Article bashing Ralph

[birdog1960]

Buffalo would not have a team if not for Ralph Wilson in 1959. Does he always spend money wisely on players? No. Does he always hire the best management or coaches? No. Has he always stood up for small market teams? Yes. Has he kept the team in Buffalo even through the worst economic times Buffalo has experienced not just this current time? Yes. Yes, he has made a profit over the years from the fans filling the stadium and even for the deal to play a couple games in Toronto. He's a businessman. But he didn't slink out of town like Ersay, or move to from one city and then back like Davis.

So, relative to those ass####s, he's a great man, right? Uh, ok, I'll buy that.

[billsfreak]

You are comparing Ralph Wilson to a terrorist? Fantastic!

He has been terrorizing Bills fans for quite a few years now. Read the whole post and you might see the sarcasm in that statement. Just making my point that serving in WWII has absolutely nothing to do with running an NFL franchise the correct way-and that is more than obvious.

[billsfreak]

Ralph has his faults, but he deserves a little more respect than that fatass dork gives him. The dude is a WWII vet, and HAS committed himself to Buffalo, and has some of the lowest ticket prices in the NFL. He deserves more respect than that article gives, and is service in WWII makes him more man than the author will ever be.

 

Link? (I just had to do it, have seen so many retarded post just saying "Link?"). The same people that post their opinions want a link for everyone elses.

[Bob in STL]

I blame TD million times more for this decade than I do Ralph. And everyone (if this board existed back then) was falling all over themselves with praise when we hired TD. He was thought of as one of the best at the time and RW gave him full control. He let a great DT walk when he wanted to stay in Buffalo. He draft a 1st round QB that wasn't the answer. That sets franchises back for years. The last few years are all of a result of fixing the mess TD made.

 

 

So true. I never liked the fact that TD and Greggo dismissed the Bills winning tradition. Greggo was an extension of the arrogant TD. No wonder why TD loved the way he interviewed. Greggo bragged about how his defense was #1, while the Bills defense under Wade was rated #2. Big deal.

 

TD was thought to be an inspired chioce and after he failed he found it convenient to blame Ralph. No wonder why the Rooney's picked Cowher over TD in Pitts burgh. So what is TD doing these days? He has not been hired as a GM by anyone else.

[Bob in STL]

Did he really compare the October snowstorm to Katrina? Really? Holy !@#$.

 

Really. Some broken trees compare to the devastation of Katrina. Calling Ralph a blood sucker.

 

The writer should be fined for stupidity.

[Snorom]

Ralph deserves every ounce of crap we spew on him. I patiently await the day he is no longer invoilved with the Bills... even if that means no more Buffalo

[Fezmid]

Link? (I just had to do it, have seen so many retarded post just saying "Link?"). The same people that post their opinions want a link for everyone elses.

 

An opinion doesn't need a link, since it's an opinion. A fact should be backed up with a link/evidence.

[CountDorkula]

Ralph deserves every ounce of crap we spew on him. I patiently await the day he is no longer invoilved with the Bills... even if that means no more Buffalo

 

Im SO sick of this Let me enjoy my damn Buffalo Bills. If you want the Bills to move out of Buffalo then you are nto a true Bills fan.

 

I will enjoy watchig MY TEAM play whether at the stadium or at my house. WHy because it lets me forget about s t for a couple hours and lets me focus on things other than my life. Damn so of you people are just plain stupid...

[birdog1960]

Ralph owes us? Really?

 

NEWS FLASH - the Bills franchise is a commodity that is PRIVATELY OWNED. Ralph owes us NOTHING.

let me make an analogy that counters your argument:

A woman finishes top medical training with the idealistic notion of starting a rural practice. She establishes said privately owned business in an area with few other doctors. She almost immediately has patients knocking down her door to see her and has offers from much larger communities offering better pay and hours. She chooses to stay where she believes she's most needed but with the great demand, she could easily "phone it in" and not keep up to date on new developments or go to long, tiring medical meetings or maintain long hours. The patients would still come. She would still make a good living. She believes she owes it to her patients to provide them the best care she can. After 50 years, she realizes that her skills have faded and she recruits her replacement who takes over a very successful practice. She retires a local hero. Ralph would probably think her stupid and naive.

[Fezmid]

True, Benson was going to leave, but you forget that the Superdome was wrecked and there was reasonable reason to believe that NO, devestated by the hurricane, would not recover to the point that a team would be viable economically. Compare that to Ralph who the same year as Katrina wiped out another owner's city, was moaning and groaning about how hard it was to field a team in poor old WNY---while he pocketed $31 million in profit. Was Benson the only owner in League history who would be forced to watch his investment get washed out because of a massive natural disaster? WTF?

 

Not sure which year you saw him make $31M in profit -- I'm not doubting it, I just didn't see it.

 

In '07, the team only made $14.M according to Forbes:

 

http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/30/sports...lls_301765.html

[Fezmid]

let me make an analogy that counters your argument:

A woman finishes top medical training with the idealistic notion of starting a rural practice. She establishes said privately owned business in an area with few other doctors. She almost immediately has patients knocking down her door to see her and has offers from much larger communities offering better pay and hours. She chooses to stay where she believes she's most needed but with the great demand, she could easily "phone it in" and not keep up to date on new developments or go to long, tiring medical meetings or maintain long hours. The patients would still come. She would still make a good living. She believes she owes it to her patients to provide them the best care she can. After 50 years, she realizes that her skills have faded and she recruits her replacement who takes over a very successful practice. She retires a local hero. Ralph would probably think her stupid and naive.

