Our thoughts to Buffalo Bills fans who lose “superfan” Pancho Billa
By Brian Miller
The AFC East has always been a place of heated rivals but today we all mourn the loss of Buffalo Bills superfan, Pancho Billa.
On Tuesday, Bills nation and the rest of the AFC East learned of Ezra Castro’s, Pancho Billa, passing at the age of 39 after a battle with cancer. Today, fans all over the NFL are offering their condolences.
On social media platform Twitter, fans of all three other AFC East teams have been expressing their prayers to his family and friends as well as Bills Mafia, the rabid Buffalo Bills fanbase that is known for jumping onto card tables from atop trucks and many other things.
Bills fans are vowing to keep his memory alive and the Bills are likely to do the same. Shortly after his passing, the Bills general manager received a call from Castro’s partner informing him of the news. According to a news report, he was expecting the call.
Castro was a Texas native who developed the personality of Pancho Billa and became a pivotal part of the Bills Mafia. It’s not often that we recognize what other teams in the AFC do, or for that matter the NFL but sometimes, you have to tip your hat and say thank you.
Castro’s vibrant personality and commitment to his team is not unlike former Dolphins superfan Dolphin Denny or Chris Barker. The Bills Mafia is similar to the Miami Dolphins fan club, DolfansNYC and Dolphin Bandits.
As thoughts and prayers continue to pour in from around the league’s fans on Twitter, we wanted to take a moment to send our regards to Bills nation and the Buffalo Bills themselves. Of course to Castro’s family and friends as well.
Despite the differences and loathing we as fans have for our division rivals, we tend to respect the fans who go all-in. Castro went all in.