Rochesterfan

This is non-sense - the number of Bars and restaurants would not be the same as Atlanta and Chicago, but their are already a ton in that area that survive just fine right now on Daily Downtown workers, summer festivals at Canalside, tourists, Hockey fans, baseball fans, people going to the casino, and college students. Adding a football venue downtown near the already growing business gives 8-10 additional days of revenue on top of their already busy schedules at times. If you are building the stadium in the current location and want to argue it won’t support Bars and restaurants- I could agree because then it is only the football stadium to draw from, but downtown around the other stadiums - the area already draw fans for 40 baseball games in summer, 40 hockey games in winter, several festivals and concerts throughout the summer weekends. They already have at least 90-100 days of draw and the 8-10 more would be huge. Additionally - they have drawn the the NHL combine multiple times, NHL draft, NCAA tournament games, etc.into the area. Build the stadium there and have training camp downtown and you go from 8-10 days for football to 25-30 days in the prime of the late summer. The football stadium no matter where you build it will never pay for itself, but as in places like Pittsburgh it can be used to help support the growth that is already occurring. Buffalo would be no different.

Agreed - and looking at other stadiums - Buffalo would be no different - you have the 190 sitting right there - part of the infrastructure would be to add probably a new entrance/exit ramp right near some parking - could be around Michigan Ave. you could also add a 190 to Skyway turn just north of Main Street and now immediately with little change you have 190 N and S to 90 and the Skyway. Plus there is already a rail turn around by the Harbor Center already - so you have easy ability for light rail/metro line to the east. Need to create a stop. There are also already several parks in the area around 1st ward district and perry - that is already city owned property. I don’t know if this is where they will build or not and I don’t really care as long as we get a nice new stadium someplace. I just do not see the issues others see - I see a lot of potential to create an area like many other cities with all of the arenas within a small radius - all using similar infrastructure and planning.

I disagree with your first part. I think the Bills FO has probably been pretty straight forward with McCoy. I think they discussed potential trading partners last year and probably again this year, but they see value in McCoy above what they can get in trade.

You do realize pretty much every major city in the NE (almost across the US) are on some type of major water way right. That is why the cities were built there. The lakes and rivers that you are talking about limiting Buffalo - look at Cleveland, Chicago, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, etc. They all managed to find ways to build Downtown stadiums right on their waterfronts. Several of them have multiple Stadiums in the same area - to use the same infrastructure. All of these cities also had the exact same trends as Buffalo and most major cities - families moving to the suburbs for years. The difference - many of these cities began moving major events back downtown and building up the city and now more and more people are moving back into the city because of the growth. Buffalo is seeing the exact same trend - younger families/couples with disposable income grabbing apartments downtown to be near Canalside for festivals, to be right in the heart of the rebuild and enjoy life. People are correct in that a venue for football only has a limited number of uses per year and does little to bring in the money that it costs to build, but as cities like Pittsburgh have shown - it can be a big part of the revitalization of the area and can bring in businesses like bars, restaurants, casinos, hotels, etc. that help stabilize the areas and keep the growth. Putting a stadium in OP is fine for the fans, but it does nothing to enhance the area. Little has grown around the stadium because there is nothing there M-Sat. There is already growth in the downtown area that has been going for years with people working M-F and events on Sat/Sun. Supporting that growth helps and yes it will cost more, but somehow every major city finds ways to do exactly that many times with worse areas to work with.

I would assume Eric is very familiar with these rules as he has tried to get credentials in the past and was unable to. I always assumed that was part of the reason he signed on with the athletic- to hope to get one of their credentials. I have not seen anything on there by Eric since the end of last season - so maybe his gig is up or maybe they got a similar notice to Jeremy White. I would assume like with Jeremy White - if the person using the all 22 on an official media platform like WGR without consent - they will get hit by the NFL. Freestyle bloggers are below the NFL radar it seems as that is common, but my guess is the NFL pressures things like you tube to prevent and block downloads of the NFL property - similar to videos only playing on you tube - not on a website like this after a short period.

