My Bills are not Canadian
by Joe P. on Jun 18, 2008 7:06 PM EDT
46 comments
Editor's Note: This article, composed by Joe P, was written in response to the article immediately following it, composed by yours truly. In it, Joe P expresses his opinions on the Buffalo Bills' potential future move to Toronto. It's worth a read. Nice job, Joe. End Note
"Greed" and "Invaders" seem like accurate descriptions from the Canadian point of view. I don’t blame Canadian writers for aggressively trying to defend their league. In fact, I applaud them. They see the writing on the wall. Sticking your head in the sand and hoping the NFL doesn’t kill the CFL doesn’t seem like a winning strategy to me. Appeasement of an aggressive invader has never worked throughout history, just ask the French. Canadian writers are not suffering from paranoia. They are trying to save the teams and the CFL that they love. I can relate. Supporters of this home games in Toronto idea have tried very hard to make us believe this is not a prelude to a permanent move by the Bills. Many of the arguments given to both CFL fans and Bills fans are a joke. Since I am not a fan of the CFL and know very little about the league, I will address my arguments as they pertain to the Bills.
To think that having Bills home games in Toronto is anything other than a test run by the NFL to see if it is feasible to have a team in Canada is impossible to believe. The idea that having a Bills game in Toronto will somehow sell more tickets at the Bills' other home games is naive at best. Canadians have their own football league in the CFL and can watch the NFL on TV, or travel to the US if they really want to go to an NFL game. A home game in Toronto is more apt to have a negative impact on the amount of Canadians that come to The Ralph to see a game. They will wait and go to the ones in Toronto. What to you think will happen when they get a taste for Bills football in Toronto? Do you think they will be satisfied with one game? I think not! They will ask for more Bills home games in Toronto. Even if the Bills don’t uproot and move to Toronto, how long before they want two home games a year, or three, or all?
To expect Bills fans that live in the greater Buffalo/Rochester area to be happy about it is absurd. Yes, we have lost a home game and all of the fun and economic stimulus that goes with it. But, it goes deeper than that. Let's say you and your wife/girlfriend of many years are having some problems. Would you be happy about her dating some guy who has said he wants to take her away from you?
Some Bills fans try to console themselves by saying "Toronto is close to Buffalo. It is better than if they move to L.A. or Portland.” How does the Toronto Bills (if they even keep Bills) beat the Portland Bills? I am a Buffalo Bills fan. I started watching games at the "Rock Pile" and have happily frozen my tail off at Rich and Ralph Wilson stadium. I am not alone. The Bills are more than a football team to the people of Western NY. The Bills are a part of the identity of our community. The players and coaches eat in the same restaurants as we do, and their kids go to the same schools as our kids. They are contributing members of our city. Without the Bills, would we have Hunter's Hope? How about all the other community events supported by the Bills? If we lose our team it will hurt us economically. But the real loss will be in ways that are hard to measure. How do you put a price on community pride and unity? How many of you can still sing the Bills "Shout song" and "Talkin' Proud"?
If the Bills move to Toronto, make no mistake, they will not be our Bills. The Bills will no longer be the team I grew up loving, nor a team that reflects the values I identify with. To me, they will represent everything that is wrong with the NFL and, to a certain extent, our society today. They will not be a "blue collar", underdog team of the common man. They will quickly morph into another big market team with a "Jerry Jones" clone of an owner. How could I possibly be a fan of that?! Tickets will cost over $200. Tell me how I can afford to take my family to a game... I will have to take out a loan.
How big is big enough for the NFL? This is the National (United States of America) Football League. It is not, and should not try to be the World League, NFL Europe, XFL, or the CFL. The NFL had better be careful not to forget the fans that have made them what they are. The day the Bills leave Buffalo will be a sad day. It will be like the death of a good friend. It will also be the day I gather up my Bills gear, have a bon fire, and become a Cleveland fan.
This FanPost was written by a registered user of Buffalo Rumblings. Its views do not necessarily reflect the views of Rumblings' editorial staff, but are just as valued as our own.
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One note...
I’m not sure that the Bills are putting games in Toronto to sell more tickets – they’re putting them there to do two things: sell higher-priced tickets and get more corporate sponsors / luxury box holders from Canada.