Your analogy doesn't make any sense because there's no proof anywhere that Ralph doesn't want to win games and doesn't hire people that he thinks will help the team win. Just because many of the choices haven't panned out doesn't mean there's a a lack of effort. If he was really just "phoning it in," then the team wouldn't consistently be in the middle of the pack every year, they'd be picking top-3 every season.

[Doc]

Ralph deserves every ounce of crap we spew on him. I patiently await the day he is no longer invoilved with the Bills... even if that means no more Buffalo

The above post reaches new heights of stupidity.

[ntjacks79]

I agree. My only real beef with Ralph is that he doesn't know how to pick good personel to steer the ship and recognize good personel when he sees it. I have no problem with him taking a game to Toronto for more money.

 

I was in Baltimore when the press was very harsh toward Bob Irsay. Called him every name in the book. When Irsay moved the Colts to Indianapolis, those same members of the press where saying we couldn't care less. About 2 years later when the NFL showed no interest in bringing football back to Baltimore the same members of the press were boo hooing about not having football in Baltimore. It took them 16 years to get football back. They treat the owners quite differently now. The lesson there was "Don't bite the hand that gives you football".

We may not be to crazy about some of the things RW does but we certainly don't want to go down the same path Baltimore went down.

I hear you - but I completely cannot understand how Bills fans keep ignoring the obvious... the Bills are GIVING AWAY home field advantage for 1/8 of their season via the Toronto fiasco!! If this was such a great idea, why don't other teams do it? I'll tell you why... because they actually care about winning.

While language in this article is harsh toward Ralph, and the WNY storm in comparison to Katrina is a joke, his points about the Toronto situation are extremely accurate and I think, not worded strongly enough.

[stuckincincy]

Your analogy doesn't make any sense because there's no proof anywhere that Ralph doesn't want to win games and doesn't hire people that he thinks will help the team win. Just because many of the choices haven't panned out doesn't mean there's a a lack of effort. If he was really just "phoning it in," then the team wouldn't consistently be in the middle of the pack every year, they'd be picking top-3 every season.

 

Perhaps - but being in the middle of the pack is a decent way to have the stands filled year in and year out. As is drafting a spiffy RB - as in McGahee with a serviceable Travis Henry on board, and a Marshawn Lynch with a serviceable McGahee on board. RB is an exciting position - get a new one in the fold and watch the turnstiles spin...

[Fezmid]

I hear you - but I completely cannot understand how Bills fans keep ignoring the obvious... the Bills are GIVING AWAY home field advantage for 1/8 of their season via the Toronto fiasco!! If this was such a great idea, why don't other teams do it? I'll tell you why... because they actually care about winning.

 

The Packers did it in the 90s when they had games in Milwaukee.

[Fezmid]

RB is an exciting position - get a new one in the fold and watch the turnstiles spin...

Yeah, but CB isn't an exciting position, and we get a lot of those.

[BillnutinHouston]

I hear you - but I completely cannot understand how Bills fans keep ignoring the obvious... the Bills are GIVING AWAY home field advantage for 1/8 of their season via the Toronto fiasco!! If this was such a great idea, why don't other teams do it? I'll tell you why... because they actually care about winning.

While language in this article is harsh toward Ralph, and the WNY storm in comparison to Katrina is a joke, his points about the Toronto situation are extremely accurate and I think, not worded strongly enough.

 

Ralph agreed to the Toronto venture as a result of the realization that he has tapped out a dying market and needed other sources of revenue APART from WNY. Do you think he WANTS to give away home field advantage? Of course not. He has determined he must in order to survive.

 

Answer me this please. If Ralph is such a blood sucker, why has he NEVER demanded a new stadium from NYS? Why did he also not do so back 10 years ago when HE requested renovations as opposed to a new stadium?

[Bob in STL]

let me make an analogy that counters your argument:

A woman finishes top medical training with the idealistic notion of starting a rural practice. She establishes said privately owned business in an area with few other doctors. She almost immediately has patients knocking down her door to see her and has offers from much larger communities offering better pay and hours. She chooses to stay where she believes she's most needed but with the great demand, she could easily "phone it in" and not keep up to date on new developments or go to long, tiring medical meetings or maintain long hours. The patients would still come. She would still make a good living. She believes she owes it to her patients to provide them the best care she can. After 50 years, she realizes that her skills have faded and she recruits her replacement who takes over a very successful practice. She retires a local hero. Ralph would probably think her stupid and naive.

 

 

Wrong on so many levels.

[birdog1960]

Wrong on so many levels.

care to be a little more specific? I didn't intend to write an allegory. It was a simple analogy meant to be taken on its face.

[Bob in STL]

care to be a little more specific? I didn't intend to write an allegory. It was a simple analogy meant to be taken on its face.

 

 

Well your analogy could be interpreted this way. Ralph is the doctor. Buffalo is the town. The fans are the patients. Ralph stays in town, just like the doctor. Ralph turns down other and greater opportunities, just like the doctor. Ralph is recognized in the town as a hero, just like the doctor ... except in your world Ralph is a bad guy because why? He doesn't win enough? He lacks the benefit of 20-20 hindsight that you possess? He has made mistakes? He is old? Some of the above? All of the above?