Well as this is not the teams first deep dive into what to do with the stadium - I would suggest “They” is the team and the city who have been doing different studies for about 15 years on what can and can not be done. Since the team and the city are the principal people that will be making the final decision- I think their interests are very high on the overall discussion of what will occur. I do not understand at all why you would suggest that the 2 parties involved in the decision would not look at their overall goals as a guiding point to the decision? Their goals would be a part of the defining of the scope and breath of what they want to look at. Yes - any stadium downtown would require infrastructure changes - it would also have to be something that works during the week to recover money other than just for sporting events. Luckily the land for a light rail line is already owned and lines already exist going down and back to several spots. They would need upgrading and in some spots a second line added, but it can be done. Currently there is one line up through Amherst and 1 line down through the south towns so you would have 2 major prongs to come from - North and East could hit Amherst near the 190 and 90. South towns and over could use the steel plant area with Route 5 and 90 right there to move people in and out. I am not saying it would be easy or cheap, but it is an option. Most people object to Downtown because of the assumed parking issues based upon Sabre’s games. I just do not think that is a factor because I do not think they will make enough parking for that. The expectations will be that the vast majority of fans for all stadiums get there from mass lots outside of downtown area. Then it becomes land acquisition which will be interesting. This is why I do not expect a final decision on this for years as the city and the Pegulas look to buy up land they want. A decision can’t be truly discussed because of the lease for a bit - they will extend the lease for a couple of years to allow building of the stadium wherever. We will see what the final decision is - but I do not think any decision will be made lightly. They will come up with a decision and a plan to get things done.

With Uber you do not need 4+ hours of parking spaces. People use it all the time in other cities - why would it not work here. You create a small Uber lot with a exit at a light for pick-up and drop off. I have used it for Baseball and Hockey In Philly. Football in Indy. It worked well as long as it is thought out. If you use mass transit to move a majority of the people - like they do for other downtown arenas- Uber will work. If you do not expand your mind and you look at things only as they are right now with 80,000 fans all with cars right there - then it won’t work as well. A downtown arena would require a different set-up than the OP set-up - that is obvious. The difference in getting in and out must be addressed and it has to be something that works for people during the week also. So a light rail line with parking outside the city - can be used for both daily commuters and weekend games. Services like Uber work to move people around without the need for long term parking helps and works great in cities with limited parking. Everything I suggested was legitimate things discussed and used in other cities- why is Buffalo different. Open your mind a bit and travel - see how other places do things with downtown stadiums and maybe you can have a real discussion about options.

I do not need to say anything. The NFL has defined it and the teams have their own additional rules. See the Dallas media guidelines as an example.

Nope - not in the NFLs eyes. Sorry

Yes and the athletic already received their allotted press credentials- they have Mathew Fairburn, Tim Graham, and Joe B already credential and on staff - so the fact that he is on the athletic has no bearing at all.

This is crazy. He is not a professional scout or writer - he is an internet blogger. He is one of millions of guys that does what he does. Is he good - sometimes, but that does not mean he should get press credentials. Giving him press would be the absolute wrong thing to do because it sets a precedent that any stupid blogger can force their way into credentials. That is how you get the idiots at the Super Bowl press day. If you don’t think the Bills care about their fans - with everything they do - that is on you. Not giving Cover 1 credentials has nothing to do with the fans or with Erik. It is keeping within the guidelines to ensure that legitimate people get in and keep out the random bloggers that are everywhere.

Really - you think it would be cheaper? They have studied it for years and have already stated they cannot widen the concourses because of the upper deck supports. The lower concourses are restricted by the upper deck supports and the upper concourses are limited by their design. It is the same issue with the bathrooms - the available piping and water infrastructure within the concourses was nearly maxed - to expand they had to move newer bathrooms out into open areas that could be dug and plumbed - the concourses we’re maxed out. They also talk yearly about the issues with electrical and video limitations due to size of the openings in the concrete structure. It is part of the reason they do not get many home Sunday or Monday night games. They lack the infrastructure to be able to expand to handle the increased cameras and views for those games. They addressed that as best they could with the last upgrades, but without basically ripping everything apart they were nearly maxed out. From a fans perspective at your seats the games are great. The food, concourses, bathrooms, etc. are all lacking and those are things that the team and the city have said are maxed out because of the original design. Even the issue with trying to cover the upper deck - even with smaller coverage is that to support it - you need support beams and that suddenly gives obstructive views. It will detract from the experience. I do not see any way they remodel the stadium. The stadium will be new and updated to handle these issues. The question becomes what is the goal for the city and the Pegulas - is it keeping traditional tail gating and fan experience? Then build near the current stadium. I believe if they are looking to create a different experience and enhance the city and their property downtown- then building a stadium downtown will be the way to go. Then it is just an issue of deciding how you want to move people and enhancing the rail line is an easy way to help both during the week and during the games. You could even allow tailgating at these rail lots either up by UB or down route 5 where the steel plants used to be and keep some of the experience. There is a ton of open spaces on rail lines to be used and the money generated could help offset some costs. I would not not expect them to look at infrastructure to get 60-80,000 fans out of downtown after a game. I would expect that they have parking for about 15-20,000 fans downtown- similar to a Sabre’s game. That means 30-40,000 by rail and some by bus routes/Uber. The big loss will be the RV lot - hoping to be replaced by hotel rooms right there and access to food, drinks, and the casino.

