Ralph Never Fails

[San Jose Bills Fan]

some of us love the bills despite wilson...i don't find that irrational at all. if you don't like the current president , is it irrational to still love your country?

 

This is exactly true and the same analogy I use all the time.

 

It's not contradictory at all to love the team and dislike the owner.

 

 

 

Not even close to a proper analogy. The President in this country is elected, the owner of an NFL franchise isn't. Therefore if you don't like the president you can vote in 4 years and actively do something about your displeasure. If you lived in a country where the president wasn't elected and you had to wait until he died for change then your analogy of whether you'd love your country then could be discussed.

In your opinion.

 

Are you familiar with the doctrine of determinism? People live their entire lives not liking the President of the United States.

 

The point is, with one vote, you have no real say in who becomes the President just as you have no say who the owner is. The fact of you having a vote does not change the fact that you have no real outcome in the election.

 

 

[benbillsfan]

(Rant incited by his bastardly 401k and pension stunt)

 

He just never fails to prove everyone right about how miserably cheap he is, and how counterproductive his actions are. I don't even say he has lost touch with the game anymore because that would insinuate that he ever had a clue in the first place. Our beloved Bills franchise is peppered with countless acts of stupidity that can be directly blamed on Ralph. Don't kid yourselves that he is anything more than a greedy owner.

 

His actions to help pioneer the AFL in the early days were his best contributions to the game, and they are well deserved, but they are also acts of a man protecting his investment at the time, and while I will always applaud him for those efforts, I am now ready for him to own up to his mess, stop trying to convince the world that NFL football is not economically viable in Buffalo, and allow a new owner with a passion for our city, and winning come in and get this dismal franchise back on track.

 

Look back at all the decisions he has made throughout the team's 50+ year history and try to not make any excuses for him while analyzing his decisions, and just see if it doesn't look like he was intentionally trying to fail. It's a business, I get it, you're in it to make money, yippee for you... and you(Ralph) have done that year in and year out without fail, but in the grand scheme of things, your decisions have produced only 17 out of a possible 51 playoff teams, and really 10 of those are due to Bill Polian, it becomes crystal clear that the bottom line and margin of profit are the only real concerns.

 

Margin of profits have given us the fans this blasphemous abomination I call the Toronto series. I guess 50k plus season ticket sales, record setting merchandise sales for sub par talent and lousy jersey designs weren't enough for us to take as fans, He had to give away one home game, just to cram his point down the world's throats that Buffalo needs that to survive. Sorry folks, WNY may not be Dallas or Miami(Thank Jesus in Heaven for that), this team has plenty of fan support, and a very large area in which to rely on to remain viable for decades to come, don't let ralphie pooh trick you that it's not.

 

I love this team and pray that we as fans get rewarded with a new owner in the mold of Terry Pegula, the city of Buffalo deserves it more than any other in the country, 50+ years of threats of moving and miserable decisions is about enough.

 

My rant, feel free to comment, bash, agree or post whatever you like, whether deserved or not, Ralph had this coming...

 

 

OHHH yes, and to punch just one more black eye to the faces of thousands of Bills fans everywhere, change the uniforms to something OTHER THAN the massively popular throwbacks that look timelessly classy to the butt-ugly, loserly 70's post Simpson era fodder. Thanks again.... seriously.... is this team a secret reality show?

 

 

 

are you really blaming a 92 year old for the decisions that he has obviously had to let others make..i bet when your 92 and there is a 92 PERCENT chance you wont see that age...someone is helping change your adult diapers let alone help you run a nfl franchise....lol your so off base on what this man is all about...you think he wants this...you actually think this is intentional..try this one for size...

 

Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. (born October 17, 1918) is the founder, owner and president of NFL's Buffalo Bills. He was one of the founding owners of the American Football League, the league that the NFL merged with in 1970. He is the oldest owner in the National Football League, at age 92. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on August 8, 2009.

 

 

graduated from the University of Virginia and attended the University of Michigan Law School. At the University of Virginia he joined the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He is a World War II veteran. After the war ended, he took over the successful insurance business of his father and invested in Michigan area mines and factories. He eventually purchased several manufacturing outlets, construction firms, and radio stations, and founded Ralph Wilson Industries.

