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Training Camp Likely More Abbreviated This Year


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So for confidential purposes I will not say the name of my source or place of employment but trust me when I say it is well founded. With that said in conversation today I learned that training camp may be shorter then last year and the possibility is true that the team in a few years may pack up back to Buffalo.

 

This falls directly in line with what I have heard that the Bills preseason schedule itself would force less training camp days given when there games are this pre season. Last year the number of practices in Rochester fell to 11 total down from 13 in 2017 with only one night practice in 2018 compared to three in 2017. Both years McD has done camp the number of practices and night practices have been far less then in years prior. Rex Ryan's last year had 16 practices including 5 night practices. While the team has said they have no plans to leave, I believe realistically that it will end in the next 5 years with the Bills just doing a 2-3 day joint practice or something like that. My one compliant since Russ Brandon has left is the fact the Bills have backed off Rochester with events the way they use to and it does make us nervous that camp will go given how it already has been condensed.

 

That said as a Rochester resident training camp is an incredibly exciting time for us and great primer for the regular season. Plus it is cool being out in the area and seeing the Bills players and coaching staff. If you ever are up in Rochester during camp go to Thirstys in the town of Pittsford. The players, coaches, and administration tend to go there. A few years ago Whaley and I believe Rob Ryan came in there. Usually it is a little later at night. 

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Just now, SWATeam said:

Makes sense with the great new facilities in Buffalo.  They should be there as much as possible.

 

 

Kinda my thoughts on this... I was never sure why teams leave billion dollar facilities to spend time at colleges... 

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1 minute ago, Mrbojanglezs said:

Im sure McD would have no media availability to practice if he could.

 

......we've done construction set up and tear down work at the St John Fisher camp for the last 20 years.....when McDermott came on the scene, there would be times that our workers could be nowhere near the field he was using.....OBD gladly paid for idle time while workers stood around waiting until McDermott gave them "the go"....

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26 minutes ago, whatdrought said:

 

I was never sure why teams leave billion dollar facilities to spend time at colleges... 

 

Simple.   They don't want the players going home at night.    It's football 24/7 while at camp, with a sprinkle of marketing 101...

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26 minutes ago, whatdrought said:

 

Kinda my thoughts on this... I was never sure why teams leave billion dollar facilities to spend time at colleges... 

 

Back in the day the idea of branding the team outside of Buffalo had real merit that mattered and for most teams going away for camp was a big bonding/gear up time. Like others have said with the facilities they now have in Buffalo and the lack of appeal for most teams to actively market outside their main locale that seems to be fading.

 

As a Rochester resident it would be a major loss fanbase wise if camp goes given how the Bills really have not done a lot out here the last few years, but it would be understood at the same point.

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44 minutes ago, SWATeam said:

Makes sense with the great new facilities in Buffalo.  They should be there as much as possible.

 

 

While true, IMO the reason they went to SJF was to make the Rochesterians feel loved and a real part of the Bills family

 

Moving them back out of town will more than likely decrease the attendance #s

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50 minutes ago, whatdrought said:

 

Kinda my thoughts on this... I was never sure why teams leave billion dollar facilities to spend time at colleges... 

It’s a team bonding exercise as well

 

they spend a few weeks together all day every day in a dormitory... tensions get high sometimes but it’s also a team building experience 

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Well, there are 12 days scheduled at the moment, with the last one being Wednesday, August 15th. Their second preseason game is the next day, 8/16. They also have a practice the day before their first preseason game on 8/8. I would assume that’s intentional?

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3 minutes ago, ShadyBillsFan said:

 

While true, IMO the reason they went to SJF was to make the Rochesterians feel loved and a real part of the Bills family

 

Moving them back out of town will more than likely decrease the attendance #s

While I'm all for interaction with fans, I'm Definately more for player safety, including proper facilities. They spent the money for that state of the art rehab/training facility...take advantage of it is my opinion. I'd rather go into the year healthy and not see a TC, than vice versa. Bills Mafia from Rochester aren't gonna turn their backs if this happened

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14 minutes ago, BuffAlone said:

While I'm all for interaction with fans, I'm Definately more for player safety, including proper facilities. They spent the money for that state of the art rehab/training facility...take advantage of it is my opinion. I'd rather go into the year healthy and not see a TC, than vice versa. Bills Mafia from Rochester aren't gonna turn their backs if this happened

Not sure I get this argument: there’s been no safety issues save the wet-mat-incident. The facilities are great and they also bring in (literally) tons of equipment. 

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14 minutes ago, Seasons1992 said:

The Bengals started doing in-town TC a few years back, and I think it's a great idea vs. going 1.5 hours away for 3 weeks. It's inevitable. 

 

Mike Brown is cheap...

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19 minutes ago, BuffAlone said:

While I'm all for interaction with fans, I'm Definately more for player safety, including proper facilities. They spent the money for that state of the art rehab/training facility...take advantage of it is my opinion. I'd rather go into the year healthy and not see a TC, than vice versa. Bills Mafia from Rochester aren't gonna turn their backs if this happened

 

I've seen the pictures and videos of the new facilities which look awesome

 

I was just throwing a thought as to why SJF was chosen.  

 

 

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I guess another aspect is that the Bills have owners that have made a decision to keep the team in Buffalo.   As I recall, one of the drivers behind the Rochester training camp was the desire to expand the fan base.  "Regionalization", I believe it was called.  Well, if the owner has deep pockets and has stated publicly that Buffalo fans should plan to enjoy the team "for generations to come", I guess it's not as urgent an issue.

 

Kind of along the lines of expanding the footprint to the "Home" games in Toronto.

 

When you think back on it, those were some pretty dark days.  Glad that crap's behind us.

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3 minutes ago, TroutDog said:

Not sure I get this argument: there’s been no safety issues save the wet-mat-incident. The facilities are great and they also bring in (literally) tons of equipment. 

Its not an argument either for or against. Just giving my 2 cents. If you have better facilities at home, I personally would not be upset if they just stayed home. TC attendance did not decline when we went to SJF from Fredonia, nor would it if they moved again. Both places were a great host, and so would any new TC platform be. Thats all I'm saying

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6 hours ago, corta765 said:

So for confidential purposes I will not say the name of my source or place of employment but trust me when I say it is well founded. With that said in conversation today I learned that training camp may be shorter then last year and the possibility is true that the team in a few years may pack up back to Buffalo.

 

This falls directly in line with what I have heard that the Bills preseason schedule itself would force less training camp days given when there games are this pre season. Last year the number of practices in Rochester fell to 11 total down from 13 in 2017 with only one night practice in 2018 compared to three in 2017. Both years McD has done camp the number of practices and night practices have been far less then in years prior. Rex Ryan's last year had 16 practices including 5 night practices. While the team has said they have no plans to leave, I believe realistically that it will end in the next 5 years with the Bills just doing a 2-3 day joint practice or something like that. My one compliant since Russ Brandon has left is the fact the Bills have backed off Rochester with events the way they use to and it does make us nervous that camp will go given how it already has been condensed.

 

That said as a Rochester resident training camp is an incredibly exciting time for us and great primer for the regular season. Plus it is cool being out in the area and seeing the Bills players and coaching staff. If you ever are up in Rochester during camp go to Thirstys in the town of Pittsford. The players, coaches, and administration tend to go there. A few years ago Whaley and I believe Rob Ryan came in there. Usually it is a little later at night. 

Did you learn of this in a level profile meeting?

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