The Buffalo Bills are expecting so much buzz for their 2016 Week 2 regular season matchup with the New York Jets on Thursday Night Football - when they'll also be retiring Bruce Smith's No. 78 jersey at halftime - that they've created an entire new pricing tier for the event when it comes to individual game tickets.
The Bills have used a variable pricing model since the 2014 season, but 2016 will be the first year in which a "platinum" tier exists - and the only game in that tier is the home opener against the Jets. Tickets for that game will range between $55 (in the nosebleeds) to $152 (in the lower bowl, right behind the team benches).
"Gold," "Silver," and "Bronze" tiers remain in place, as well. "Gold" games, which feature ticket prices between $41-140, include games against the Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, New England Patriots, and Pittsburgh Steelers. The lone "Silver" game ($27-118) is a November 27 tilt against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The final two home games of the year, against the Cleveland Browns and Miami Dolphins, fall into the "Bronze" tier ($20-80), which is hilarious, because Dolphins.
Bills team president Russ Brandon announced on Wednesday that the Bills are already past the 55,000 mark in season ticket sales, putting them on pace to roughly equal their record sales marks from last year. This year is shaping up to be another year in which it'll be difficult to snag Bills tickets at regular pricing.