 

A minority owner of the Detroit Lions, Wilson got wind of Lamar Hunt's plans for a new league, the American Football League, to challenge the NFL. He tried to put together a team in Miami, but was turned down. His next choice was Buffalo. In September 1959, Wilson sent Hunt a telegram with the words, "Count me in with Buffalo." He named his new team the Bills, after a previous team that had played in the All-America Football Conference from 1946 to 1949. On October 28, 1959 the Buffalo Bills officially became the seventh AFL team. Wilson made Professional Football a resounding success in a "small market," signing such stars as Cookie Gilchrist, Jack Kemp, and Tom Sestak and Hall of Famer Billy Shaw.

 

He was a guiding force in AFL policies that ensured success, such as gate and television revenue sharing; in 1961, with the rival Oakland Raiders in financial difficulty, Wilson loaned the club $400,000 and was also willing to loan money to Billy Sullivan of the Patriots. Wilson helped keep those franchises afloat, likely saving the entire league from folding. In November 1963, Wilson lobbied successfully to have American Football League games postponed the Sunday after President John F. Kennedy's assassination, while NFL games went on uninterrupted.

 

After the original naming rights deal on the Bills' current stadium expired in 1998, the facility's name was changed from Rich Stadium to Ralph Wilson Stadium. According to a recent article on msn.com, Wilson, described as "stubborn" has turned down numerous naming rights deals for the stadium [1]

 

Wilson continues to be one of the league's most outspoken owners. He was one of only two owners (the Cincinnati Bengals' Mike Brown being the other) to oppose the league's current collective bargaining agreement. He also negotiated a deal to have his team play home games in Toronto beginning in 2008.

 

Wilson maintains a permanent residence in Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan with his wife, Mary. He has three daughters, two of whom have involved in team business. Linda Bogdan (19482009), Pro Football's first female scout, was the franchise's Corporate Vice President up until her death. Another daughter, Christy Wilson Hofmann, currently serves as a consultant in the area of merchandising. The third daughter, Edith Wilson, is not involved with the franchise.

 

Ralph Wilson is a 1992 inductee of the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame.

 

The Hall of Fame game, played the day after the 2009 inductions, strayed from the usual AFC-NFC format and instead was contested by two original American Football League teams: the Buffalo Bills and the Tennessee Titans (formerly the Houston Oilers). This matchup was announced after Wilson was elected. The Titans' owner, Bud Adams, is also the only owner his team has ever had, and the two are the only living members of the "Foolish Club", the founders of the original eight AFL teams. Wilson and Adams are thetwo of only three men who have owned a Professional Football franchise continuously for fifty years (George Halas, who owned the Chicago Bears from 1920 until his death in 1983, is the third). The Hall of Fame game on Sunday, August 9, was a kickoff to the 2009 season, which would have been the 50th season of play for the AFL, if the NFL had not merged with it.

 

after all is said and done if you have owned anything for 50 years...and had any success with it at all i wonder what others wiould say about you...the bills have had a horrible draft for a decade plus and horrible pr dept, scouting dept, and things are turning around now....AFTER THE 92 YEAR OLD SAID HE IS TAKING HIS REIGNS BACK AGAIN....ralph thanks for everything you have brought the buffalo...i live in chicago born and raised and i love to travel to buffalo for games....im as die hard as it can get...when i am 92 i can only hope i am getting hugged by a 350 # d lineman that i am going to pay.....you say buffalo is just as a small market to the steelers and packers....lol you obviously dont see the money generated by those clubs...and by your post you probably couldnt comprehend it..INTENTIONALLY TRYING TO FAIL....ARE YOU HEARING YOURSELF...dude wtf kind of person invests his money for 50 years to something that is going to fail......ralph thanks...for a great character team...built on hard work....morals...and smarts....i hope to god we can bring you a championship before the good lord brings you home....stay strong for us my friend...their is a franchise that you built and rely on you....ill never forget that....FROM A REAL BILLS FAN...NOT LIVING IN BUFFALO....ps lets have our jerseys made into something that he created 30 years ago...and since he DIDNT REVERT BACK TO OLD TIMES and start a new chapter your upset....dude your either drunk as hell or just plain irrational....probably both.....get some sleep guy...

