Is Buffalo not 'hip' or 'cool' enough for pro athletes

[weehawk]

A couple thoughts:

 

* There's different echelons of players in the NFL. Many players dont make enough money to retire on after their careers and dont have a problem with playing in cities that have a better cost-of-living.

* If I'm a big-time player, I'm going to think twice about the Bills more because of NY State's tax burden than how sexy the city is.

* Low- to mid-level players have no problem coming here. The tax burden is offset by the low cost of living.

* These guys only play 10 games a year in town and on the whole probably spend six months out of the year here. You have to assume that most lease their housing and have no issues about flying out of town for "hot times" elsewhere

 

The argument that we may be too unhip or uncool is not the overriding factor for the majority of players. Sure, there's a sub-set of superstars and coaches that wont come here. That holds for the NHL too. However, I think it's more about ownership or state-of-the-team situations than whether or not the city itself is cool.

 

I think this argument is geared more towards the NBA than the NFL. Stars wont come here because of RW and the poor state-of-the-team and front-office. Trust me, if this team had a winning atmosphere or a recent history of winning, more stars would come here without worrying about how cool the city is.

[bbb]

Even Lebron with his taking his talents to South Beach...................i have heard so much talk in the last year that he really is a Cleveland/Akron guy and has no use for all the glitz and clubs of South Beach. Almost every basketball expert I have heard agrees that he will be back with the Cavs at some point in his career. I just hope it's next year, and not in the twilight of his career.

[C.Biscuit97]

Even Lebron with his taking his talents to South Beach...................i have heard so much talk in the last year that he really is a Cleveland/Akron guy and has no use for all the glitz and clubs of South Beach. Almost every basketball expert I have heard agrees that he will be back with the Cavs at some point in his career. I just hope it's next year, and not in the twilight of his career.

 

Yeah, LBJ still has a home in Akron.

 

But I do agree with the point some others have made. Buffalo people are very prideful & very sensitive. We take any slight personal. People from Buffalo know what we have. But it does suck because it can be so much better. We should become Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is very similar to buffalo, has very ugly chicks (no offense), yet no ever complains about that city. Plus, they had like 20 movies filmed there.

[PromoTheRobot]

Yeah, LBJ still has a home in Akron.

 

But I do agree with the point some others have made. Buffalo people are very prideful & very sensitive. We take any slight personal. People from Buffalo know what we have. But it does suck because it can be so much better. We should become Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is very similar to buffalo, has very ugly chicks (no offense), yet no ever complains about that city. Plus, they had like 20 movies filmed there.

 

Buffalo is slowly getting better. (cue the "realists" to set me straight!) The Medical Campus, the Larkin district and Canalside are three places where positive tangible change is occurring.

 

PTR

[C.Biscuit97]

 

 

Buffalo is slowly getting better. (cue the "realists" to set me straight!) The Medical Campus, the Larkin district and Canalside are three places where positive tangible change is occurring.

 

PTR

 

I definitely agree. You have to hit rock bottom to start moving back up. Buffalo is finally starting to make some progress & hopefully, more jobs will start coming back as well. And thanks to global warming, Buffalo will slowly become Virginia weather wise!!!

Edited August 7, 2013 by C.Biscuit97

[1B4IDie]

Yeah, LBJ still has a home in Akron.

 

But I do agree with the point some others have made. Buffalo people are very prideful & very sensitive. We take any slight personal. People from Buffalo know what we have. But it does suck because it can be so much better. We should become Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is very similar to buffalo, has very ugly chicks (no offense), yet no ever complains about that city. Plus, they had like 20 movies filmed there.

I mean this completely seriously. If the Sabres and Bills won as many championships as the Steelers and Penguins. Buffalo would be Pittsburgh. A huge portion of Civic pride is built through a City's sports teams. Like it or not.

You may say this sounds crazy but I seriously believe the constant losing has an effect on population drain.

[mrags]

 

I mean this completely seriously. If the Sabres and Bills won as many championships as the Steelers and Penguins. Buffalo would be Pittsburgh. A huge portion of Civic pride is built through a City's sports teams. Like it or not.

You may say this sounds crazy but I seriously believe the constant losing has an effect on population drain.

we will start to find out this year ;-) Edited August 7, 2013 by mrags

[C.Biscuit97]

 

I mean this completely seriously. If the Sabres and Bills won as many championships as the Steelers and Penguins. Buffalo would be Pittsburgh. A huge portion of Civic pride is built through a City's sports teams. Like it or not.

