Bills fans euphoric with Super Bowl within shouting distance

And, just like Steve Tasker warned us when it was clear the Bills would host a playoff game, it was chilly.

No matter. Fans pulled up to the front of City Hall in droves Sunday, still euphoric over the Bills' victory over the Baltimore Ravens the night before. They snapped photos of themselves in front of the massive Bills banners draped in front of the building.

And they took a moment on a blustery, 37-degree day to revel in this fact: The Bills are headed to the AFC Championship game for the first time since the 1993-94 season.

"It feels really good, it kind of feels like waking up from a dream," said Stu Blodgett, a Batavia resident.

The last time the Bills won an AFC championship, he was only a couple of weeks old.

Jessica Wheeler was also somewhat in disbelief.

"It was wild," she said of the Bills' 17-3 win. "I feel on top of the world. It's the best feeling ever."

Nick Shull was watching the game at home when Taron Johnson intercepted a pass from Ravens' quarterback Lamar Jackson in the end zone and ran it back for a 101-yard touchdown. His neighbors in Depew probably know the rest.

"I was screaming, I lost my voice within 30 seconds," he said. "I literally opened my window to go and yell some more. I haven't screamed like that since '94, easily. It's been a long time."

The Shulls

Shull and his wife, Jennifer, and their daughter, Juliana, 8, were decked out in Bills gear at City Hall.

"Our oldest is now 14, so he's kind of experiencing the same thing I was when I was that age, which is super cool," Shull said.

Bills fans riding the playoff wave were sharing generational moments such as these. There are the fans who remember the run of four straight Super Bowls, ending in 1994, and those who have only heard stories about those days. Now, they are making new memories of playoff success together.

Pat Farley of Buffalo remembers the glory days well, but she is no less ecstatic about the current team. Outside City Hall in her Bills mask, she mentioned how her mother, herself a huge Bills fan, used to work on the building's cleaning staff.

"One time, we took her to lunch at Pearl Street and Jim Kelly walked in," Farley said, referring to the quarterback of those Super Bowl teams. "We begged him to come over and say hello to her. And he came over and signed her napkin. And she was on cloud nine!"

Michelle Fisher, 34, came to get photos of the banners with her father, Al Bluemle, 60, and her son, Ford, 2. Three generations of Bills fans celebrating.

"I woke up so early just to look at everything on Twitter and Instagram," Fisher said. "I can't even believe it's real."

While her father has strong memories of the Super Bowl era teams, Fisher has watched the team break through after years of mediocrity.

"It's cool to get messages and calls and texts from my friends out of state that know what a big deal this is for us," she said.

Hannah Croft and her fiance, Josh Fose, stayed in a downtown hotel Saturday night. They had pent-up energy after the game and went for a walk. They ended up near the "Josh Allentown" banner in Allentown, where fans were celebrating.

"It was insane," Croft said. "We just kept looking at each other saying, 'We can't believe this is happening.' " 

Fose, home on break from his service in the Army, called the atmosphere "electric." They watched a fan drag a table into the intersection and leap through it, mimicking a ritual of tailgating parties.

Croft was still riding high on Sunday: "Nothing can bring me down this week."

On Twitter, expat Bills fans, elected officials and national media figures seized the moment.

National sports talk show host Jim Rome asked: "How you living, Bills Mafia?!?!"

How you living’, Bills Mafia?!?!

— Jim Rome (@jimrome) January 17, 2021

Steve Levy, of ESPN's "Monday Night Football," declared after Johnson's game-altering touchdown: "No disrespect to any other NFL city/stadium but if I could only pick one moment for one stadium to be full, that was it, Buffalo..."

No disrespect to any other NFL city/stadium but if I could only pick one moment for one stadium to be full, that was it, Buffalo...

— Steve Levy (@espnSteveLevy) January 17, 2021

CNN's Wolf Blitzer, a Kenmore West High School graduate, proudly wore his Bills hat. Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul had her feet up, watching the game with La Nova pizza close at hand. County Executive Mark Poloncarz even praised those two shirtless fans shown near the end of the game for wearing their masks.

Back at City Hall, fans contemplated the Bills' chances. The AFC Championship game is one step away from the Super Bowl.

"They're the best team in the league," Shull said. "And I'm not just saying that being a Bills fan. They legitimately have a shot. Best team I've seen in obviously forever. It's Super Bowl or bust."

Fisher took a more measured view.

"I obviously want to go all the way, but I'm just so proud of them and I'm just so excited that this is the future of this team," she said. "And I love this team, I  feel like I know them."

Wheeler wasn't about to jinx anything.

"I feel like they have unlimited potential at this point and I'll be ..." Wheeler said, suddenly stopping herself. "I won't say it, actually."

But even with her face obscured by a mask, her lit-up expression said the rest.