Edited June 3, 2011 by benbillsfan

[Buffalo Barbarian]

(Rant incited by his bastardly 401k and pension stunt)

 

He just never fails to prove everyone right about how miserably cheap he is, and how counterproductive his actions are. I don't even say he has lost touch with the game anymore because that would insinuate that he ever had a clue in the first place. Our beloved Bills franchise is peppered with countless acts of stupidity that can be directly blamed on Ralph. Don't kid yourselves that he is anything more than a greedy owner.

 

His actions to help pioneer the AFL in the early days were his best contributions to the game, and they are well deserved, but they are also acts of a man protecting his investment at the time, and while I will always applaud him for those efforts, I am now ready for him to own up to his mess, stop trying to convince the world that NFL football is not economically viable in Buffalo, and allow a new owner with a passion for our city, and winning come in and get this dismal franchise back on track.

 

Look back at all the decisions he has made throughout the team's 50+ year history and try to not make any excuses for him while analyzing his decisions, and just see if it doesn't look like he was intentionally trying to fail. It's a business, I get it, you're in it to make money, yippee for you... and you(Ralph) have done that year in and year out without fail, but in the grand scheme of things, your decisions have produced only 17 out of a possible 51 playoff teams, and really 10 of those are due to Bill Polian, it becomes crystal clear that the bottom line and margin of profit are the only real concerns.

 

Margin of profits have given us the fans this blasphemous abomination I call the Toronto series. I guess 50k plus season ticket sales, record setting merchandise sales for sub par talent and lousy jersey designs weren't enough for us to take as fans, He had to give away one home game, just to cram his point down the world's throats that Buffalo needs that to survive. Sorry folks, WNY may not be Dallas or Miami(Thank Jesus in Heaven for that), this team has plenty of fan support, and a very large area in which to rely on to remain viable for decades to come, don't let ralphie pooh trick you that it's not.

 

I love this team and pray that we as fans get rewarded with a new owner in the mold of Terry Pegula, the city of Buffalo deserves it more than any other in the country, 50+ years of threats of moving and miserable decisions is about enough.

 

My rant, feel free to comment, bash, agree or post whatever you like, whether deserved or not, Ralph had this coming...

 

 

OHHH yes, and to punch just one more black eye to the faces of thousands of Bills fans everywhere, change the uniforms to something OTHER THAN the massively popular throwbacks that look timelessly classy to the butt-ugly, loserly 70's post Simpson era fodder. Thanks again.... seriously.... is this team a secret reality show?

[BillsfaninFl]

In your opinion.

 

Are you familiar with the doctrine of determinism? People live their entire lives not liking the President of the United States.

 

The point is, with one vote, you have no real say in who becomes the President just as you have no say who the owner is. The fact of you having a vote does not change the fact that you have no real outcome in the election.

 

History does not agree with you. No, one person cannot decide who will be the Pres, but that's a good thing. But there have been a number of close elections that might have had a different outcome if the people who didn't think their vote influences the results had voted.

[xsoldier54]

If that's directed at me, are you saying that if what I have to say is negative, then I should quit watching them? If what I have to say goes against your views then I am to not come here to discuss the team I grew up with? Last time I checked this was, in fact a free speech society. Have a valid counter point my friend, or just go away.

 

I have every right to love the team, watch them, and hope for the best, but be utterly disgusted with the cantankerous and stingy owner, then voice my opinion on how I view the current state of said team.

 

How about coming up with proof that Ralph isn't a cheap NFL Owner(not a cheap charity giver PTR), and an excellent franchise manager, then rebut my statements, rather than take a few lame cheap shots that, in fact, make your post the very thing you accused mine to be.