It’s the same reason the Sabres have all of the Leafs games as Gold-level games; they can sell the same number of tickets for much more money, so why not? The fact is, with a city like Toronto, there are more people willing to pay five times as much for a ticket as there are in Buffalo.
by Krenn on Jun 18, 2008 12:01 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Good post
I don’t even want to think about that day
~K
by Kurupt on Jun 18, 2008 12:06 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I hate being right!!!
4 games in Toronto is already being discussed.
by Joe P. on Jun 18, 2008 12:10 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Nice rant
I see you over at Dawgs by Nature.
The time has come for someone to put his foot down. And that foot is me.
by sireric on Jun 18, 2008 12:15 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
forget the Browns
the Bills are still here aren’t they? If we start winning the team will stay I think. If we can build this young squad into a perennial contender for the next decade they aren’t going anywhere and it will set back moving plans enough to stall the process and buy us more time to block it. Look at the Sonics. They left because they stunk and so it was prime time to head out. There is a lot more pressure on Edwards and Jauron then they know. Which makes Marshawn’s antics all the more deplorable. Playoffs, we need them! For the sake of Buffalo.
McKelvin and Hardy - rookies of the year
by poz on Jun 18, 2008 12:32 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
As long as the Bills are in Buffalo
I am a Bills Fan!!!
by Joe P. on Jun 18, 2008 12:51 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
avatar
man, even on a depressing topic your avatar just brightens my day Joe
McKelvin and Hardy - rookies of the year
by poz on Jun 18, 2008 6:14 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Aaaaaa yes
Beauchamp. Google at your own risk….
by Zumone on Jun 18, 2008 7:10 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
You should see the
Rebecca Romijn pic I have in waiting. Although, I am not sure I can use it because you can definitely see some nipple. I am not sure of the AVATAR rules of appropriateness, and I don’t want Brian to ban me!!! Here is a link.
WARNING – This pic may cure erectile dysfunction. If the effects last more than 4 hours, seek professional or amateur assistance!!!!
http://www.uknet.net/showcase/Signedpics/rebecca_romijn_stamos3.jpg
by Joe P. on Jun 18, 2008 8:16 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
very appropriate
that picture passes my thorough examination. definitely avatar acceptable haha
McKelvin and Hardy - rookies of the year
by poz on Jun 18, 2008 11:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I hate talking about Toronto
So I will get all my feelings about the Bills moving and about how and why Toronto is the most likely place they end up in one post.
First fact: RALPH WILSON IS NOT GOING TO SELL THE BUFFALO BILLS.
That simple fact should end any speculation, or wild Canadian accusations, that the Bills are trying to move to Toronto or that playing games north of the border is step one in some kind of plan to move the team out of Buffalo. To me, it sounds like wacky conspiracy theories when people start talking about how the Bills want to leave Buffalo. Ralph is the sole owner of the team. He owns the Bills like you own your car or your house. He can do whatever he wants. If he wanted to move the Bills he could have done 5 years ago, or 20 years ago if he really wanted to.
Second fact: When Ralph Wilson dies, his children don’t have the money to pay inheritance taxes or enough interest in owning the team to make it work. Wilson’s kids are going to sell the team to the highest bidder. Whoever the Wilson kids and the NFL pick as the next owner of the Bills will then have the right to try and relocate them.
That is a very simple truth. It sucks that it is going to be the fate of the Bills. Rogers understands this situation and he is allowing the Bills to play in Toronto so that he can get his name at the top of the list of potential bidders for the Bills. Again, Rogers isn’t trying to steal the team away from Buffalo, he is simply trying to put himself in position to buy the team since it is inevitable that it will soon be for sale.
Poz, I don’t think the Bills being good will ensure that they stay in Buffalo. Once Wilson dies, the team will be sold. The more tickets and jerseys the team is selling, the better the chances that the new owner will want to keep the team in Buffalo, but Rogers has to be considered the heavy favorite to buy the team. Kelly and all his efforts won’t be able to compete with Rogers’ billions. The sad truth is that the future of the Bills is out of our hands. It’s up to the billionaires to decide where the Bills will end up.
To think that having Bills home games in Toronto is anything other than a test run by the NFL to see if it is feasible to have a team in Canada is impossible to believe.
