TORONTO -- Defensive tackle Corey Mace understands where the diehard CFL fans are coming from.

Mace of Port Moody, B.C., and the Buffalo Bills arrived in town Wednesday for the start of a historic series with an exhibition contest at the Rogers Centre against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night. The Bills will play eight games in Toronto over the next five years (five regular-season contests, three pre-season matchups) in what club officials say is the franchise's attempt to regionalize itself in the lucrative southern Ontario marketplace.

Buffalo will also become the first NFL team to play a regular-season game outside the U.S. when it takes on division rival Miami at the Rogers Centre on Dec. 7.

However many football pundits -- including diehard CFL supporters -- firmly believe the series is an experiment to gauge the city's NFL interest and the first step in the Bills eventually relocating to Toronto and dealing a death knell to the Toronto Argonauts and Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

"I understand, I really do," Mace said. "The one thing about Canadians is we love our sports, be it hockey or football.

"Despite me being in the NFL, I was also a fan of the CFL so I understand that they're loyal to their teams. It's OK if they're going to be out there in protest but it's all for a love of the game. If you guys love football, then support it."

Fuelling the speculation regarding the Bills future in Buffalo is the long-term health of owner Ralph Wilson.

Wilson, 89, has said he won't sell the franchise while he's alive. But he has also stated his family has no interest in holding on to the Bills after he dies, meaning the club will then go on the open market and to the highest bidder.

There's no denying the financial clout of Toronto's NFL group -- which is headed up by communications mogul Ted Rogers and Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment's Larry Tanenbaum -- a fact further solidified given the current strength of the Canadian dollar. The biggest obstacle facing the Rogers-Tanenbaum consortium would be a viable stadium given the seating limitations at Rogers Centre.

However there is prevailing talk modifications could be made to Rogers Centre to increase its capacity to about 57,000. That, along with being able to command top dollar for the luxury suites in the stadium, the existence of a solid NFL salary cap that controls expenditures and a healthy slice of the league's lucrative television contract would combine to give Toronto's NFL group a chance to make a go of it financially despite playing in a small venue.

But not everyone is excited about the NFL coming to town. Senator Larry Campbell is drafting a bill to protect the CFL, stating the arrival of a full-time NFL team in Toronto would spell the end of the Canadian league. And a group of diehard CFL fans will reportedly launch a protest outside Rogers Centre prior to Thursday's contest.

"I know what it's like because when I was coming up the Browns left Cleveland," Bills star receiver Lee Evans said. "We just have to play where it's deemed for us to play but I certainly know the feeling.

"It's not a good feeling at all."

Punter Brian Moorman is taking a rather novel approach to playing games in Toronto, saying Buffalo can dub itself "North America's team."

"Somebody's got to be North America's team, right? It might as well be us," Moorman said. "I hope people in Toronto welcome us.

"I'm looking forward to getting Toronto people to believe in the Bills and make it like a home away from home."

Despite the anticipated protest, Toronto's NFL experiment will begin with a whimper rather than a much-anticipated bang.

High ticket prices -- an average of $183 per game and a $575 top price -- prevented what many had expected to be a quick sellout of the Bills' games in Toronto. The $183 figure is double the highest-priced average ticket in the NFL last year (which was sold in New England).

So while there will be a capacity crowd of 54,000 at Rogers Centre, it won't officially be a sellout. Earlier this week, Bills officials announced tickets for the contest had been "distributed."

The Toronto NFL group agreed to pay US$78 million to stage the eight games. Both Rogers and Tanenbaum have said little regarding the Bills' future in Buffalo but it's no secret they're looking to use the games to show Toronto is a viable NFL city.

But on Wednesday, Russ Brandon, the Bills' chief operating officer, again maintained the Toronto series is an attempt by the NFL to further establish its brand in Canada's largest city and financial capital to help secure its long-term future in Buffalo.

"I think people understand we have always tried to regionalize our product," he said. "They see what we've done in Rochester (where the Bills hold their training camp) over the past decade.

"We're looking to do everything we can to keep the franchise viable and having a market like Toronto that is so vibrant, we'd be remiss if we didn't reach out into it."

The Bills will make nearly $9.75 million per game in Toronto, substantially more than the roughly US$5.5 million they average per game at Orchard Park, N.Y. Buffalo has traditionally had one of the lowest average ticket prices in the NFL ($51 per game) at Ralph Wilson Stadium, which has a seating capacity of 72,000.

Making Thursday's game a difficult sell is the harsh reality that fans won't get a good look at such stars as Pittsburgh's Hines Ward or Ben Roethlisberger as well as Evans and teammate Marshawn Lynch. Both teams will likely play their starters for about a quarter before giving a host of unheralded players the chance to duke it out in a battle for backup roster spots.

Bills coach Dick Jauron said Wednesday his starters will only see spot duty against the Steelers.

"We will stay on a schedule in terms of this game, in terms of people we want to play and when we want to see them,," he said. "Would we like to win? Absolutely.

"But we'd like to win it with who's on the field and we're not going to change our approach to the football game."

However, Jauron believes Bills players definitely have a sense of why their team will be playing eight games in Canada over the next five years.

"They are very aware of what's going on within our organization and what we're trying to do in order to keep our franchise healthy and viable," he said. "We know we have a loyal fan base here and back in Western New York.

"We'd like to expand our fan base here and we're excited about the opportunity."

This will mark Jauron's fourth trip to Toronto and he says he's fascinated by the city.

"It's a tremendous place, so much culture with a lot to do," he said. "Pre-season games have been played in Canada before but to a regular NFL season game we're excited to be part of that, a new introduction of NFL football to the Canadian market."

But the overwhelming sentiment is if the NFL came to Toronto it would not only kill both the Toronto Argonauts and Hamilton Tiger-Cats but also seriously threaten the CFL's very existence.

The Bills' arrival on the Ontario sports scene hasn't hurt the Argos at the turnstiles. The Toronto club is averaging over 29,000 fans per game.

Hamilton's average attendance, though, is just over 20,500 per game.

But the Argos and Ticats have taken different positions regarding the Bills playing in Toronto.

The Argos decided to help promote the venture, feeling it was a chance to not only boost season-ticket sales but also promote football within southern Ontario. The Toronto club also gave its season-ticket holders first crack at purchasing Bills tickets.

The Ticats, though, washed their hands of the series because the CFL doesn't have a working relationship with the NFL.