Buffalo Bills staffers to be honored by Pro Football Hall of Fame

The people who kept the Buffalo Bills running behind the scenes are finally getting their moment in Canton. The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced its 2026 Awards of Excellence honorees in multiple categories, including longtime Bills head athletic trainer Ed Abramoski and former vice president of communications Scott Berchtold. Abramoski was selected in the athletic trainers category, while Berchtold was previously announced as one of this year’s honorees in the public relations directors category.

Abramoski and Berchtold will be recognized during the Hall of Fame’s Awards of Excellence program June 24-25 in Canton, Ohio. Abramoski a foundational figure in Bills history Abramoski spent nearly 36 seasons with the Bills, serving as the team’s head athletic trainer from its inception in 1960 through the 1995 season. Respected for both his medical expertise and personal relationships with players, Abramoski was part of the organization during its run to four consecutive Super Bowl appearances in the early 1990s.

The respect extended beyond the training room. When Hall of Fame offensive lineman Billy Shaw was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999, he chose Abramoski to be his presenter, a rare honor for a trainer. He remains the only athletic trainer honored on the Bills’ Wall of Fame, where he was inducted in 1999.

Abramoski was also inducted into the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame in 1996. Abramoski died in 2022 at age 88. Berchtold spent decades shaping Bills communications Berchtold’s NFL career spanned five decades, including 34 years with the Bills organization from 1989 to 2023.