Rogers may be trying to prove that Toronto can handle an NFL team, but playing games in Toronto was a decision that the Bills and Rogers made. The NFL approved the plan, but hade nothing do with it otherwise. How can it be a test run “by the NFL”, if the NFL wasn’t at all involved in the decision making process?
It will be like the death of a good friend. It will also be the day I gather up my Bills gear, have a bon fire, and become a Cleveland fan.
I’ll join you, both with the bonfire and becoming a fan of the Browns. Unlike Toronto, there will be some real football fans to party, tailgate and cheer with.
by kaisertown on Jun 18, 2008 1:39 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Ralph
So then why doesn’t Ralph sell the team to someone before he dies, getting a guarantee that this person won’t move the Bills? Screw his kids.
McKelvin and Hardy - rookies of the year
by poz on Jun 18, 2008 2:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Taxes
Wilson’s kids might actually come out ahead if Wilson sells the Bills and has the buyer pay directly to his kids. Income tax rates tend to be lower than inheritance tax rates. I did a write up on this (I think on RealFootball365.com) quite a while ago and, if I remember right, it was around a 7% swing in the amount of money his kids would get. Ralph, though, wants to die as the owner of the Bills. As a result we are completely screwed. Someone will buy the Bills and likely move them to a bigger market. The NFL has set a precedent (Cleveland) which requires team colors, history and name to be left in the jilted city so there won’t be a ‘Bills’ team. Besides, Toronto Bills just sounds like the list of expenses from a trip you took to Canada…
WARNING—WILD SPECULATION/CONSPIRACY TYPE RANDOM THOUGHT FOLLOWS:
Could it be that Wilson wants to be the only person ever to own the Buffalo Bills? By holding on to the team literally until he dies (when he could sell it to a group headed by someone like Jim Kelly tomorrow) he is ensuring that some random billionaire will buy the team. That person, even if he’s not a Jones/Snyder type (though that seems the most likely type to buy the team), will move the team almost immediately. If LA was the destination the league might let him do it in the middle of the season… Okay, maybe not, but you know they’d want to.
by Ron From NM on Jun 18, 2008 2:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Thanks for the WARNING....LOL
But, I am afraid that just like my high school health teacher, who told us not to have sex before marriage, the warning made me want to check it out for myself even more :-)
Judging by everything that has been said, we have to hope than the Bills don’t go to Toronto. That would absolutely kill the slim chance that we could pull a “Cleveland” and get another team someday. I know a shinny new stadium located between Buffalo and Rochester is only a pipe dream, but it is a good one none the less.
by Joe P. on Jun 18, 2008 5:56 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
A shiny new stadium between?
Where would you put it? Batavia? Medina? Brockport? Darien? Corfu? Attica? Alden? Would any of these communities seriously consider ponying up for an NFL-caliber stadium? Would the downstate-dominated state government seriously consider handing out that much fundage to an area that state money is supposed to come from, not go to?
A new stadium for the Bills outside the immediate suburbs is a pipe dream. No community would be willing to support it. The state legislature would never approve funding it. No private business would be willing to put up the money to build it on their own and the league is more interested in extorting money out of local and state governments anyway.
"I could have conquered Europe, all of it, but I had women in my life." - King Henry II of England
by Calvert on Jun 18, 2008 6:06 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Gilette stadium
If I remember right, the NFL wanted Taxachussetts to foot a good chunk of the bill for their stadium. The state refused, even when the Pats threatened to move to Rhode Island or one of those other tiny states. I’m pretty sure the NFL kicked in a fair amount for that stadium and for the new one in New Jersey as well.
by Ron From NM on Jun 18, 2008 6:19 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
That cheap B@$^%$# Kraft
He could have paid for it with the loose cash in his pocket.
The time has come for someone to put his foot down. And that foot is me.
by sireric on Jun 18, 2008 6:30 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
There is a difference...
...between the NFL’s arrangement in a market that they desperately want to keep and one which they could care less about. It would have been tough for the NFL to abandon the Boston market. Abandoning the Buffalo market they could possibly see as being in the league’s best interest.
"I could have conquered Europe, all of it, but I had women in my life." - King Henry II of England
by Calvert on Jun 18, 2008 6:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Boston Market
Man, I love those. Of course the only one in my state is about a 3 hour drive away.
