The Buffalo Bills and New York State are apparently close to an agreement that would allow a limited number of fans in the stadium for the team’s first home playoff game in a generation. With COVID-19 protocols in place, the state Department of Health is evaluating a proposal from the team and it looks like it could actually happen.
“We would like to do it,” NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo said during a press conference in Albany. “It’s never been done before.”
The number of fans would be limited to 6700, roughly 10% of the capacity for Bills Stadium (formerly New Era Field, Ralph Wilson Stadium, and Rich Stadium). There would be streamlined entrance and exit systems in place, everyone entering would be in a testing protocol prior to the game, and there would be contact tracing following the game.
Bills Stadium is open air and fans will be spaced out and masked. With those three factors at play, there is a limited chance of one patron infecting another while they are in the seats. Bathrooms and other congregation points will need to be modified in some fashion to adhere to the coronavirus parameters.
We will have more on this breaking story as it develops.