You know those wild videos of Buffalo Bills fans taking over beachfront dive bars every time their team visits the Miami Dolphins?
The crowds will likely be considerably thinner this time around.
Buffalo Bills Fans Not Flying South for Summer?
Ticket prices on the secondary market for Thursday night’s AFC East battle are shockingly low.
The cheapest get-in on StubHub as of Tuesday morning was an even $100 — significantly cheaper than when these teams met here in a de facto division championship game last January.
That strongly suggests that the out-of-town visitors who jack up the prices for the biggest home Dolphins games aren’t flocking south.
It’s a sense of pride for #BillsMafia to take over large chunks of away stadiums, and Miami has been their No. 1 destination in recent years.
And who can blame them? Have you been to Western New York in the winter?
So why the change this time around?
Certainly, the calendar hurts. Not only is this the first road game of a long season, but it’s on a Thursday night. To fly down for the game, it means taking at least two days off of work. Sunday games are a lighter logistical lift.
But maybe there’s something else at play.
Remember back in 2022, when the Dolphins beat the Bills 21-19 in Week 3?
The game-time temperature was a sweaty 89 degrees with a heat index far higher thanks to the 63% humidity.
The Bills and their supporters cooked on that unshaded visiting sideline. Some Bills fans even ludicrously suggested it was an OSHA violation to make their team play in that heat.
Perhaps they vowed that day to never come to Miami in September again after three straight years of temps in the high-80s/low-90s for Bills-Dolphins.
Even in primetime, it’s going to be gross Thursday night. The expected heat index at kickoff is 94 degrees.
Whatever the reason, expect to see less blue and red in the stands than last go-round.