Anyway, the Pats weren’t going to leave the Boston TV market. They were just planning to move to one of the little states orbiting Taxachussetts. I loved it when the state told them to go ahead and move. I think the only contribution the state made to the stadium was to improve the roads near it. Other than that it was Kraft and the NFL footing the bill.
Which means that the Bills helped foot the bill. Which means that Bills fans helped foot the bill. Which means that Bills fans helped Randy Moss get a fat new contract. Isn’t that a lovely thought?
by Ron From NM on Jun 18, 2008 7:59 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Just a quick correction.
Apologies for being off-topic for a post.
I’m not entirely certain where you’re getting this “Taxachusetts” myth from. Massachusetts dropped out of the Top 20 in state/local tax burden in 1987 and hasn’t been higher than 17th ever since, dropping as low as 32nd in 1988 and 2003 and 35th in 2002. New York’s state/local tax burden has been ranked either 1st or 2nd every single year from 1970-2005, dropping to 3rd since 2006.
If you’re going to use a derogatory term, at least get some accurate data to support it. When our own state has had a higher state/local tax burden than the one you’re criticizing in every single year, you don’t really support your argument very well and you just make yourself look foolish.
http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/335.html
"I could have conquered Europe, all of it, but I had women in my life." - King Henry II of England
by Calvert on Jun 20, 2008 12:27 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
7th overall
That’s pretty high, and doesn’t begin to count the fees and such that aren’t counted as taxes—like toll roads, for example. New York is up there as well. I’d live in Buffalo if it weren’t for the taxes in that part of the country. Instead I live in New Mexico, the land the tax collector forgot…..or thought belonged to another country….or was afraid of the poor quality of the roads.
I fully realize that there is a trade off between taxes and services. I opt for lower taxes/fees and fewer services. If you’re in New York, Calvert, then you’ve chosen better services and higher taxes/fees.
Since it was missed, the Taxachussets bit referred obliquely to the fact that the state refused to use taxpayer money on an NFL stadium. Also, I was secretly amused by the thought of little states orbiting a state that is itself little.
by Ron From NM on Jun 20, 2008 8:09 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The point was...
...that their overall high tax burden is largely because of their federal tax burden, something which their state government has absolutely no control over. That’s why “Taxachusetts” was a myth when the term originated during the 1988 election (the year after their state/local tax burden started to shrink dramatically) and it remains a myth today.
As for better services, we live in the upstate counties. For the downstate-dominated state government, upstate is a place where tax money comes from, not goes to. We pay such high taxes, such regional specific taxes such as the NYS Thruway tolls, of which the tolls on I-190 downtown were used to keep I-84 downstate free, not to support ourselves but that festering sewer-pit at the mouth of the Hudson. We don’t do it by choice. We do it because the state government can’t survive without the campaign contributions that come from downstate.
And if I recall correctly, wasn’t yours the state that frivolously spent hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars because they thought a rural road in the northwest portion of the state was “cursed” and had to be renumbered?
"I could have conquered Europe, all of it, but I had women in my life." - King Henry II of England
by Calvert on Jun 20, 2008 11:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Highway 666
The Devil’s Highway! I think it’s been rebadged as 421. I actually drove on it before it had been renumbered and it really isn’t a bad road—for New Mexico standards. I don’t know that the state spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on the project. After all, how much can it possibly cost to slap some cardboard over an existing sign and scribble a number on it with a magic marker?
As for money going elsewhere, the same is true in every state. Albuquerque squealed when state money was used to expand a 2 lane highway to a 4 lane between Roswell and Clovis. They wanted the money to go to maintain Albuquerque streets and not to a project that would, you know, save lives.
You kind of validated my point about the sorts of fees and things not counted as taxes. Tolls, after all, aren’t taxes even though they’re coming out of your pocket. You also might want to avoid calling NYC a ‘festering sewer pit’ lest someone accuse you of using a ‘derogatory term, [without] at least get[ting] some accurate data to support it’ thereby making ‘yourself look foolish.’
by Ron From NM on Jun 21, 2008 9:24 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I have to disagree on fact # 2
We don’t know if ralphs kids have the money to pay the taxes. Remember ralph dabbled in the insurance business for quite some time and Insurance company’s love to use there products to protect family’s from inheritance tax. And the most important thing I think is his wife will inherit the team first and will not have to pay any taxes becuase she is his spouse. I do believe she’s like 20 or 25 years younger than him.
by RustyJones on Jun 18, 2008 6:49 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
A Toronto Football Fan
Here’s the thing…I don’t want to see the Bills, or any other team, relocate to Toronto. 3 down football belongs in Canada, 4 down football belongs in the United States. Buffalo Bills belong in Buffalo. I’ve grown up as a fan of the Argos, and during that time have learned about the NFL game too. Bottom line…I hope you keep your team, I hope I keep mine. People up here amaze me…...they complain about the amount of American based teams in the NHL, but can’t wait to get a team in an American football league.
