Small Towners, South Beachers, and City Slickers- Fanbases of the AFC East

If there was ever a grab-bag of fan-bases in a division, this is it. From the beach-bums of South Beach to the small-town Buffalo fans, not to mention Bostonians and New Yorkers, quite an eclectic group of individuals.

AFC East

Buffalo Bills - The Bills are cut from the same small-town mold as the Packers, but the fanbase hasn't seen the same growth. While Bills fans could do a better job of filling the stadium from time to time, you can alwyays count on them to fill the parking lots for the most legendary tailgating in the league. The Bills fans take real pride in their small-market team (as I've seen through some passionate emails) and despite the team's lack of success historically, the fanbase has remained loyal, passionate and optimistic. A fanbase that takes the
kind of pride in their team that Bills fans do is impressive, especially considering the teams on-field performance hasn't been worthy of this level of support.

12/15

Miami Dolphins - Forgive the Dolphins fans if they decide to spend a little more time on South Beach during the down years than at the games. I suppose it is a little more understandable in Miami. The Dolphins seem to have more passionate fans outside of Miami, bit the local fans just don't seem to live and die by the franchise. Some stadium renovations, an exciting new offense, and a push from local celebs like D-Wade, the Williams sisters, and Marc Anthony have started to make the Dolphins games hip and trendy again, but isn't that kind of the problem?

7/15

New England Patriots- ELIMINATED - Pats fans pack the stadium consistently and have done a decent job of following their team on the road during the last decade. But, Boston belongs to the Red Sox and the Celtics when they are winning, and a look at the pre-Brady era numbers prove it. It will be interesting to see if the Pats fans stay as passionately on board when things start to go in the other direction one day. If they do, they'll hold a place among the NFKL's elite fans. Until then, questions remain.

8/15

New York Jets - The Jets fans are a little rowdier, a little more tortured, and a little more rabid than the Giants fans. Historically the "little brother" franchise in the city, they've been the more vocal group since Joe Willie's arrival. You just get the sense that they take the losses a little harder than the other New York fans, perhaps because they haven't spent as much time on top of the mountain, but you have to respect the fans that wear it on their sleeve.

11/15