The tortured life of a Bills fan

It can’t be easy being a fan of the Buffalo Bills.

Buffalo fans eat, sleep and breathe football and they worship the ground that their Bills walk on and the field that they play on. Every Sunday, Buffalo fans flock to Ralph Wilson Stadium – or the local bar should it be an away game – and dish out whatever heart-felt support they can muster.

Yet the Bills organization has made it their personal trademark to bring up the hopes of their legions of followers only to come crashing down as only the Buffalo Bills can. And they do it time and time again.

Take a look at this past season for example, do the numbers four and oh ring any bells? What began as a season of such high hopes turned into a dismal 7-9 outing where the Bills found themselves winning only three of their last 12 games and finishing at the very bottom of the AFC East. But I thought this was supposed to be their year?

Even still, this is not the first time that 4-0 has turned into a disaster for Buffalo. Anyone remember those four Super Bowl appearances, yet zero championships to show for it? Oh, and in case anyone’s wondering, those were consecutive appearances. Talk about letting down your fans.

Now, I know what you’re going to say: They had to have been a good team to have made it to the Super Bowl four times in a row. And to an extent, you would be right. However, think about this question: Who would you rather be? Dan Marino or Trent Dilfer? You have Marino, who is arguably the greatest quarterback in NFL history; and you have Dilfer, whose accolades may not match those of Marino, but who owns one thing that Marino never will – a Super Bowl ring. So the question again is, who would you rather be?

If Scott Norwood could have just gotten that kick to go a little to the left, we wouldn’t be sitting here debating Marino versus Dilfer. Clearly, the answer is Marino… or is it?

For a club that has been in existence for just under half a century, it is a stinging blow to not have a single championship to show for themselves. Heck, in 49 seasons they have only gotten into the post-season a mere 17 times.

They boast a dismal 348-384-8 all-time record in regular season play, and an unflattering 14-15 record all-time in the playoffs. If that’s not mediocrity, then really, what is?

But still Buffalo fans continue to torture themselves in the hopes that next year things will be different. When exactly is that year coming? Someone please let me know. I’ll be waiting on the edge of my seat.