoxious and the noise starts as soon as the game begins. Despite recent struggles, there is a distinct home field advantage due to both the fans and the weather. One great tradition is the playing of the Bills rendition of “Shout!” after each score.
Atmosphere Ranking: 14 out of 14
Other Stuff
Originally known as Rich Stadium, Buffalo’s home was one of the first examples of selling naming rights in sports. Ironically, Rich sounded like a person’s name, but it actually was in reference to Rich Products, a food distributor. After the deal expired, management then went with a name honoring the franchise’s only owner, Ralph Wilson. In 2016, it was back to naming-rights as New Era put their name on the stadium.….The field is 50 feet below ground level….The Bills indeed got their nickname from Buffalo Bill Cody as the entry was part of a name-the-team contest back in the early stages of professional football in the city…..The game I went to in ’16 against San Diego featured a power outage and there was no scoreboard for a quarter. I liked how they decided to play on and keep the time on the field.
Game (Initial Visit)
Buffalo controlled play for most of the time as they broke a three game losing streak. Travis Henry ran for a career high 169 yards as he carved up the Jets D. The defense was dominant as well with Sam Adams and his 2 sacks leading the way.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
