clearwater cadet Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 I'm a Bills fan living in New England, I was driving to work today, when I heard former Pats Qb Scott Zolak taking to Carl Banks on his radio show, Zolak was talking about how terrible the old Meadow Lands stadium was. He then went on to say that Buffalo by far the worst place to ever play. I didn't get the impression he was talking about the fans or the weather. It seems he was bashing the Ralph. Banks sort of agreed. I've been a season ticket holder for the Bills for many many year, I've traveled to Buffalo frequently for the last 10 years for games. I've been to 4-5 other nfl stadiums. Other then not having a bunch of fancy consession stands, (which I thought no really cares about after 3 hours of tail gating), I also thought the Ralph was ok. Has anyone else ever heard the anything else bad about the Ralph. The field seem well maintained, they changed the turf 2 or 3 times in the last 10 years to stay updated. I've never heard anything bad about the locker rooms or training areas. Has anyone else heard anything? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albany,n.y. Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 Without hearing it, I get the impression he was talking about playing in the wind. The Ralph & the old Giants Stadium are notorious for unpredictable winds, making a QB's job very tough. They're also no fun for kickers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buffalobillsfootball Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 I live in Boston and always listen to the Sports Hub (98.5) - wish Buffalo had a radio station like this... I never listen to WGR's sister station here anymore... Anyhow, I didn't hear them ever bash the Ralph (not saying they didn't) but I have heard them put down our location for being too difficult to get IN or OUT via traffic. Excuse me - but how how many roads lead to Gilette Stadium? Why do fans leave at the start of the fourth quarter in New England?? It's to beat the horific, one way in / one way out option called Foxhole. ps: Patriot Place is a joke - worst designed / set up ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoretalk Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 My out of town friends have always been impressed with the sight lines and comfort of the stadium. Almost all have loved the ambiance outside the stadium in the Abbott Road lots. What they have not liked is the weather, the rest rooms, and the number of people who stand for most of the game blocking views. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rpcolosi Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 My out of town friends have always been impressed with the sight lines and comfort of the stadium. Almost all have loved the ambiance outside the stadium in the Abbott Road lots. What they have not liked is the weather, the rest rooms, and the number of people who stand for most of the game blocking views. when it comes to the Ralph, see Bill Simmon's article 2 years ago about the Bills-Cleveland MNF game. It's a loud place, everyone can see the field, average joes can sit in the bottom bowl, its loud, etc. It has everything a fan and hometown player would want in a stadium. 2 bit guys on boston radio aren't doing much to change that opinion of mine... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talley56 Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 I've just heard people say that they think it is old but I went to my first Bills game (from out of town) a few months ago and I thought it was fine. I also think it's in a great area in the suburbs instead of downtown in the congestion of a city like other stadiums are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ieatcrayonz Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 He then went on to say that Buffalo by far the worst place to ever play. I didn't get the impression he was talking about the fans or the weather..... Other then not having a bunch of fancy consession stands, During Zolak's "career" he probably was back and forth to the concession stands a lot during games. I wouldn't be too surprised if this is how he ranked them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffal0 Bill5 Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 I'm gonna pull out the old Super Techmo Bowl and beat Zolak's head in for this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr_Blizzard Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 The Ralph is no Turner Field, but it's not a bad place to watch a football game. Sure, it would be nice to have a state of the art stadium, but it is functional and most of the seats offer a good view (other than low end-zone seats). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SF Bills Fan Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 I don't think that he was talking from a fan and amenity perspective, but more likely the elements and noise. Lots of players have said they hated playing there for those reasons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyDingo Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 I hear some ruffians at the Ralph sometimes are wont to relieve themselves in the parking facility or, daresay, the restroom sinks. Filthy rapscallions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldstorage5 Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 (edited) I live in Croton Ny. 30 miles from NYC. In some ways its easier to go to Orchard park Ny, than in is going to the new Meadowlands. Leaving the Ralph is a breeze compared to NJ. I can drive from the ralph something like 390 miles and get home in 7 hrs (Straight High way, 75-80 mph). There have been times it took me 3 hrs to go 40 miles from the Meadowlands home. ( you gotta take a bus, to the far away parking lot, then sit in traffic getting out of the lot,, then hrs more traffic getting to the bridge, then more traffic croosing over the bridge.) The ralph is fine. its the product of the draft that equals losing football teams. We all know thats the issue. 