EXCLUSIVE VIDEO – Retired linebacker Cornelius Bennett, “Biscuit” as he was known in his playing days, spent most of his career with the Buffalo Bills as one of the anchors of the Bills’ defense that help guide the team to four consecutive Super Bowls in the early 1990s. Although he also played later in his career in Atlanta and Indianapolis, he looks back on his time in the small market of Buffalo as the high point of his career.
While the status of the small market teams was a topic of discussion through the latest CBA talks, Bennett’s view is clear, “Football needs to stay in Buffalo.”
“I’m excited that somebody listened,” Bennett went on. “I would hope that us as former players would have stood up for those small market teams. I would hope that our word meant something.”
Bennett was a five time Pro Bowl selection and three time All Pro, and was voted a member of the NFL 1990s All-Decade Team. He was a standout at the University of Alabama, and a three time All-American.
Bennett compares the passion of the fans in Buffalo with the passion of a college football town. “Every Sunday driving into the stadium in Buffalo just took me back to playing football at the University of Alabama, the same atmosphere,” Bennett said. “The tailgating when it’s ten below, 60,000 inches of snow on the ground, people out there with their shirts off.”
“Even when things weren’t going great, our fans were the best, and they still are the best.”
Bennett was drafted second overall by the Colts in 1987 but was traded to Buffalo when he and the Colts were unable to agree on his rookie contract terms. The trade was a three way deal that also included Los Angeles Rams running back Eric Dickerson and Bills running back Greg Bell, and was called the “Trade of the Decade” by the New York Times.
The trade worked out extremely well for both the Bills and for Bennett. He calls his years in Buffalo, “the greatest time of my professional football career.”