Ralph is cheap. The Bills suck. The sky is falling. Blah Blah Blah. Heard it all before and find it very boring. You do have every right to love the team, but whining about the owner is just not productive. At the end of the day, he will still be the owner. It is what it is. Not sure what the point is. I get it. You don't like Ralph Wilson. So what?

[stony]

History does not agree with you. No, one person cannot decide who will be the Pres, but that's a good thing. But there have been a number of close elections that might have had a different outcome if the people who didn't think their vote influences the results had voted.

 

True, but the same can be said for the millions of people who know their vote does matter but choose not to vote because they are too lazy.

[ICanSleepWhenI'mDead]

There are plenty of opinions in the OP that I diasagree with. I think Ralph has his faults, but in my personal opinion his willingness to keep the Bills in Buffalo more than compensates for them. So I am generally a fan of his, but not blindly so. In the interest of factual accuracy . . .

 

try this one for size...

 

.....you say buffalo is just as a small market to the steelers and packers....lol you obviously dont see the money generated by those clubs...and by your post you probably couldnt comprehend it..

 

1. Whenever I see posts containing obvious "cut and paste" quotations without a link to the original source material it makes me wonder why. So I "tried it on for size" and found it didn't fit because it was too small. Your source was:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Wilson

 

Here's the part you edited out:

 

"However, the Buffalo Bills will be celebrating 50 years of playing professional football in Buffalo during the 2009 season. Mr. Wilson was officially inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, August 8, 2009 with ESPN Sports icon Chris Berman acting as his "presenter". Wilson was scheduled to receive his Hall of Fame ring in a halftime ceremony during the Bills game against the Cleveland Browns on October 11, 2009.[2] However, Wilson cancelled the event at the last moment, without notifying the press or fans, and no explanation was given. It was widely speculated that Wilson cancelled the event out of fear of being booed by Bills fans for the team's chronic poor performance on the field and a series of highly unpopular managerial decisions.[3]

 

Thoroughbred racing

 

Ralph Wilson has also been involved for a number of years in the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing both as a breeder and as an owner in France and the United States. He notably bred Santa Anita Derby winner, Jim French as well as two-year-old European susperstar Arazi, winner of the 1991 Breeders' Cup Juvenile and European Horse of the Year. [4] Another horse, Outta Here, raced in the 2003 Kentucky Derby and finished in seventh place."

 

2. As for your derisive comments about the revenues generated by the Bills in comparison to the Packers and Steelers, the best source I know of for that information is Forbes:

 

http://www.forbes.com/lists/2010/30/football-valuations-10_NFL-Team-Valuations_Revenue.html

 

For the 2009 season Forbes says:

 

Revenue

 

Steelers - - - $243 million

Packers - - - $242 million

Bills - - - - - $228 million

 

Operating Income (EBITDA)

 

Bills - - - - - $28.2 million

Steelers - - - $17.9 million

Packers - - - $ 9.8 million

 

At least for 2009, while Ralph had $14 or $15 million less in revenues (a difference of less than 7%), his operating income was almost three times that of the Packers, and a little less than twice that of the Steelers. The 7% revenue difference does NOT explain the success differential between the small market Bills, on the one hand, and the small market Steelers and Packers, on the other.

 

As I said, I'm generally a fan of Ralph's. But don't deride others' opinions if you don't have the facts, either.

Edited June 3, 2011 by ICanSleepWhenI'mDead

[San Jose Bills Fan]

History does not agree with you. No, one person cannot decide who will be the Pres, but that's a good thing. But there have been a number of close elections that might have had a different outcome if the people who didn't think their vote influences the results had voted.

Which history?

 

The history of people who live an entire life where they never liked the elected President of their country?

 

Look. This is getting ridiculously overcomplicated.

 

Is the analogy perfect? No. No analogy is perfect.

 

But is there a contradiction to liking a team but not its owner?

 

IMO, no.

 

I love the Bills but am very lukewarm about Wilson. And I'm far from being alone on this.

