"We know we have some fans up there who support us," said running back Fred Jackson. "And we have a lot of fans here who will travel with us. It'll be a good atmosphere. We know just from the preseason game we played up there it was a nice loud crowd for us. We're looking forward to it."

"I think it's going to be a tremendous atmosphere," said receiver Lee Evans. "A lot of people are excited about it and have been talking about it for a long time. Going up there and doing some promotional things, visiting with the media, a lot of people are excited, so it should be a lot of fun."

A mostly full house of about 53,000 is expected at the Rogers Centre for the AFC East game against the Miami Dolphins. Just how many of those fans will ROOT for Miami? No one knows for sure.

The Bills were encouraged by the response they got from the crowd for the Aug. 14 game against Pittsburgh in Toronto.

"I think the response in preseason was nice," said center Duke Preston. "Having already played up there is an advantage for us, just being familiar with the surroundings, the lighting, the field, what hotel we're staying in, everything. Hopefully some of the buzz from the preseason might be cranked up a couple notches for the regular season."

The Bills' players do not seem to mind the fact they will be traveling for the game. Aside from a 90-minute bus ride before and after the game, their pregame routine won't change. They will just be in a Toronto hotel instead of a Buffalo hotel.

"We'll meet and bus up Saturday and have a walkthrough up there," said defensive tackle Kyle Williams. "Normally I'd have a walkthrough, go home and watch college Football, then come back [Saturday evening] and have another meeting. It's really not that much different."

Most Bills players also don't mind the fact they will play indoors, not outdoors in 30-degree or lower weather.

"I guarantee you won't find any guys in our locker room that's complaining about going to play in a dome, so it'll work both ways," said defensive tackle Marcus Stroud. "It [the warmth] is going to benefit everybody."

The Bills realize that the cold weather can be a slight edge against a warm-weather team like the Dolphins.

"A little bit," Evans said in rating the cold-weather edge in Orchard Park. "It's just like going down there in September and playing in the heat, it's tough for us. Them coming up here playing in December is tough for them. We'll lose a little edge like that, but it's just part of it."

Williams also acknowledges that the decibel level is not going to be quite as high for the opposing offense.

"It's hard to match what we get here," Williams said. "Our fans here are so good. If we come out and play well and we can keep them in the game, they're second to none. That's hard to replace."

Numerous Miami players this week were glad they don't have to face the elements.

"When I looked at the schedule and saw that we were going to be indoors in Toronto, you have to be excited and happy about that," said defensive end Vonnie Holliday. "Looking at the end of the schedule, Kansas City, the Jets and possibly Buffalo at Buffalo, it was ugly."

"Buffalo presents a lot of different weather scenarios," said Miami quarterback Chad Pennington. "I think it's not an advantage for either team. I'm sure both teams are glad they're playing indoors."

Bills Hall of Famer Jim Kelly is not glad.

"When you've played the game and you've played for Buffalo, and you realize how important the rivalry is between the Bills and the Dolphins, you want that to be on your home field," Kelly said in Toronto on Wednesday. "You want that to be outside, you want it to be in the weather."

In the big picture, some Bills understand the rationale behind giving up the cold-weather edge.

"The Bills have done everything to ensure the team stays, and this is part of it," said tackle Langston Walker. "Hey, a couple of games north of the border is better than moving the team far away to a place like Los Angeles."

e-mail: mgaughan@buffnews.com