Whenever the Pittsburgh Steelers' defense is in need of a big stop late in a home game, Heinz Field game ops will play "Renegade" by Styx over a compilation of defensive highlights, and it usually results in the team making a great stand. Perhaps all it took was a global pandemic to finally rein in the Bills Mafia. But the table-slamming tradition persisted off premises. The Buffalo Bills instituted a new policy last season in an attempt to curtail the rowdy scenes from the stadium parking lot. The coronavirus has robbed us of tailgates, and without them, we won't have the pleasure of watching Bills Mafia put one another through folding tables. The 12th man can take at least partial credit. Seahawks opponents had nine false-start penalties called against them at CenturyLink Field last season. It's one of the NFL's best fan environments, but it will be rendered silent to begin 2020. The raucous crowd once forced the New York Giants into 11 false starts in a 2005 game. Opposing teams won't miss facing the 12s at the Seattle Seahawks' home stadium. We'll miss the Lambeau Leap in its familiar form. Packers of all shapes and sizes have tried to leap into the crowd in celebration of a score, and it's brought us some indelible images through the years. LeRoy Butler was the first to scale the wall in 1993 and many others have followed. Without fans in the first few rows at Lambeau Field, who will be there to catch a Green Bay Packer after he scores a touchdown and heads for the 6-foot-high wall? Instead, we'll get lonely images such as this: Here are eight traditions we'll miss in the absence of packed crowds to begin the 2020 campaign. These pandemic-related measures will rob us of some of the unique pleasures within the football-viewing experience. A select number of NFL teams will host fans at between 10% and 25% capacity to begin the season, while 22 other clubs already announced their home openers will be played inside empty stadiums.
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