 

 

[Buftex]

Ralph is cheap. The Bills suck. The sky is falling. Blah Blah Blah. Heard it all before and find it very boring. You do have every right to love the team, but whining about the owner is just not productive. At the end of the day, he will still be the owner. It is what it is. Not sure what the point is. I get it. You don't like Ralph Wilson. So what?

 

If you are bored, just ignore? You seem confused.

[billsfreak]

This is exactly true and the same analogy I use all the time.

 

It's not contradictory at all to love the team and dislike the owner.

Exactly, how many Bengal fans do you think like Mike Brown? Good luck finding even one. Liking the owner and liking the team are two completely different things. So if someone has a problem with Bill Gates, they shouldn't use a computer with any Microsoft (windows) applications on it? If you think the CEO of General Motors is messed up, does that mean you can't drive a GM car? Bottom line is, the only thing over the past 2 decades that anyone can say positive about Ralph is that he kept the Bills in Buffalo, well that has been his only golden ticket for half a century now, time to move on from that issue and look at the facts. This is probably the worst run organization in the NFL, perennially one of the worst win/loss records, most players don't want to come here unless it is their only option. That all points to the owner, the only constant in the organization over this 2 decade debacle. Someone said Ralph doesn't owe the fans anything, well I disagree, if he expects the fans to put over their hard earned money for tickets, merchandise, etc., he owes it to he fans to at least make a solid effort to put a good team on the field and he hasn't really ever done that. The great teams of the nineties were pure luck on his part that he hired an unknown in Bill Polian who he eventually chased out of town for personal differences, just like he chased John Butler out of town and Wade Phillips who was the last coach to take us to the playoffs, and Ralph fought to get out of paying him what he owed him.

Edited June 3, 2011 by billsfreak

[K-9]

Exactly, how many Bengal fans do you think like Mike Brown? Good luck finding even one. Liking the owner and liking the team are two completely different things. So if someone has a problem with Bill Gates, they shouldn't use a computer with any Microsoft (windows) applications on it? If you think the CEO of General Motors is messed up, does that mean you can't drive a GM car? Bottom line is, the only thing over the past 2 decades that anyone can say positive about Ralph is that he kept the Bills in Buffalo, well that has been his only golden ticket for half a century now, time to move on from that issue and look at the facts. This is probably the worst run organization in the NFL, perennially one of the worst win/loss records, most players don't want to come here unless it is their only option. That all points to the owner, the only constant in the organization over this 2 decade debacle. Someone said Ralph doesn't owe the fans anything, well I disagree, if he expects the fans to put over their hard earned money for tickets, merchandise, etc., he owes it to he fans to at least make a solid effort to put a good team on the field and he hasn't really ever done that. The great teams of the nineties were pure luck on his part that he hired an unknown in Bill Polian who he eventually chased out of town for personal differences, just like he chased John Butler out of town and Wade Phillips who was the last coach to take us to the playoffs, and Ralph fought to get out of paying him what he owed him.

 

Right. Any success is pure luck and all failure is directly RW's fault.

 

Here's a novel idea; if you don't like the product RW puts on the field why not simply refuse to buy it until the Bills are owned by someone more to your liking. Of course, having an owner "comitted to putting a winning team on the field" is no guarantee that he's going to make all the correct decisions required to do so. See Jones, Jerrah and Snyder, Daniel for examples. But Jones and Snyder are simply unlucky, I'm sure.

 

GO BILLS!!!

[thebandit27]

Exactly, how many Bengal fans do you think like Mike Brown? Good luck finding even one. Liking the owner and liking the team are two completely different things. So if someone has a problem with Bill Gates, they shouldn't use a computer with any Microsoft (windows) applications on it? If you think the CEO of General Motors is messed up, does that mean you can't drive a GM car? Bottom line is, the only thing over the past 2 decades that anyone can say positive about Ralph is that he kept the Bills in Buffalo, well that has been his only golden ticket for half a century now, time to move on from that issue and look at the facts. This is probably the worst run organization in the NFL, perennially one of the worst win/loss records, most players don't want to come here unless it is their only option. That all points to the owner, the only constant in the organization over this 2 decade debacle. Someone said Ralph doesn't owe the fans anything, well I disagree, if he expects the fans to put over their hard earned money for tickets, merchandise, etc., he owes it to he fans to at least make a solid effort to put a good team on the field and he hasn't really ever done that. The great teams of the nineties were pure luck on his part that he hired an unknown in Bill Polian who he eventually chased out of town for personal differences, just like he chased John Butler out of town and Wade Phillips who was the last coach to take us to the playoffs, and Ralph fought to get out of paying him what he owed him.

