Bills Made Wrong Decision Excluding O.J. Simpson From New Highmark Stadium

Simpson is a notable figure in the franchise's history but will not be featured alongside other team legends at the new stadium.

Buffalo Bills running back (32) O.J. Simpson during pre-game introductions prior to a game against the Miami Dolphins at War Memorial Stadium. | Tony Tomsic-Imagn Images

The Buffalo Bills are taking it upon themselves to erase history, as the organization has decided to exclude controversial former star O.J. Simpson’s name from its family circle and legends section at the new Highmark Stadium.

And that’s the wrong choice.

“We have made the organizational decision that he is not a good fit for the new stadium and family circle,” Bills president of business operations/COO Pete Guelli said toThe Buffalo News.

While it’s understandable that the team would have reservations about including Simpson’s name in such a family-friendly section of the stadium, he remains a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and is one of the greatest players in Bills history. Right or wrong, there are fans of the team who still consider Simpson their favorite player.

It would not have been right to feature Simpson at the new stadium without additional context as to his past transgressions, which include convictions for armed robbery, kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon, for which he spent nine years in prison, and a civil judgement that found him liable for the wrongful deaths of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Goldman, in 1994.

Instead, in an effort to preserve the history of the franchise --the good and bad -- the Bills should have settled on an alternative that would have offered appropriate perspective to those visiting the section. Now, with the decision having been made, the erasure of yesteryear has been ensured. Whether the fans like it or not.

If the Bills felt so strongly about leaving Simpson out, why didn't the team take his name off of the Wall of Fame at the old Highmark Stadium? Has something changed over the past few years that I'm unaware of that would have sparked such a decision?

It just doesn't add up.

Examining Simpson’s career with the Bills

Buffalo Bills running back O.J. Simpson. (Jim Sheehan, undated)O J Simpson | Jim Sheehan, Staff photo

Over nine seasons with the Bills, Simpson played in 112 games, totaling 10,183 rushing yards and 57 touchdowns, which earned him induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. During his time in Buffalo, Simpson was honored as a first-team All-Pro on five occasions and was named league MVP in 1973.

During his MVP campaign, Simpson averaged 143.1 rushing yards per game while surpassing the 2,000-yard mark, becoming the first NFL running back to do so. He also finished with 12 touchdowns, the second-most in a single season in his career.

He is second on the Bills’ all-time list of leading rushers, behind fellow Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas, who totaled 11,938 rushing yards and 65 rushing touchdowns during his own prolific career. Simpson retired after the 1979 season, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985 and passed away in 2024 at the age of 76.

While he may not be remembered fondly by the organization or a portion of the fan base, when telling the story of the Buffalo Bills, which is the purpose of the family circle and legends section, you simply cannot leave out the name O.J. Simpson. Still, the Bills have decided their fan base is incapable of separating a player's on-field accomplishments with his off-field misdeeds, thus insulting the intelligence of the team's loyal following.

And that's a mistake.