Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story
Hallmark has lined up another football romance – so the real question is: can they pull off back-to-back gridiron love stories? In Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story, Hallmark newcomer Matthew Daddario teams up with Holland Roden for a neighbors-to-something-more tale built around two Buffalo families who’ve lived in the shadow of Highmark Stadium for decades. Morgan and Gabe join forces to track down the mysterious Christmas benefactor who once helped Morgan’s family, all while their own will-they/won’t-they dynamic inches forward like a slow march up the field. With Bills Mafia traditions, family meddling, and a search that keeps getting stuffed at the line, this one asks: can love finally break through for a holiday touchdown?
Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story will premiere on Saturday, November 22nd, on Hallmark Channel as part of Countdown to Christmas (and will be available to stream the following day on Hallmark+.)
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About Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story
- Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story was directed by Dustin Rikert. This marks his 30th directing credit. His recent work includes A Newport Christmas, along with Hallmark titles such as The Christmas Quest, The Finnish Line, and Where Are You, Christmas?
- The screenplay was written by Vanessa Marano and Danielle Morrow. Marano, known for her role as April Nardini on Gilmore Girls, makes her writing debut with this film. Morrow, an actor with credits on multiple Nickelodeon series, is also making her first screenwriting appearance.
- Holland Roden stars as Morgan. We last saw Holland as Katie Manetti-Hanahan in the limited series Holidazed. This movie marks her 41st acting credit.
- Matthew Daddario stars as Gabe. This is Matthew’s first Hallmark project but you may recognize him from his long run on the series Shadowhunters.
- Joe Patoliano plays Morgan’s uncle, Tommy. With 163 acting credits, his resume runs deep, including The Last of Us, The Goonies, and The Sopranos.
- Tracy Pollan plays Morgan’s mom, Joanne. She has 32 acting credits and is best known for her role as Ellen Reed on Family Ties, where she starred opposite her husband of 36 years, actor Michael J. Fox.
- Caroline Aaron plays Gabe’s mom, Ricki. Caroline is another actor with an extensive resume. She’s best known for her role as Shirley Maisel on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
- Steve Schirripa plays Gabe’s dad, Frank. We last saw Steve in Sisterhood, Inc. from earlier this year. This role marks his 80th acting credit.
- Patti Murin plays Morgan’s sister, Cathy. This is her 11th acting credit and you might recognize her from Hallmark roles in Mystic Christmas and In Merry Measure.
- Patrick Mulvey plays Morgan’s brother-in-law, Jeremy. This appears to be his first project for Hallmark but has been in shows like The Pitt, NCIS: Hawaii, and Magnum P.I.
- Abraham Benrubi reprises his role as Santa Claus, a character he also played in last year’s Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story. If he looks familiar, he portrayed Jerry on ER for 137 episodes.
- Eve Gordon plays long lost love interest Mia. With 94 acting credits, she’s been in a ton of projects like Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23, Hart of Dixie, and Felicity.
- Ugo Chukwu appears as Sal, Joey Palestina as Vinny, Mariand Torres as Trish and Mary Stout as Cyndi Claus. This marks the first Hallmark appearance for all four actors.
- Andrew Walker appears as a bartender at Bar-Bill Tavern. Andrew has expressed that the Bills are his favorite NFL team.
Special Guest Appearances in Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story
- Ray Davis – A running back for the Buffalo Bills, Davis was drafted in the 4th round in 2024 after playing at Temple, Vanderbilt and Kentucky.
- Scott Norwood – Former Bills placekicker best known for his missed “Wide Right” field goal attempt in Super Bowl XXV.
- Thurman Thomas – Hall-of-Fame running back who starred for the Bills from 1988–2000 and was the 1991 NFL MVP.
- Steve Tasker – Legendary special teams ace for the Bills, selected to seven Pro Bowls largely for his coverage and return work.
- Chris Brown – The current play-by-play radio announcer for the Buffalo Bills, having moved into the role in 2024.
- Sean McDermott – Head coach of the Buffalo Bills since 2017, leading them consistently to playoff appearances in recent seasons.
- Damar Hamlin – Safety for the Bills drafted in 2021, famously survived a life-threatening in-game injury and returned to play.
- Dion Dawkins – A longtime starting offensive tackle for the Bills, drafted in the 2nd round in 2017 out of Temple.
- Jim Kelly – Iconic quarterback for the Bills who led the team to four straight Super Bowls and is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
- Dawson Knox – Tight end for the Bills, drafted in 2019 out of Ole Miss and selected to the Pro Bowl in 2022.
- Joshua Palmer – A wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills, Palmer played college football at Tennessee.
- DeWayne Carter – A defensive tackle for the Buffalo Bills, Carter played college football at Duke Blue Devils in North Carolina.
- Reid Ferguson – Long snapper for the Bills since 2017, who signed a four-year extension in 2025 and remains one of the most consistent special-teams players on the team.
- Andre Reed – Hall-of-Fame wide receiver for the Bills (1985–1999) who helped lead them to four consecutive Super Bowl appearances and ranks among the all-time leaders in receptions and receiving yards at his retirement.
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