Former Buffalo Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick will be the Legend of the Game for Buffalo's Divisional Round game on Sunday evening against the Baltimore Ravens.
"I'm really excited about the opportunity," Fitzpatrick said. "I love the fan base in Buffalo, and it's a place where I've always felt like I've been at home… I loved Kyle Williams, seeing him with all his family doing it last week, and I can't wait for the opportunity this week to get everybody fired up."
Fitzpatrick said that through his four years in Buffalo and after, he has always had a deep appreciation for Bills Mafia for embracing him.
"I've always had a deep understanding and appreciation of what it meant to be part of Bills Mafia, and I think they have embraced me for my playing style and personality and for me just being myself," Fitzpatrick said. "We lived in the Southtowns, so we had great neighbors, and have always just felt a deep connection to Buffalo."
Fitzpatrick signed with the Bills as a free agent prior to the 2009 season and played four seasons for the Bills. During his time in Buffalo, he threw for 11,654 yards and 80 touchdown passes.
Fitzpatrick said that one of his most fond memories of playing for the Bills was the start of the 2011 season when the Bills beat the Patriots at home in Week 3, 34-31.
"When I think about Buffalo and my memories on the field there that game specifically, and just the way that the fans were able to embrace us, even though at that point, there had been a long drought in the playoffs shows how die hard they really are," Fitzpatrick said.
Fitzpatrick said that he is excited about this matchup against the Ravens, adding that this game will come down to third downs and fourth downs in the red zone.
"Everybody's calling it the MVP bowl, but we got a chance to see the Ravens last week for Thursday night football against the Steelers and they're a really good football team," Fitzpatrick said. "They're playing their best football right now. Their defense is playing better than they have all season… Both teams have done such a great job, not just of scoring this year, but they have the ability to go on those 10, 12-play drives where they're eating up clock as well… I don't think we're going to see a whole lot of punting, not because there won't be any stops, but because I think they're going to be going for it quite a bit on fourth down once both teams pass midfield."
Fitzpatrick said that it has been really fun to watch the 2024 version of the Buffalo Bills and said that their performance speaks to the greatness of Josh Allen and the chemistry this team has.
"There was a lot of questions heading into the year about leadership with all the captains that left and obviously about the offense with the weapons that they lost, especially in that receiver room," Fitzpatrick said. "I think this year and the way that the team has played, it speaks to the greatness of Josh Allen, and it also speaks to the fact that team chemistry really matters. These guys play for each other. They care for each other, and they make it really easy to root for them on Sundays, because I think this Bills team plays the game the right way."
Since retiring from the NFL, Fitzpatrick has been a featured pre and postgame analyst for Amazon Prime's Thursday Night Football. He said that this role has helped him transition out of football because he is still part of a team and he still gets to be around football.
"Still to be involved in the game, to be able to go to games and see all of my friends and colleagues and the people that I had grown relationships with over the last 17 years helped me ease out of playing football and having the post-career that I've had."
He is also happy with his role because it gives him more time to be a dad and spend time with his family.
"Been involved in a lot more carpools in the last three years than I was during football season and those other 17, but that part of it's been awesome," Fitzpatrick said. "I've really enjoyed getting to spend more time with my kids and family, especially during football season, and still having a toe in the water, still being able to be a part of the NFL and everything great that comes with that."
Fitzpatrick will join Bills Mafia in rooting on the Bills as they take on the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday at 6:30 p.m.