BTW, Poz…...good point. Then he can just leave the money to his kids. Maybe his kids will buy the Toronto Blue Jays. Wouldn’t that stick it to Paul Godfrey?
by nflinusa on Jun 18, 2008 2:29 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
the CFL
Canadians don’t care about the CFL. Have you seen CFL television ratings compared to NFL games? Not even close. These Canadian writers are just trying to stir controversy so people read their papers instead of going to the web to get their news.
Toronto always wants to be considered a major city and does everything possible to try to convince people they are. NFL football is the next step.
Paul Godfrey doesn’t care about the Blue Jays – he’s been all about NFL football for the longest time. Getting the Bluejays was a way to get the Skydome – which leads to getting football.
I wish Buffalo kept the Bills – it would save Toronto from footing the bill for another stadium. But unless Buffalo somehow gets a new stadium, they are not staying there. I understand not being able to cheer for your team if they leave the city – but the Browns?Misery really does love company.
by Benaconda on Jun 18, 2008 4:43 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
It would seem...
That the two most vocal groups in opposition to the Bills playing in Toronto are:
1) Bills fans
2) Argos fans
If the fans in both cities are so opposed to the concept, it has to be asked why it is being done…and the answer will not be found in either Buffalo or Toronto or anywhere in between.
"I could have conquered Europe, all of it, but I had women in my life." - King Henry II of England
by Calvert on Jun 18, 2008 5:18 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
From a Toronto point of view
I will try to keep this as short as I can. I am a lifelong Toronto resident who has grown up a die-hard Bills fan, so I will try to give you a view from Toronto.
Let me get this out of the way right now: I do not want the Bills to move to Toronto. I have my reasons, namely: 1) As a sports fan I am ashamed to say that Toronto is a terrible sports city (on par with LA), 2) There will never be actual tailgating in Toronto due to puritanistic liquor laws 3) I truly enjoy the experience of traveling to Buffalo for a game.
For the first time in my life, I recently became a Bills season ticket holder – not for the games in Toronto, but for the games in Buffalo.
All that being said, although I could care less if Toronto gets a team, they will and should have one.
For starters, although most Americans don’t realize it, Greater Toronto is a VERY big city. People will throw around various stats to refute this, and it does depend how you slice the numbers, but the population of the Toronto/Southern Ontario market is surpassed in the US by only NY, LA and Chicago. It is at least as big, if not bigger, than Dallas, Houston, Boston, San Fran and most other large American cities aside from the ones I mentioned earlier.
Aside from that, it also houses the great majority of Canadian head offices, which includes the Canadian equivalent of Wall Street – full of lawyers, bankers etc who are flush with cash due to the global commodities boom. As part of this group myself, I can tell you how this works.
This all means that Ted Rogers and co. could virtually charge whatever they wanted for tickets and get it. If you go to a Leafs game and sit in the lower bowl, look around you – because almost no one down there has paid for their own ticket. You are either being taken to the game as a client, or you are entertaining a client, in which case your company either has season tickets, or else you buy the ticket off someone and expense it.
While its true that the NFL isn’t hockey – its not that far off in terms of popularity, and given that the lower number of games (even at much higher attendance) equals only about 2/3 of the tickets for a hockey season, its not going to be difficult to sell out at these ridiculous prices. When Toronto does get a team, I can guarantee you that they will have the highest average ticket price in the league, and it won’t even be close (we pay more for everything anyways).
No offense to the CFL which, I’m also a fan of, but its a joke. People in Canada who say that 3-down football is better than the NFL are either over 50 years old, or lying. The demographic for the CFL is old, whether people like it or not, its an NFL world up here (the TV stats don’t paint an accurate picture because they only count those watching the NFL on a Canadian channel – those watching on an American channel – which are carried by all cable and sat companies – are not counted.)
