Bills Central

Why Mr. Brightside has taken over Highmark Stadium this season

A 2003 song by The Killers has become the new anthem for the Buffalo Bills this season

Kevin Siracuse

An inside look at Highmark Stadium Sunday as the Bills were about to secure the win against the Patriots
An inside look at Highmark Stadium Sunday as the Bills were about to secure the win against the Patriots / Kevin Siracuse
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When you go to Buffalo Bills games at Highmark Stadium, you can expect to sing the Shout Song multiple times throughout the day and night. While that song has still been sung quite often this season, especially since the Bills have the second-best scoring offense in the NFL, it has surprisingly taken a backseat role.

The most popular song right now for Bills Mafia is "Mr. Brightside" by The Killers. When that song comes on late in either the third or fourth quarter, you know the Bills are about to secure a win. But why that song? Other than being a catchy tune, what is it about that song that sends Highmark Stadium into such a frenzy?

It started this past summer, when Bills TE Dawson Knox married Buffalo native and UB graduate, Alexandra Seefeldt in Nashville, Tennessee after a six-month engagement. Days later, a video surfaced of some of Knox's current and former teammates jamming out to Mr. Brightside at the wedding, including QB Josh Allen, C Connor McGovern and LT Dion Dawkins.

And just like that, the song started to gain traction within Bills Mafia. Fast forward to the regular season, and the Bills have been playing the song during the second half of every home game. The most famous clip that surfaced was from September 24, when the Bills were beating the Jacksonville Jaguars by four touchdowns on Monday Night Football. The early 2000s song came on during a commercial timeout, and Knox and fellow TE Dalton Kincaid led a two minute sing-along as the offense took the field and the stadium rocked out.

Luckily, Buffalo has been doing a lot of winning at home lately, so they can continue on with this new tradition. Excluding the playoffs, the Bills are 7-0 at home this season and haven't lost since November 13, 2023 (Denver).

Although their most recent home game against the Patriots came down to the wire, there was still enough time to fire up the new anthem late in the fourth quarter, giving tens of thousands of fans a great reason to move around and warm up as temperatures dropped to single digits.

Fans will have one more chance to hear the hit song this regular season on Sunday afternoon, as the (12-3) Bills host the (4-11) Jets at 1 pm EST. If the Bills can in fact get their thirteenth win of 2024, they will finish a perfect 8-0 at home this season, something they haven't accomplished since 1990.

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Kevin Siracuse
KEVIN SIRACUSE

Kevin has spent several years working in digital media, TV and radio. Aside from creating Bills content, he works as a play-by-play announcer, a color commentator and a public address announcer for local high school and college sports. You can find all of his Bills takes and analysis on Twitter @kevin_siracuse!