Cross-Border Completion

Ahead of the Buffalo Bills’ home opener, Mosaic helped the team kick off the season by quite literally connecting with its Canadian fan base: completing a pass across the Canada-U.S. border.

For Cross-Border Completion, former Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick reunited with former receiver Stevie Johnson at Niagara Falls, with the pair boarding separate, fully Bills-branded Niagara City Cruises boats. With Fitzpatrick positioned on the U.S. side of the border and Johnson on the Canadian side, the former teammates completed an approximately 50-yard pass between the two boats.

The stunt celebrated the team’s large Canadian fan base, with footage of the historic catch featured during the broadcast of the Bills’ home opener.

The idea builds on a simple truth about the Bills: the team’s fan base doesn’t stop at the border. Ontarians are estimated to account for 20% of attendees at Highmark Stadium on any given game day, and Mosaic’s Canadian work for the team has focused on recognizing that existing fandom and meeting fans where they already show up. Cross Border Completion turned the geography that separates Canadian and U.S. Bills fans into an opportunity to connect them.

The Bills turned the stunt into a social film, while Amazon Prime created its own cut and featured Fitzpatrick and Johnson discussing the activation during its Thursday Night Football pregame coverage. It has since travelled well beyond Bills channels, with pickup and shares from TMZ, House of Highlights, Barstool, the NFL on Fox and local news.