So Toronto is either going to get the Bills, or the Bills will be bought by LA (or someone else) and another team will move to Toronto – but trust me when I tell you that it is going to happen.
If the Bills manage to be kept in Buffalo somehow after Ralph dies, it will get interesting because the NFL is going to want a team in Toronto after this experiment. Ticket demand has already been robust at ridiculous prices (prices being the main reason why I bought tickets for Buffalo this year – and am quite excited about by the way – and the my Bills ticket agent tells me I’m not alone in doing this).
Anyways, just wanted to try to provide a view from up here, although it isn’t what you want to hear, I’m certainly not trying to fan the flames.
Go BILLS!!!
by BillsNorth on Jun 18, 2008 7:58 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Glad to hear from a point of view North of the border
And you are correct in stating that the NFL will move a team north of the border at some point. Goddell has stated before that the NFL is seriously looking at expanding worldwide, and a good first step is either Mexico or Canada since it requires the least travel.
I also would not be surprised if the NFL makes the move to Canada at some point whether its the Bills or some other unlucky team that the NFL cuts a deal and absorbs the CFL into itself some point down the road once a team is in Canada from the NFL. They would just add them into the exsisting divisions and be done with it.
Fear the mighty helmet wearing gopher, he is coming for your soul....
by WABillsfan on Jun 19, 2008 2:46 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Viva Mexico!
If I were Goodell I’d spend more time looking at putting a team in Mexico City than Toronto. First, I think thee are more people in Mexico City than all of Canada. Second, Mexicans are rabid sports fans. Third, there is a lot more money in Mexico than people generally realize. Fourth, a successful Mexican football team might help the NFL make inroads against soccer. Fifth, a successful Mexico City franchise might beget clubs in other parts of Central and South America.
by Ron From NM on Jun 19, 2008 1:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Has Goodell changed his name to Ceasar?
If so, the NFL may suffer the same fate as the Roman Empire. I wish he would leave the NFL in the USA. The world league and NFL Europe had their chance and couldn’t make it. Granted, the quality was not up to NFL standards, but it wasn’‘t bad. When the time comes, they can try it again.
by Joe P. on Jun 19, 2008 2:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Well
How many players would want to play/live in Mexico City?
~K
by Kurupt on Jun 19, 2008 4:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Dolares y pesos
So long as they were being paid in dollars, wheelbarrows full at that, I really don’t think too many players would turn up their noses at living in/near Mexico City.
by Ron From NM on Jun 19, 2008 5:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I would become a fan of the Rio De Jinero Carnivals
If such a team were made to play in NFL South America, and I would happily try to travel to all of their home games. But what would you call all the other teams down there? The Brasilia Beef Cattle? What about the Lima Incas? Or for that matter the Columbian Drug Lords, or Coke Snorters? Man, we could go all day on this one….
Fear the mighty helmet wearing gopher, he is coming for your soul....
by WABillsfan on Jun 19, 2008 4:44 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Love the Carnivals name!
If the league wasn’t so PC they could go for the Mexican Bandidos or, more simply, the Mexican Junta….with olive drab unis….maybe a guy with a cigar on the helmet.
by Ron From NM on Jun 19, 2008 5:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
What about Argentina?
You go with the Argentinian Fridas, or Guevara’s or maybe just the Marxist Revolutionary’s. That would be fun, have the iconic Che symbol on the side of their helmets. Maybe we could get a team into Cuba, hmmmmm, the Guantanamo Detainees or maybe the Guantanamo Enemy Combatants
Needless to say the NFL would not be thrilled by these suggestions, except for maybe the Rio De Jinero Carnivals. Who will now join my next Madden game when I get 09.
Fear the mighty helmet wearing gopher, he is coming for your soul....
by WABillsfan on Jun 19, 2008 6:49 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Whoops, the Aregentinian Evita's not Frida's
Though the Mexican Bandidos could be the Frida’s as well.
