Bills fans spearhead effort for Tua Tagovailoa's foundation; now up to 1,700 donations from NFL fans

Bills Mafia, the group of fans supporting Buffalo's NFL team, is known for many attributes – both eccentric and charitable.

Following Tua Tagovailoa's head and neck injury against the Cincinnati Bengals, Bills fans came together to support the Miami Dolphins quarterback. Four days after he momentarily stumbled off the field against Buffalo, Tagovailoa was carted out of the Bengals game and transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. He was treated and released later that night and returned to Florida with his team.

But as of Monday, NFL fans nationwide have come together for more than 1,700 donations to the Tua Foundation, according to the foundation.

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A local group, Bills Mafia Babes, helped spearhead the efforts. The organization's president, Kristen Kimmick, told NBC affiliate WGRZ News 2 many fans wanted to help out because some things are bigger than football.

"At that point, when you see something like that, it's time to drop the game colors," Kimmick said. "We're fans of another human being that is out there for entertainment, and that's really the reason why we felt like we needed to do something here.”

Some fans sent donations of $21.19 to reflect the Bills and Dolphins’ Week 3 final score. Others made a $17.01 donation to reflect Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Tagovailoa’s jersey numbers.

Bills fans are no stranger to lending a helping hand. Over the years, they have donated to NFL veteran Andy Dalton’s foundation for seriously ill children. They also donated nearly $500,000 to the Louisville chapter of Blessings in a Backpack in support of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.

"Someone online said it perfectly," Kimmick said. "When Bills Mafia does that, it's almost like we're sending monetary prayers because it's really the way that we can get our condolences across, or the way that we're feeling."

Tagovailoa started his foundation to support youth initiatives, health wellness and charitable causes.

Contributing: Safid Deen

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bills fans start donation effort to Tua Tagovailoa's foundation