Bills plan to have only vaccinated fans at home games in 2021

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Cole Beasley may want to ignore this bit of news. 

Back in April, the NFL's Bills and NHL's Buffalo Sabres announced their intentions to fill venues to capacities for home games later this year but only to patrons fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

According to Sandra Tan of the Buffalo News, Erie County is not on board with New York State's revised plan to allow football stadiums to fill at 100% capacity with zero restrictions related to the coronavirus. A spokesperson for County Executive Mark Poloncarz says there is currently no change to the Bills' policy for fan attendance regardless of what the state has announced or will declare. 

"With well over two months to go until the opening game, it seems reasonable that there should be enough vaccinated people by that time to have a 100% vaccinated attendance," spokesman Peter Anderson explained.  

Per Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo previously said Erie County can't enforce a vaccine requirement to attend events at Highmark Stadium even though the county owns the venue. Poloncarz challenged that in the past and, seemingly, intends to do so into the summer months. 

Beasley, meanwhile, recently hit out at the NFL and NFL Players Association for COVID-19 health and safety protocols unvaccinated players and other personnel will have to follow throughout the rest of the league year that ends next March.