Fear the mighty helmet wearing gopher, he is coming for your soul....
by WABillsfan on Jun 19, 2008 7:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The Che thing wouldn't work even if the league wasn't PC
Mass murderers just don’t make for good mascots.
by Ron From NM on Jun 20, 2008 12:03 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
unacceptable
Great, passionate post Joe. I agree almost a 100%. Without re-hashing everything you said, I’m going to comment on something that really gets my blood boiling. Today in the National Post, an article appeared titled "Toronto may see more Bills game." What angered me most about this article did not come from the author, or the several quotes from Rogers or his cronies, it came from Erie County Executive Chris Collins and former Executive, Joel Giambra. Here are some excerpts from the article:
“I would say Western New York is very open to talking about a co-operation, in this case with Toronto, that regionalizes the team,” said Erie County executive Chris Collins, who is effectively the team’s landlord.In a recent interview, Collins conceded part of that cooperation could lead to the Bills playing more games in Toronto. Under the current agreement, the team will play one regular season game at Rogers Centre over each of the next five seasons, with an exhibition every other year beginning this August.
“There’s a lot of things in play,” Collins said. “But a negotiation that keeps them known as the Buffalo Bills, with four or more games played here, I think, most people would consider a win.”
“If the options for the Western New York community is to not have the Bills at all - which is a real possibility when Ralph dies - might we not want to cut our losses now and look at a split season?” former Erie County executive Joel Giambra asked. “Maybe the first half of the season is played here, because of the weather, and the second half in Canada because of the dome. It’s an hour-and-a-half away. It’s not like you have to get in a plane to go there.”
Seriously?! Two men that should be doing everything they can to keep the Bills in Buffalo, are already conceding that they – actually, the fan base, would find a split team acceptable?! That’s infuriating! Where is the fight in these men? Adding on to what Joe said, these are the Buffalo Bills and their fans are passionate because of that – because they are proud to have a team representing their city in the premiere sports league in the world. That passion would dissipate if they had to share a team with a city in another country.
Some would argue that having half a team is better then having no team – I beg to differ. If they are not solely the Buffalo Bills, then I cannot support them. I never lived in Buffalo, I grew up in Rochester and now live in the D.C. area, but I am a neurotic Buffalo Bills fan, because they bring national attention to a hard working, blue-collar area of Western NY, an area I’m proud of being born and raised. That would not exist if the Bills had to share a team with a large metropolitan area. Toronto would overshadow any attention Buffalo receives from the Bills. All that, and the Erie County Executive, the guy that should be digging his heals in, is practically ready to hand half the team over to Toronto?! That’s ridiculous. It is unacceptable that the best they can come up with to keep the Bills in Buffalo is offer a “time share” proposal. So to Mr. Collins, I have one thing to say to you: Stand up and fight for your team, fight for your community!
John I.
by jri111 on Jun 18, 2008 8:17 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
The last part of the second quote is just galling
Yes, the weather in Buffalo tends to be bad for the last four games of the season. The weather for the last two games is generally downright bitter. But that’s the point! We want teams like Miami, Jacksonville and Houston to have to come to Buffalo weeks 16 and 17. It took the Bucs something like 30 years to finally win a game that took place below 40 degrees. I remember seeing quotes from QBs in the late 80s and early 90s marvelling at how Jim Kelly was able to throw with any kind of distance and accuracy in those December games.
by Ron From NM on Jun 18, 2008 9:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Because we all know how well...
...the Montréal/San Juan Expos worked out when their league decided to split that franchise. They even took away the “Canada Day Series” against Toronto and moved it to Puerto Rico, much like the NFL took away the rivalry game against the Dolphins and moved it to Toronto.
Someone should remind Collins and Giambra how well splitting a franchise really works in practice.
"I could have conquered Europe, all of it, but I had women in my life." - King Henry II of England
by Calvert on Jun 19, 2008 9:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Some will respond with
“well the Packers played all those games in Milwaukee for a good number of years in the 80’s(?) and early 90’s, and I don’t think they suffered”
I don’t think it’d work because of all the backlash from WNY, and rightfully so
~K
by Kurupt on Jun 20, 2008 10:42 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
bills
Live in the present and lets love this Bills team we have in 2008. This is our year. I hope that Tim Russert, now that he is up in Heaven, will do one last thing for us down here….and that is to sit down at that table with God and just ask if one time He would make this year, the Bills year.
Go Bills!
MARVelous
by MARVelous on Jun 19, 2008 12:58 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
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