jimmy10 Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Link to Article This seems to be one of the most comprehensive pieces written on the big ownership and stadium questions and is an interesting read if you haven't caught it already. It raises some other questions, though. "Quietly, and this isn't coming directly from Kelly, a vetting process has been underway for several months or more, and there are multiple groups anxious to make their best pitch at the Bills when they get that chance. Supposedly commissioner Roger Goodell is aware of this movement but will never openly acknowledge any of it, for obvious reasons." So if a quiet vetting process is underway, and the Commish is only "aware" of it, then who is doing the vetting? Someone with the team? Someone with the league? Some sort of representative of all the owners, since the owners have to vote on new ownership of any team? "I'm told some of the groups who've made it known they're interested don't have a clue as to how to go about buying an NFL team and are way out of their league even though they have substantial financial backing." So it's clear Kelly is part of a group with interest. And it's clear some groups with interest have the money but no clue what they're doing. Is Jimbo's group one of those with no clue? I assume and hope not, given his proximity to the team and front office. "These would be owners feel the future of the Bills is almost entirely dependant on the eventual construction of a new stadium either in downtown Buffalo or more towards Niagara Falls and Canada. Not only that, these people would be willing to finance most of the cost of a new stadium privately. I'll believe that when I see it, because I'm skeptical too, but people I respect insist this is true." Wow. That sounds too good to be true. But I guess I can see anyone who cares enough to keep the Bills in WNY also cares enough to not saddle taxpayers with the entire bill for a new stadium? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefenseWinzChampionshipz Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I wish I had money... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsGuyInMalta Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Well that certainly is positive news for all of us. Here's hoping! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richNjoisy Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Well that certainly is positive news for all of us. Here's hoping! I agree. It was a very uplifting article and - jeesh - unusual from Kilgore as I see it. It read well....errr...like a news story where one did.....errr....research. Kudos to Ed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulfw Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Bear with me on this: I keep hearing how the main decision Ralph doesn't want to give the team to his family after he passes is because the estate taxes would be huge. Why couldn't Jim Kelly's group of backers, instead of buying the Bills, "loan" his wife the money for the estate tax and then they would become like a management company and she would be a silent owner? They'd get the Bills for a lot cheaper and the family would continue to get millions in yearly income. I know she'd miss out on a $800 million payday, but she'd still have a decent income from the team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hondo in seattle Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 There are a lot of ways to skin the cat. Estate taxes are not an insurmountable obstacle to keeping the Bills in the Wilson family - or in Buffalo. They say Ralph wants the Bills to remain in Buffalo. I'm guessing his family feels the same way. Or, at the least, will respect his wishes. My guess is that the Bills will remain in Buffalo upon his passing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
biglukes Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Waiting for the "Bills don't need Toronto and you are all sheep for buying that they do" crowd to come in and tell us why they're right and Kilgore is wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
section122 Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I wish I had money... I swear that if I had won that big powerball drawing (600 mill+) I was going to try and buy a stake in the Bills. I was also hoping if I didn't win it someone from this board would have for the same reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hondo in seattle Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Kelly, of course, has said there are things going on behind the scenes that the public doesn't know about. Now Kilgore is saying the same thing and specifying that his source is not Kelly. Two independent sources - not that I distrusted Kelly - convince me that there's a lot we don't know. As I've opined elsewhere... If Ralph wants the team to stay in Buffalo, I would guess that his family feels the same way, or at least will respect his wishes to keep the Bills here. I don't think the Bills are traveling anywhere when Ralph heads to the Great Beyond. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Bear with me on this: I keep hearing how the main decision Ralph doesn't want to give the team to his family after he passes is because the estate taxes would be huge. Why couldn't Jim Kelly's group of backers, instead of buying the Bills, "loan" his wife the money for the estate tax and then they would become like a management company and she would be a silent owner? They'd get the Bills for a lot cheaper and the family would continue to get millions in yearly income. I know she'd miss out on a $800 million payday, but she'd still have a decent income from the team. Because as his surviving spouse she won't have to pay estate taxes..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrags Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 There are a lot of ways to skin the cat. Estate taxes are not an insurmountable obstacle to keeping the Bills in the Wilson family - or in Buffalo. They say Ralph wants the Bills to remain in Buffalo. I'm guessing his family feels the same way. Or, at the least, will respect his wishes. My guess is that the Bills will remain in Buffalo upon his passing. This. If Ralph truly does want the team to stay here there's many ways to do it after his death. How bout giving tobjis wife to sell with stipulation the new owner agrees to keep the team here. There's just too many ways and things that can happen. There's no guarantee but there's no guarantees that he doesn't secretly have some deal in place that he's just not announcing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed_Formerly_of_Roch Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 In addition to the other comments made, why would someone want to "pay" $400 million to become a managment company, thus not getting al lthe profits since they are not the owners. 