 

That would be me, and I stand by it.

 

Ralph Wilson does not owe you anything. That's a fact that there's no agreeing/disagreeing with. The only possibility of Ralph owing you anything is if you buy a ticket, in which case he owes you a seat in the stands; that is all. In fact, I'd argue that you owe it to yourself to support or not support the product that he is responsible for based on how you feel.

 

You may not like this, but the fact of the matter is that Ralph owns the team, and he can do anything he wants with it. That's the nature of business in a free market. I don't necessarily like what he does with the team, but don't kid yourself into thinking that any business owner in the world owes you anything other than the product for which you pay. The only exception to this scenario is when you make a purchase involving a satisfaction guarantee or warranty, and to my knowledge, NFL tickets do not come with that (outside of--as I said--a guarantee that you'll have a seat in the stadium...unless of course it's the Superbowl in Dallas).

 

Now, if you want to argue that it's unrealistic on Ralph's part to put a continuously substandard product on the field and expect fans to pay for it, that sounds reasonable, although history would suggest it's not entirely accurate.

[billsfreak]

Right. Any success is pure luck and all failure is directly RW's fault.

 

Here's a novel idea; if you don't like the product RW puts on the field why not simply refuse to buy it until the Bills are owned by someone more to your liking. Of course, having an owner "comitted to putting a winning team on the field" is no guarantee that he's going to make all the correct decisions required to do so. See Jones, Jerrah and Snyder, Daniel for examples. But Jones and Snyder are simply unlucky, I'm sure.

 

GO BILLS!!!

Success if far and few between with this organization. And you are correct in that having an owner who is committed to winning is no guarantee, but there is one guarantee and that is an owner who doesn't give a crap about winning, there wont be any winning-see the Bills for reference. Winning wasn't pure luck, but dont be dumb enough to credit Ralph for it, give it to Polian, the coaching staff and maybe even the rest of the front office as well as some over acheiving players, but what did Ralph do with the intent of winning? He hired a nobody GM that was cheap, he hired a nobody head coach, who had a losing record in K.C. because he was cheap. Like I said he got lucky, it is plain to see.

[White Linen]

 

ya think most egyptians don't love their country? libyans? disenfranchised kuwaitis? they sure don't seem to like their unelected leaders.

 

 

Yes I do think Libyans, Kuwaitis, and Egeyptians love their countries. And that's why I'd compare them to fans like you. I think you're both a little coo coo.

 

You were both born into something and love it because of stubborn irrational thoughts. And your love comes from a feeling that you're morally obligated, but down deep you don't, you can't for the reasons you say you hate Wilson.

 

It doesn't make sense to me to love a Country that has treated your ancestors, your current family, and your future family inhumane (but yet they do). It doesn't make sense to me to love a team you think the owner won't let win because of greed (yet you do).

[PromoTheRobot]

Other NFL team owners cheap bastards too.

 

Oh lookie! Maybe the OP can go on other team websites and grace them with his well-thought opinions? It doesn't look like the other NFL owners are laughing at Ralph.

 

PTR

Edited June 3, 2011 by PromoTheRobot

[BMWR100RT]

That old geezer tells us how we can't support a team and has to move games to Toronto, and abused fans pile on and say what a great guy he is to keep the bills in your city. Unbillievable.

 

He's a bad owner, who doesn't even have the decency to read the facts and eject himself from the mess it took him 50 years to make. I will dance whenever he is unaffiliated with the Bills. Even at the risk of them moving, which I used to think was zero, but now has a chance thanks to ralph of going to Toronto.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are plenty of opinions in the OP that I diasagree with. I think Ralph has his faults, but in my personal opinion his willingness to keep the Bills in Buffalo more than compensates for them. So I am generally a fan of his, but not blindly so. In the interest of factual accuracy . . .

