slipkid

Like someone said, that jumbo play was fun to watch. It felt unstoppable, especially in this clip. All this is to say that I need a post in memory of Mom. She used to babysit Don Criqui.

Aaaah to be young again. None of those kids lived through Game 6. Good for them.

Fun story about #2. I just started working in a small town in western Minnesota that in September 1992 and met a super-cool woman who got my sense of humor and humored me about about the Bills and Sabres. She wasn’t a sports fan—an artist—but she got my thing. By 1993, we were dating pretty pretty seriously, and I visited her family for Thanksgiving. We were in the Mall of America in Minneapolis X-Mas shopping and got ourselves these full-length insulated Australian duster coats—it’s waaay colder out in the by Fargo than where her parents lived in southeastern Minnesota. Just as we walked out of the store, some dude offered us tickets to the Minnesota North Stars game that just started across the road. I talked her into it. We went—and she was in! So, of course, I bought tickets for the Jets game for our day after the pressure-filled Christmas she had to spend with my family in Buffalo. And the insulated Australian dusters (and accessories) kept us happily comfortable. After 26 years of marriage, we’ll watch together Saturday night. POSTSCRIPT: They interviewed Steve Christie after the game about his field goal, and he said that it was “like kicking a brick. I knew Corey couldn’t do it from 42 before they snapped the ball.”

I noticed this earlier this year. CBS still seems to be carrying the majority of AFC games, and Fox the majority of NFC games, but every so often CBS carries an NFC game vice versa. I think I noticed when the WFT at Buffalo game was on CBS and should have been on Fox (as WFT was the road team). I’m sorry if this has been asked already, but when/why the shift in coverage?

The 18-week season pushed the schedule into mid-January, and the Bills played half their home schedule in December-January. I’m guessing that didn’t help with the weather.

I did not know that. A kicker? Wow! Different times. i think Mosely was the last successful “straight-on” kicker (not “soccer style).

How has Gary Marangi not been mentioned yet?

I’m still not certain why Indy went for it on fourth and goal from the three. Then the Bills got three (correct) reviews on the ensuing two-minute TD drive to end the half. A lesser-coached team would have folded the tents going into the second. Good on Frank for coaching ‘em up. i suspect we’re into a similar game tomorrow.

To each their own, I guess. I pretty much lurk, also, and enjoy the Spags banter. It’s better, though, when he hangs around the thread longer and replies to a few posts.

As others have implied, it’s best not to speak of such things.

Naaaaaah, Gene. As someone who was born a few days before the Bills' final AFL championship in 1965 and who works with the younger generation, I can admit that the "Bills Mafia" thing gave me hackles at first. But take a closer look at what it does rather than its name. We've lived through the 0 for the seventies with the Dolphins, the optimism of the Chuck Knox era, the Kay Stephenson/Hank Bullough years, the four Super Bowls, the Pats, the drought, etc. We have nothing to apologize for. At the same time, let these "kids" have their fun and enjoy the ride, whether or not we think "mafia" is ideal.

Yep. But it’s not social media, per se. It’s the problem with giving something for free while still wanting to creat billionaire tech entrepreneurs. The only option is to depend on advertising revenue. Then, we become the product and the advertisers are the customer. The result is that “journalists” have to create clickbait to be in business. I don’t have a subscription, but the $1/month user fee for The Athletic is working toward a solution—a small user-fee reduces the reliance on advertising and makes people at least a bit more of a customer.

Kinda. They don’t wanna have a 12-year-old little league kid get taunted by the bigger kid emulating his NFL hero.

Near the end of the game, the play-by-play guy said something to the effect of “the Buffalo Bills will have a happy flight home.” To which Millen replied, “Yep. Until they land in Buffalo and reality hits.” I’ll go ahead and hope he was talking about prep for next week—gotta be gracious when interpreting the guy.

One of my former students down here in SC is probably an “average” fan. A few years ago, she didn’t watch football at all, but after she graduated, her friends in Augusta would meet in a sports bar. They were Falcons or Panthers fans, so she joined in and happened to catch the coverage of Kyle Williams and kids celebrating Boyd’s TD. She got excited, read up on the Bills, thought of me and better understood, and texted me something like “Go Bills! The playoffs! New fan here—won’t miss a game.” Then she watched “Four Falls of Buffalo,” and as far as I know, hasn’t missed a game since. I do know for certain, however, she couldn’t name more than a half dozen players. All this is to say that the Bills have fans because of their fans. That’s pretty cool!

I watched here in SC with a buddy from the southern tier and his son who he inexplicable allowed to become a Bills fan after he was born two months after the BS in Tennessee. We used ti give the kid grief that the drought was on him: he used to use Billy Buffalo as an excuse, which I appreciated because Billy Buffalo became a thing at about 2000. And then I watched as he went nuts (as we all were) when Boyd caught a d turned upfield between the safeties. The kid was another generation. This was also when Bills Mafia became a national influence beyond drunks jumping through tables, but of a responsible, caring community. Go Bills! A few weeks away from actual news!

Thanks again Chandler. That was the first time I’ve seen this game. I was delivering pizzas for Marvino’s, listening to Van. It felt like everyone I knew ordered pizza and wings that day just to rub it in.

As always, thanks for the share. I recall War Memorial was in a rough neighborhood (=low income with its own problems) but don’t remember the fans being that tough on opponents. Then again, I went to only one game there as a kid and joined in on the, “Get Hadl dirty!” chant.

Thanks for the vids Chandler. I think you’re being kinda tough on Cookie, though. The man wanted his money. It’s not inconceivable that a black kid with a HS education was ripped off some. He might have held onto it too long, but I’ll take his word that he was ripped off. Now, I gotta search for the 2006 vid he notes. There are far too few Cookie highlights out there.

It feels like we need a running back to crack the top ten for a Super Bowl run. Interesting that none are on any lists and wouldn’t be on mine. My thinking is that Singletary, Moss, and Brejda will split time and none will have a breakout year, but the Bills need more production from that unit to take it to the next level. Josh isn’t gonna get away with doing it on his own this year—teams are waiting for him and the receiving corps.

I think it was raising the drinking age to 21 tied to federal transportation funding—something I learned while attending college in Ohio (drinking age=19) while spending summers in Buffalo (drinking age=21) in the mid-1980s. I was pissed when Ohio had to change to 21. It was then that I started to watch how politics works. For my first post on a 60+ page thread, I think we’re going waaaay off topic, and I apologize. That said, I’m glad I didn’t pipe in on anything “on topic.”

I remembered where it is! Seriously, message me if you want it. I recall it was a hot item for about a month. Now? The shipping cost feels close to “fair market value.” I believe it’s a medium, but I have to get home to check.

I have one somewhere. You can have it if I can find it.

Perhaps my favorite Bill as the team gained momentum through the late 1980s. RIP.

“What books have you finished reading, Billy Joe?”