20 years later she sells for $1.6 trillon and the managment company gets a farewell dinner. Could the deal be structured so they share in the profits sure, but why do that vs instead just buy the team. The difference with the Redskins and Jack Kent Cook was there wasn't a spouse, so no way to avoid the estate tax so they had to sell at the time. Bear with me on this: I keep hearing how the main decision Ralph doesn't want to give the team to his family after he passes is because the estate taxes would be huge. Why couldn't Jim Kelly's group of backers, instead of buying the Bills, "loan" his wife the money for the estate tax and then they would become like a management company and she would be a silent owner? They'd get the Bills for a lot cheaper and the family would continue to get millions in yearly income. I know she'd miss out on a $800 million payday, but she'd still have a decent income from the team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vegas55 Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Bear with me on this: I keep hearing how the main decision Ralph doesn't want to give the team to his family after he passes is because the estate taxes would be huge. Why couldn't Jim Kelly's group of backers, instead of buying the Bills, "loan" his wife the money for the estate tax and then they would become like a management company and she would be a silent owner? They'd get the Bills for a lot cheaper and the family would continue to get millions in yearly income. I know she'd miss out on a $800 million payday, but she'd still have a decent income from the team. If Ralph left the Bills to his wife, she would not, as his spouse, owe any inheritance taxes. Inheritance taxes only come into play when a non spouse ( child etc) inherits. Ralph has stated that he does not want his wife to own/operate the team, but has never explained why. It's hard to believe, given the history of this franchise, she could do any worse than Ralph. But obviously with his estate his children from first marriage come into play Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulfw Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 If Ralph left the Bills to his wife, she would not, as his spouse, owe any inheritance taxes. Inheritance taxes only come into play when a non spouse ( child etc) inherits. Ralph has stated that he does not want his wife to own/operate the team, but has never explained why. It's hard to believe, given the history of this franchise, she could do any worse than Ralph. But obviously with his estate his children from first marriage come into play This is where I heard it last, from todays TBD regarding estate taxes. http://www.wgrz.com/sports/pro_hockey/NHL/sabres/article/171360/120/twobillsdrive "Although Wilson, soon to be 93 years old, has always insisted the team will not be sold during his lifetime, he has given no assurances at all about what happens after he passes. He says he wants the team to stay in Buffalo, but nobody in his family wants to inherit and run the team. Since the Bills are worth close to $800 million, give or take a few mil here or there, and the estate tax would be substantial, Ralph's wife Mary and his daughters understandably would put the team up for sale. " I understand the other comment about a management team not getting profits, I was just wondering out loud that if Jim was serious about keeping the Bills here, this would be an option for him to do so and make a few bucks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy10 Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 Kelly, of course, has said there are things going on behind the scenes that the public doesn't know about. Now Kilgore is saying the same thing and specifying that his source is not Kelly. Two independent sources - not that I distrusted Kelly - convince me that there's a lot we don't know. Yeah, there's no doubt there's a TON going on behind the scenes we know nothing about. But clearly knowledge about the situation is being compiled and passed along somehow, so I wonder if and when more information will leak out. I'm intrigued about all these potential ownership groups (my guess from the story is at least 4 or 5) and the supposed "vetting" being done. Who is doing this vetting?? I swear that if I had won that big powerball drawing (600 mill+) I was going to try and buy a stake in the Bills. I was also hoping if I didn't win it someone from this board would have for the same reason. You and me both, dude. Once my helicopter and helipad purchases were complete, of course. Gotta have a way to beat the traffic on gameday! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Waiting for the "Bills don't need Toronto and you are all sheep for buying that they do" crowd to come in and tell us why they're right and Kilgore is wrong. I'm waiting for the $100 average ticket price if a privately-funded stadium deal goes forward... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillnutinHouston Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Good news. I'd guess that some investors belong to more than one of the potential groups. If I had money and wanted in, I'd hedge my bets and buy into more than one group to improve my odds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beerme1 Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 I'm waiting for the $100 average ticket price if a privately-funded stadium deal goes forward... And? Is that good or bad in your eyes? There will be a price to pay to keep the team here. Currently my tickets in Van Miller Club are $183.50 a piece. More would be debateable. But in a new stadium maybe I can relocate and get an even better seat for an average of $100 !!!!! Hell ya, Go Bills! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AxelRipper Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 And? Is that good or bad in your eyes? There will be a price to pay to keep the team here. Currently my tickets in Van Miller Club are $183.50 a piece. More would be debateable. But in a new stadium maybe I can relocate and get an even better seat for an average of $100 !!!!! Hell ya, Go Bills! Would be horrible. http://www.forbes.com/lists/2011/30/nfl-valuations-11_Buffalo-Bills_301765.html Buffalo Bills average ticket price o(as of last season): $59 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bills_fan_in_raleigh Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 wish I had won that 240M power ball last night I could throw in a few Ms Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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