Cullen’s Countdown: A Bills Fan Not In Buffalo

Jan 16, 2021; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills cornerback Taron Johnson (24) runs with the ball for a touchdown after making an interception against the Baltimore Ravens during the second half of an AFC Divisional Round playoff game at Bills Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

BY: CULLEN TONGE

The interception heard round the world was and still is incredible to watch. I watched it in the common area of my dorm at Liberty University, all by lonesome. Now you may call me a liar, but I am telling you the truth when I say that I knew Taron Johnson got a 101 pick-six before the play even happened on my television.

It’s true, I promise. Even though they say a magician never should reveal his tricks, I feel obligated to. I don’t have an antenna on my TV, so I watched a stream on some random website about two or three plays behind. When Johnson intercepted Lamar Jackson and ran it back, my phone started blowing up. I tried to ignore it, but I simply couldn’t. As I looked up after checking my notifications, Jackson was hiking the ball.

It was a play that will go down in Buffalo sports history, and I witnessed it after everyone else. The very definition of pain. Okay, not literally, but you know what I mean. The entire game, I was a bit behind everyone else who was watching it on national television, and putting it bluntly, it sucked. I couldn’t engage in conversations about specific plays, and I was afraid to go on my phone. 

I came back to Lynchburg for my last semester of college on Friday. If there was any way I could’ve been home to watch the game Saturday, believe me, I would’ve done it. Now I’m back, and the story will be the same after Sunday’s game against the Chiefs. 

Man, oh man, I wish I was home. It’s the biggest game of my lifetime. This is the first time the Bills are in the AFC Championship Game since 1994 (mind you, I was born in 2000), and I’ll be watching it by myself, most likely a few plays behind. I will try harder not to look at my phone, but it’s going to be very difficult.

Don’t worry, though. I will still be rocking my Bills shirt, with my Bills sweatshirt over that, with my Stefon Diggs jersey on over that, a Bills winter hat, and my Zubaz sunglasses. But it is going to be rough.

As I go on social media, I am seeing all the changes to the city being made. New street signs, cool pictures at city hall with the banners hanging. It is the atmosphere I have been waiting my whole life for as a Bills fan, and I get to experience it all by looking at my phone. Yes, technology is great, but I really wish I was there to see it in person.

I’m not trying to be sad because I know my future and getting my college degree is a lot more important than a Bills playoff game, but is it really? I mean, even my girlfriend watched the game Saturday night. She napped right beside me for every other game this season. That’s how crazy that game was. I’m not sure if she will watch on Sunday, but if we win, I can guarantee she will be watching the Super Bowl.

Right now, I am planning on coming home for Super Bowl Weekend. This may also be due to my birthday being the Wednesday before, but you can forget that aspect. I have a very strong feeling the Bills will be playing, and you can guarantee I will be in the City of Good Neighbors for it.

I want to ask you, faithful readers, for one thing. I want you to be thinking of me and all the other Bills fans who can’t be in Buffalo at the moment. My situation is probably better than others, but it still does suck not being surrounded by people who love the Bills just as much as I do when they are on the screen. Wish me luck as I attempt to not look at my phone during the game, and as always, Let’s Go, Bills!

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