Basically exactly what I said earlier - this is such a non-issue and has nothing to do with the NFL front office or them trying to do anything. Clearly stated - the testing team automatically flags contracts where it has been >12 months. Not a league guy deciding this, but an independent organization. As I said - I believe they have a way to input these and not flag and something was missed. It it should be a non-issue or a positive that this oversight is in place.

Yeah - I just do not see the Big deal here. The NFL does not decide who gets drug tested - it is outside their control. When the info got entered - I am sure they have a way to flag things as 1 day fake contracts and this was probably missed - so it goes into the system - flags as >12 months and therefore becomes a nearly automatic testing needed. I look at this as a positive meaning these guys can’t fake retire miss a few weeks/4 months of testing and come back and not get immediately tested. Note: not sure what you are confused about sunshower - read the article and understand that it is an independent organization that runs the drug screens - not the NFL and there are CBA agreed criteria for testing and one is if it has been >12 months since the last test a flag automatically comes up.

Whether Crazy Carl says it or not - that is one of the major areas that was being discussed and makes a ton of sense with the other Pegula buildings in the area. If they extend the “subway” and the rail line - you could funnel the people in and out and maintain space for 20,000 people parking around the stadium. Plus with the hotels, food, bars, and casino - there are things to do after the game to enjoy the area. However they want to do it - there is already the beginning of growth in that area and using the stadium to help expand and solidify the growth makes sense. Using some of the harbor for Sept and October “parking” is another option and would make for some beautiful shots pre-game. With the Casino, the newer restaurants, and some of the newer hotels - a new stadium and probably some additional amenities would certainly add to the ambiance of the area. I get the appeal of a redo in Orchard Park, but I think that does the least for the long term viability and health of the team and the city. It makes so much more sense to continue the downtown push and then keep working on ways to bring additional companies into the fold. In the end - I don’t care - I will go to my 3 or 4 games a year - where they are and enjoy the game and the fans I love. I just hope as I get older - the facilities get better and more accommodating because the December games have gotten harder the last few years.

How about Peterman - he is in Roethlisberger class right? Practically the same arm strength, but Peterman is more mobile. Sarcasm off.

You could be absolutely correct. It also could have a lot to do with Brown being even better than expected at route running. I know many people thought it would be Brown at 1 WR and Foster at the other both running a bunch of go routes. I think Brown has shown versatility and both horizontal and vertical speed and they are using that. These routes are not as good for Foster and he is struggling. Late last year he was good on go routes and deep crossing and out routes, but seemed to struggle with other route combos. I think they want to get his attention and get him to “evolve” into a more complete WR. He needs to learn and get better at other routes and now is the time. Knock him down a peg and rebuild his confidence throughout camp.

I think he was talking McCarron and leaving Peterman as the starter.

Only because it was a weekend. Flagship station by backside. What a joke.

I found it interesting - mostly the fact that listening to coaches and players talk about the unmeasurable value. The fact that a good and efficient run game puts a bigger defense on the field to help open up the passing game and changes defenses scheme. Similarly a good passing attack can do the same thing for a teams running game. This is one of the reasons I like McD’s defensive approach to long athletic LBs - they can play both the run and the pass without much change helping the defense hide their intentions even a limited amount and gives some flexibility.

Beasley is also really good at running option routes and it is imperative that he and the QB see things the same way. I think Beasley is probably truly open on every play, but at specific times like right out of a break and it takes a lot of communication to ensure they see each other and can get into the right throw.

It is really hard on Day 1 of TC to even get the slightest clue on what an OLine or a DLine guy actually does. With no pads and no serious contact - the linemen are just learning simple technique. I know Astro said a few nice things, but listening to guys like Sal - he basically said there was no real point in watching interior linemen until the pads go on. Several guys did mention Hughes because of his speed, but that was it. Sal and Chris Brown also mentioned that Ford got the start because he was healthy throughout the minicamps and was the only RT not to miss time. He did not read much into Ford starting Day 1 unless it repeatedly happens throughout camp. On the other hand - Phillips was healthy throughout the minicamps and therefore should be ahead of Oliver with a years experience in the system and not missing time. I am not reading anything into Day 1, but if it does not change by Game 3 of the preseason - then people have some cause to wonder.

Yep - they also had Brandon Beane on earlier. That’s it. These guys are not always great, but they are significantly better than Schopp.

Had to change my radio.com app to the Rochester station. Not much better, but Schopp is just being stupid.

To me the first question is by what measure? Yards/points/plays/3 rd down efficiency? I think the Bills will field an excellent defense by most of those measures - probably top 5 in many categories and that is how I voted. I don’t think they are quite physical enough to be #1 across most categories. I think they will field a top flight pass defense and a good run defense. If the special teams and offense help out - then they could be great.