Ahead of the Buffalo Bills’ home opener Thursday, 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.
A few BTS details:
The boats headed out around 7 a.m. on Wednesday, September 16, before Niagara City Cruises began regular operations.
Both boats, along with the dock, were transformed with Bills logos, banners and flags.
Fitzpatrick and Johnson worked their way up to the final distance, eventually landing the completion at approximately 50 yards.
The former teammates quickly fell back into their old rhythm, continuing to throw the ball back and forth and attempting one-handed catches after getting the shot.
The stunt, executed by Mosaic, was organized with the Buffalo Bills in partnership with Niagara Parks and Niagara City Cruises.
Credits
Title: Buffalo Bills Cross Border Completion
Client: Buffalo Bills
SVP & Chief Strategy Officer: Kate Hussmann
VP, Marketing: Chris Jenkins
Senior Director, Corporate Partnerships: Debbie Slingerland
Director, Content: Zach Specht
Director, Video: JJ Territo
Director, Design: Aaron La Porta
Marketing Manager: Briana Rossi
Manager, Corporate Partnerships: Peter Obletz
Influencer & Cause Marketing Manager: Kelsey Sweet
Agency: Mosaic
SVP, Mosaic Canada: Paul Curtin
VP, Business Development: Caralia Gosling
VP, Client Service: Ashley Petrolo
Senior Account Manager: Jesse Leger
Project Manager – Taelor Brown
Chief Creative Officer: Jef Moore
Group Creative Director: Dan Berzen
Production Designer: Kelly Couperthwaite
Production Designer: Mike Williams
Director, Production: Misha Gallagher
Senior Producer: Sandy Rai
Producer: Jon Kalchman
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