The Buffalo Bills did everything they could to get into the playoffs on Sunday when they beat the Dolphins, 22-16. But the man who made the most important play in sealing Buffalo’s first postseason appearance since 1999 was Bengals QB Andy Dalton. With under a minute to play in a game that was meaningless for his own team, Dalton threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd on fourth down, which beat the Ravens 31-27, knocked Baltimore out of the final AFC playoff spot, and punched the Bills’ tickets to the Wild Card.
Since that game and the resulting celebrations, Bills fans have been showing their thanks by giving to the Andy and Jordan Dalton Foundation. That is, yes, a charitable foundation set up by Andy and his wife, which provides financial aid to families with medical expenses. Dalton has been updating donation totals on Twitter, and as of the last update above, the foundation has received over $100,000 from over 4,500 donors since Sunday evening.
Even if you aren’t a Bills fan, or prefer not to give money to celebrity-driven foundations, we should all be grateful to Dalton. Without his heroics, Joe Flacco would still be alive to ruin a perfectly good playoff game.