10 years of horrible drafts, not The Ralph. Edited January 15, 2011 by coldstorage5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_franchise Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 Bring back the Marlboro ad and the old endzones. I got to walk through the suites, locker room, practice field, on the field, and the front office area a few years back. I was more than impressed with everything in there. Maybe i'm biased, but looking up at the seats from the field was probably one of the top five greatest sights I've witnessed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sullim4 Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 The Ralph is OK - it kinda sits in the middle for me as NFL stadiums go. I've seen games at the old Meadowlands, Lincoln Financial Field, and Lambeau. I'd put RWS behind Lambeau and LFF, but vastly ahead of the old Meadowlands: Pros: - Great sightlines - I don't know that there is a bad seat in the entire stadium. - The areas that have actual individual seats are actually pretty comfortable. - The fans that aren't drunk are typical Buffalonians - some of the nicest people you'll find and very knowledgeable about the team. Cons: - Outside of the club seats, the bathroom situation is awful. - Fan behavior can be very poor in the cheap rockpile seats and high in the upper deck. - The abundance of tailgating has caused the catering company to mail it in, resulting in food that just doesn't taste good. It'd be nice if they at least tried. - They should make the entrances to the stadium something more than a friggin chain link fence. There is so much history attached to this franchise, and other teams have done things like add plazas that honor past teams and players amongst other things. Our stadium from the outside looks like ass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I hate the Bills ! Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 Th bathrooms were awful at the ralph, its been a few years since I have been there so maybe they changed, but I remember a big long trough where guys stood and pissed it seemed like it was always half ful I think because the drainage was bad. Was so bad guys used to piss in the round sinks instead - NO class ! As a whole The Ralph is outdated when you compare it all the new stadiums like Dallas, NY etc. If the Tax payers could afford it a new stadium would be great but they cant ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T master Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 Seeing as probably 55 percent of the taxes in NY state go to keep the black hole known as NYC a float & that most of the monies for the New Meadowlands stadium came from the rest of the state of NY (more than likely) instead of Jersey. Does it really surprise any of us that the tax payers that live in Western NY will probably never see a new stadium for the Bills ?? If the politicains in NY would allow the people to keep more than a mere .36 of every dollar they make the whole state would be a lot better off . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldstorage5 Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 Seeing as probably 55 percent of the taxes in NY state go to keep the black hole known as NYC a float & that most of the monies for the New Meadowlands stadium came from the rest of the state of NY (more than likely) instead of Jersey. Does it really surprise any of us that the tax payers that live in Western NY will probably never see a new stadium for the Bills ?? If the politicains in NY would allow the people to keep more than a mere .36 of every dollar they make the whole state would be a lot better off . Nyc Make the country Trillions of dollars so stop with the black hole stuff....Yes it is BS how NE and NJJ and NJG get state of the art stadiums. NY State will never let the Bills leave, they will keep refurbing the Ralph. Which is fine with me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANCOCK Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 they probably meant how the ralph was pre 1999. the field before 1999 was crap.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogbyte Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 (edited) I remeber Bledsoe said, that there was 2 things about the Ralph, that he did not like. 1: It was the only crowned field left in the NFL. The middle of the field is about 12 inches higher than the edge of the field. This was done for drainge. I wonder if this is one of the reasons, we get players hurt a lot. 2: It does not have heating pipes under the field. In winter the field freezes and get really hard. Edited January 15, 2011 by dogbyte Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 I remeber Bledsoe said, that there was 2 things about the Ralph, that he did not like. 1: It was the only crowned field left in the NFL. The middle of the field is about 12 inches higher than the edge of the field. This was done for drainge. I wonder if this is one of the reasons, we get players hurt a lot. 2: It does not have heating pipes under the field. In winter the field freezes and get really hard. I imagine both of these, the old field being tuuurrrrrible, the wind, and I bet the visiting lockerrooms may have been nice but compared to other stadiums much less comfortable. Things like concessions and sightlines probably don't much effect a visiting player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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