Josh Allen Shares Favorite Memory as Bills Prepare to Bid Farewell to Highmark Stadium Amid $2.1 Billion Project

What is your favorite memory at Highmark Stadium? For the Bills Mafia, watching their team’s highs and lows along with about 70,000 people in the stadium would be unforgettable. And those who followed the team back in the 90s would know that the Bills-Cardinals game, which Buffalo won (November 1990), 45-14, despite a mix of rain, sleet, snow, thunder, and lightning, is a core memory for many. But what about those who play there?

Well, the stadium’s ground was broken in 2023, and this will be the final season there. Farewell. It will be demolished, and the new venue, which is across the street, is scheduled to open in 2026. The $2.1 billion new Highmark Stadium project is set to transform fans’ experience and is the biggest public investment ever made in an NFL venue. That’s exciting, isn’t it? And so, when QB Josh Allen was asked about his favorite memory there, he stated: “I think it was when Nyheim Hines returned the kick in the playoffs. Was it the playoffs? No, it was week 17 or 18. It was the week after the Cincinnati Bengals-Damar Hamlin situation, Nyheim Hines returned.”

Here’s what had happened: The Bills faced the Bengals in Week 17 of the 2022 season. However, Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin collapsed and went into cardiac arrest. It happened when Cincinnati held a 7-3 lead over the Bills with less than six minutes left in the opening quarter. The league rightfully canceled the game, and the player was hospitalized.

But when the Bills returned for their Week 18 game against the Patriots, Hamlin was on their minds. Hence, they donned “3” jersey patches, and the “3” in each 30-yard line number on the field was outlined in the Bills Blue. It doesn’t stop there, though. Hines, who had been acquired in a midseason trade from the Colts, took the opening kickoff against the Patriots 96 yards for a touchdown. The player scored on a kickoff for the first time in his career. Allen had described that moment as “spiritual,” and in a way, it was. “Hamlin! Hamlin! Hamlin!” the fans chanted every time the Bills scored.

Later on, Hines also went on to add a second return touchdown from 101 yards in the third quarter after a Patriots field goal. Hamlin, who was watching the game from his room at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, could help but express his excitement. Back then, he took to X and wrote, “FREE HINES”. 

The Bills ended up winning that game 35-23. It was an emotional victory because the Bills were playing to honor their injured teammate. And while the player took downtime to recover, he returned the next season to face the Cardinals in Week 1. 

This history and the memories attached are what make the venue so important. The new stadium will feature 60,000 seats along with an expandable capacity. It will be an open-air design, which will include a canopy that covers about 65% of the seats. That could be somewhat helpful in shielding fans from the wind and snow, though the elements of nature are a big part of the experience for Bills Mafia. The field will be exposed and, like any modern NFL venue situated in cold climates, it will feature a heated playing surface.