 

 

 

1. Whenever I see posts containing obvious "cut and paste" quotations without a link to the original source material it makes me wonder why. So I "tried it on for size" and found it didn't fit because it was too small. Your source was:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Wilson

 

Here's the part you edited out:

 

"However, the Buffalo Bills will be celebrating 50 years of playing professional football in Buffalo during the 2009 season. Mr. Wilson was officially inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, August 8, 2009 with ESPN Sports icon Chris Berman acting as his "presenter". Wilson was scheduled to receive his Hall of Fame ring in a halftime ceremony during the Bills game against the Cleveland Browns on October 11, 2009.[2] However, Wilson cancelled the event at the last moment, without notifying the press or fans, and no explanation was given. It was widely speculated that Wilson cancelled the event out of fear of being booed by Bills fans for the team's chronic poor performance on the field and a series of highly unpopular managerial decisions.[3]

 

Thoroughbred racing

 

Ralph Wilson has also been involved for a number of years in the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing both as a breeder and as an owner in France and the United States. He notably bred Santa Anita Derby winner, Jim French as well as two-year-old European susperstar Arazi, winner of the 1991 Breeders' Cup Juvenile and European Horse of the Year. [4] Another horse, Outta Here, raced in the 2003 Kentucky Derby and finished in seventh place."

 

2. As for your derisive comments about the revenues generated by the Bills in comparison to the Packers and Steelers, the best source I know of for that information is Forbes:

 

http://www.forbes.com/lists/2010/30/football-valuations-10_NFL-Team-Valuations_Revenue.html

 

For the 2009 season Forbes says:

 

Revenue

 

Steelers - - - $243 million

Packers - - - $242 million

Bills - - - - - $228 million

 

Operating Income (EBITDA)

 

Bills - - - - - $28.2 million

Steelers - - - $17.9 million

Packers - - - $ 9.8 million

 

At least for 2009, while Ralph had $14 or $15 million less in revenues (a difference of less than 7%), his operating income was almost three times that of the Packers, and a little less than twice that of the Steelers. The 7% revenue difference does NOT explain the success differential between the small market Bills, on the one hand, and the small market Steelers and Packers, on the other.

 

As I said, I'm generally a fan of Ralph's. But don't deride others' opinions if you don't have the facts, either.

[DC Tom]

Too further this rant, I'll continue by saying he reminds me of a wife abuser who just buys flowers to make amends for his sick behavior.

 

I'll give you a bit to reconsider that statement before I get medeival on your ass.

[birdog1960]

Yes I do think Libyans, Kuwaitis, and Egeyptians love their countries. And that's why I'd compare them to fans like you. I think you're both a little coo coo.

 

You were both born into something and love it because of stubborn irrational thoughts. And your love comes from a feeling that you're morally obligated, but down deep you don't, you can't for the reasons you say you hate Wilson.

 

It doesn't make sense to me to love a Country that has treated your ancestors, your current family, and your future family inhumane (but yet they do). It doesn't make sense to me to love a team you think the owner won't let win because of greed (yet you do).

and this is where you simplistic analysis gets you into trouble. people in those places rightfully don't define their countries by the despots who've ruled them. they define them by the traditions, cultures and ordinary people of those places...and that is reasonable and rational. some bills fans do exactly the same.

[Jobu]

Other NFL team owners cheap bastards too.

 

Oh lookie! Maybe the OP can go on other team websites and grace them with his well-thought opinions? It doesn't look like the other NFL owners are laughing at Ralph.

 

PTR

 

And the Coaching staff appears to have his back too...

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-nfllabor-bills

 

Obviously would not be happening if they thought getting a paycut was 'bastardly'

[xsoldier54]

If you are bored, just ignore? You seem confused.

Not the least bit confused. I have a right to read even boring posts if I choose to. There is no point to this one except that Ralph sucks. Ok, so I repeat. So what?