You may say this sounds crazy but I seriously believe the constant losing has an effect on population drain.

 

I don't find that silly at all. My girlfriend is from nowhere Missouri and has no team she ever rooted for. So she never got my obsession with Buffalo or their sports teams. I took her to a restaurant called Taste of Buffalo in Charlotte & spoke to Buffalo people there and know she is getting it.

 

Like 10 years ago, Boston was a bitter city of losers. Pats cheat & win, now it is a city of winners. People want to hang out with the winners.

 

I was too young to fully appreciate the 90s. I thought you were supposed to make the playoffs every year. But I've seen Buffalo for the Sabres' playoff runs. There is more life in the city. It would be double that for the Bills. And it's why I spend way too much time here. Because as crazy as it is, The Bills can most definitely take Buffalo to a new level. It's also why it's so stupid to bash the coolest Bill in a long time, Stevie Johnson. If Stevie is in NYC, he has major endorsements. But he loves Buffalo.

[Over 29 years of fanhood]

ok. My point was that anything yiu want to do in Chicago yiu can do here in Buffalo. Yes, there might be more of those things to do in Chicago but they are offered here. Schoop talked about being in a tall building watching fireworks, admiring the view, listening to live music, watching sports games, conversing with all star athletes. With the exception of having a 40+ story penthouse, he can literally do all of those things here. Hell, in the summertime there's gobs of it to go around.

I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure Schoop lives in Amherst so the drive time to downtown or the likes of NF or Lockport is really not too far off. Between all that area ther is literally a concert almost every night. Fireworks multiple times a week, if he wants he can hang around Allentown and have a Sloe Gin Fizz with Ryan Miller. There ya go, I just blew up his whole argument.

 

I'm not arguing your points, I'm arguing Schoops. He's an idiot. It's all about where you live. When I first moved to Vegas there was tons of things to do, after being there for about a year, the novelty wore off ban in talking about Vegas here. It was just another place to live. I was completely sick of all that was there to offer. Sure, on any given night I might find something new and exciting but that's no different from anywhere else. But ya know what I couldn't get in Vegas that I can get here in Buffalo? The feeling of good neighbors. The joy of hanging out with friends at a bomb fire. The small town feel still with plenty of things to do. Buffalo has great food, all the attractions you get in a big time city (althoufht not as big) and some property/housing that would cost someone millions in a place like Chicago or NYC for peanuts here.

 

I'm not saying that Biffalo is better than any other city. It just is for me. It's all about what that particular individual wants. And if Mike Schoop likes all the stuff he experienced in Chicago, we should all offer to help him move.

 

A few things. You cannot do anything in Buffalo that you can do in Chicago. That's rediculous. Yes you may be able to generalize far enough to make the arguement but its fallicy.

 

easy examples- you can't take in a MLB game nor NBA. Can't shop at whole foods, cant eat at Morton's, can't have pea pod dilivery your groceries, QUALITY and quanity of clubs restaurants and music is giganticly difffernt. Direct flights to Europe, it goes on and on.

 

Yes you could boil all these down to a grocery store, a restaurant and entertainment.... Well then in that case Belmont or Wellsville can match up to Chicago too.

 

I always chuckle when buffalonians try and contrast the little city / big town with any real metropolis.

 

But to the more salient point, like all people athletes have different preferences too, and many might prefer a tiny city or lots of nearby rural area to a large city and so on. I think perhaps the majority would live in the Alaska if it meant playing a game and making millions for a living.

 

 

Also what the he!! is a bombfire? A fire started with a bomb? Sound fun.... But illegal in Erie county right?

Edited August 7, 2013 by over 20 years of fanhood

[mrags]

Lol. Yiu got me on Bombfire

[Best Player Available]

Chicago is arguably the 3rd best big city in the USA, for anything from clubs, shows,restaurants, employment, sports (by a big margin), Grant park is world class, and well smoking hot Babes are plentiful in the downtown area especially(if you look for that sort of thing) . Being from Buffalo, I cannot even comprehend any comparison to the two cities.

other than Chi-Town has a larger murder rate. It also is a big city. Buffalo was a big city. It's downtown is a shell. Businesses do not thrive there.

[bbb]

Downtown is definitely on a major uptick.

[Tcali]

Chicago is arguably the 3rd best big city in the USA, for anything from clubs, shows,restaurants, employment, sports (by a big margin), Grant park is world class, and well smoking hot Babes are plentiful in the downtown area especially(if you look for that sort of thing) . Being from Buffalo, I cannot even comprehend any comparison to the two cities.

other than Chi-Town has a larger murder rate. It also is a big city. Buffalo was a big city. It's downtown is a shell. Businesses do not thrive there.

