Buffalo Bills founder, owner Ralph Wilson dies
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Nov. 1, 2009: In this file photo, Buffalo Bills' owner Ralph Wilson Jr. holds up his Hall of Fame ring during a halftime NFL football ceremony against the Houston Texans in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP)
Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson, who helped found the American Football League in 1960, died at his home on Tuesday afternoon. He was 95.
Bills president Russ Brandon made the announcement at the NFL winter meetings in Orlando.
Wilson was the founder and sole owner of the Bills after establishing the team with the upstart AFL in 1960. He played a key role in the league merger's with the NFL. He was inducted into the Football Hall of Fame in 2009.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Wilson died at his home in Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich., around 1:40 p.m., said Mary Mazur, spokeswoman for the Wayne County medical examiner's office.
He had been receiving in-home hospice care.
Wilson had been in failing health for several years.