Unbeaten Bills can’t crack the TV lineup
WRGB to carry Patriots-chiefs
There are three NFL games Sunday in the late afternoon (4-7:30 p.m.) window. Two of them will be available on Capital Region television.
You don’t need to tell local Buffalo Bills fans, who refer to themselves as the “Bills’ Mafia,” which of the three telecasts won’t be seen.
Local affiliate WRGB (CBS -6) will eschew the Bills’ clash against the Raiders in Las Vegas and instead broadcast the New England Patriots at Kansas City Chiefs.
“It’s a true bummer,” said Carmella Mantello, the Troy City Council president and a Bills’ fan for “40-some-odd years.”
WXXA (Fox-23) will air the Giants, who are always shown in this market, at 4:05 p.m. against the Los Angeles Rams. WRGB (CBS -6) has the 4:25 p.m. slot, and CBS is producing two games: Patriots-chiefs and BillsRaiders.
The network, which has the
final say in such matters, is sending Patriots-chiefs to nearly 90 percent of the country, including WRGB. The upstate New York markets of Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Binghamton and Elmira will get the Bills, as will most of Nevada and northern California, which are in Raiders’ territory.
“I can see nationally why people would want to see that (Patriots-chiefs) game,” said Andy Weise, a longtime Bills fan from Clifton Park. “I understand we live in a New York City market as far as the NFL goes, but it gets tiring knowing that the Bills are good this year, but they ’re still showing loyalty to the New York teams.”
The Bills are 3-0 and have averaged 31 points per game, highest in the American Football Conference, behind rising quarterback Josh Allen. The Giants and Jets both started the season 0-3.
Not since the season opener against the Jets have the Bills been available locally. Their Week 2 game against the Miami Dolphins (CBS) and Week 3 game against the Rams (Fox) both were overridden by Giants telecasts.
“Buffalo fans are used to getting the short end of the stick,” said Sara Stein, a Colonie resident and member of the Albany Bills Backers. “To have Josh Allen, (receiver) Stefan Diggs, to be 3-0, and to see that the Patriots still have priority is really disappointing.”
A WRGB spokesman, in response to an email,
merely said to “use our current listings” to see which game the station will carry. Those listings showed Bills-patriots earlier in the week but now list Patriots-chiefs. Local CBS stations are permitted to petition the network for a change, but not this late in the week.
Which NFL telecasts are sent to this market has always been contentious for Buffalo fans.
“I have lived in Albany long enough that I’m used to Buffalo coming fourth, compared to the Jets, Giants, Patriots and then the Bills,” Stein said. “It’s always frustrating to me, as a Buffalo native, particularly since the Bills are the only team that plays in New York. Since I moved to the Capital Region, I can watch every Buffalo Sabres (hockey) game, but somehow when it comes to football, the Bills are never prioritized. That’s upsetting to me.”
The Albany Bills Backers usually pack Mcgeary’s Pub downtown
whenever the Bills are playing for a watch party, but COVID -19 precautions have restricted those crowds.
“Last week when they played the Rams,” Weise said, “I happened to be at the golf course, and their restaurant was open, so I was able to watch most of the game there. These days, I don’t want to stay very long anywhere.”
The Bills-raiders game will be available to Directv customers who subscribe to “Sunday Ticket.” The game also will be available on radio in the northern part of the Capital Region on Glens Falls-based WMML (1230 AM/97.9 FM).
In Week 5, the Bills are scheduled to play the unbeaten Tennessee Titans at 1 p.m. Oct. 11 in Nashville, a CBS telecast that likely will be available on WRGB. The Jets’ game against Arizona that week will be a Fox telecast, and the Giants and Patriots both play at 4:25 p.m.
“The Bills have had
some tough years,” Mantello said. “I get it. They showed the Jets or the Giants or the Pats, having a huge fan base here, but, c’mon, we’re 3-0, and you’re not going to show Josh Allen, who’s super exciting to watch?”