
New York State’s Only NFL Franchise Celebrates Major Birthday
If you went back in time about six decades and asked the average Buffalonian if they thought a new professional football team in an upstart professional football league would become a key and integral part of our city identity, they might have laughed at you. However, 65 years after Lamar Hunt recruited Ralph Wilson, Jr., who was then a minority owner of the Detroit Lions, the Buffalo Bills were born via a telegram with some of the most famous words in football history:
Count me in with Buffalo
-Ralph Wilson, Jr.
Founded on October 28, 1959, our beloved Buffalo Bills are now celebrating their 65th Anniversary in Buffalo, and generations of Bills fans are proud that the Wilson family decided to come to the other side of Lake Erie to join our community.
A lot has happened for the Bills and Buffalo over the last six and a half decades:
- The team is named after William Frederick Cody, also known as Buffalo Bill, a soldier, bison hunter, and showman,
- 20 different men have coached the team since the team's inaugural AFL season in 1960,
In 64 seasons, the team has achieved an all-time record of 492 wins, 522 losses, and eight ties, - The Bills won the final two AFL Championships, in 1964 and 1965, before the merger with the NFL,
- In 1960, the average cost of a bleacher ticket at War Memorial Stadium was $5. Today, that price averages between 110 and $180,
- The minimum player salary in the 1960s was around $10,000 per year, today that figure is begins at $795,000 for rookies, and $940,000 for players with 3 years in the league.
After 65 years, we love our hometown team more than ever. Happy Birthday, Bills.
Let's go, Buffalo!
Check Them Out: 25 Of The Most Die Hard Buffalo Bills Fans
Gallery Credit: Vinnie Martone
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