I'd choose Seattle.

[bbb]

You must love rain.

[8-8 Forever?]

Why can miserably cold and snowy and boring green bay get players to sign? They have a tradition of winning.

 

Most athletes have their "main" off-season residence in another city than their work residence so I don't think they really care.

Agreed. These guys make so much $$ they can live wherever they want.

 

WNY is fine. All things being equal, I think top free agents go elsewhere, but that is primarily due to the lack of success of the franchise itself and the resulting instability of the coaching staff. Risky from a career growth standpoint to go to a perennial loser franchise whose ownership is heartbeat to heartbeat at this point.

[Chimp]

WNY is fine. All things being equal, I think top free agents go elsewhere, but that is primarily due to the lack of success of the franchise itself and the resulting instability of the coaching staff. Risky from a career growth standpoint to go to a perennial loser franchise whose ownership is heartbeat to heartbeat at this point.

Disagree completely. WNY isn't fine, may be for the common everyday Joe but not for sports stars. Brad Richards signed in...oh yeah, the same place as Chris Drury. Buffalo isn't NYC, Chicago, LA, Miami or even PIttsburgh. Buffalo won't have any professional sports teams outside of the Bandits in 15 years.

[Gibran Chandan]

3 pages and no one has posted this yet?.......

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2uN28EJRlA

 

Saw the headline and came here to check for this. Glad someone else took care of it!

[mrags]

 

Disagree completely. WNY isn't fine, may be for the common everyday Joe but not for sports stars. Brad Richards signed in...oh yeah, the same place as Chris Drury. Buffalo isn't NYC, Chicago, LA, Miami or even PIttsburgh. Buffalo won't have any professional sports teams outside of the Bandits in 15 years.

yo, are you serious? Well it's completely impossible to argue that Buffalo is Chi, NYC, Mia to say that we won't have any pro sports teams except the Bandits in 15 years is crazy. Are you just trolling here? I really can't tell.

[BillsBytheBay]

Enough with the self loathing. Build a winner. Pros want money, and to win.

They don't care how big the city is. Is Green Bay hip? Or Jacksonville?

Just win.

 

 

I mean this completely seriously. If the Sabres and Bills won as many championships as the Steelers and Penguins. Buffalo would be Pittsburgh. A huge portion of Civic pride is built through a City's sports teams. Like it or not.

You may say this sounds crazy but I seriously believe the constant losing has an effect on population drain.

put better than I could.

[hondo in seattle]

A few things. You cannot do anything in Buffalo that you can do in Chicago. That's rediculous. Yes you may be able to generalize far enough to make the arguement but its fallicy.

 

easy examples- you can't take in a MLB game nor NBA. Can't shop at whole foods, cant eat at Morton's, can't have pea pod dilivery your groceries, QUALITY and quanity of clubs restaurants and music is giganticly difffernt. Direct flights to Europe, it goes on and on.

 

Yes you could boil all these down to a grocery store, a restaurant and entertainment.... Well then in that case Belmont or Wellsville can match up to Chicago too.

 

I always chuckle when buffalonians try and contrast the little city / big town with any real metropolis.

 

But to the more salient point, like all people athletes have different preferences too, and many might prefer a tiny city or lots of nearby rural area to a large city and so on. I think perhaps the majority would live in the Alaska if it meant playing a game and making millions for a living.

 

 

Also what the he!! is a bombfire? A fire started with a bomb? Sound fun.... But illegal in Erie county right?

 

I have to agree. Having lived in or near Buffalo, St.Louis, Atlanta, Indianapolis, San Francisco and now Seattle - as well as spending time in other metro areas - clearly Buffalo doesn't have the same quantity or quality of cultural offerings of the bigger cities. When I say "cultural offerings," I mean everything from nightclubs to museums, from concerts to restaurants. And then there's the weather.

 

Certain types of personalities are going to rationally prefer the bigger cities and cities with more temperate climates. I don't mean to offend anyone but there are reasons cities like Miami and San Francisco, for example, attract more tourists than Buffalo.

 

But I also agree with some other points made on the board... some players will like Buffalo... some players will happily play where ever the paycheck is the biggest... some players really want to play for a winning team.... Every player has his own set of priorities and preferences. In the end, I don't think the Bills will have a huge disadvantage signing FAs if Whaley & Overdorf manage the cap well and Marrone starts getting some wins.