"Buffalo Ownership" & Toronto...

[TheLynchTrain]

We could always hire somebody to whack Phil Lind. Anybody know anyone who's a part time hitman? Just got out of prison?

[Cookiemonster]

Phil Lind of Rogers Communications has decided it's time to start getting serious about more regular season Bills games just one year into the current deal....

 

"It's hard to say when and where it will happen, but over time we hope there'll be more games here and Buffalo (ownership) hopes there'll be more games here," Lind said.

 

...Buffalo ownership hopes they'll be more games in Toronto...4 months before Ralph is inducted to the HOF?? Now there's a nice kick in the gut to Bills' fans that don't live in Ontario, huh?

 

Ralph Wilson could have gone in an entirely different direction with the Bills. He could have already sold the team to Jim Kelly's group, paying the dreaded taxes and still ending up with at least what, 200 or 300 million dollars in pure after-tax profits, since he has no "mortgage to pay off" on his Buffalo Bills investment.

 

Imagine the reception he would have gotten in Canton this August had he taken that path. Tens of thousands of Bills fans honoring the man who not only had kept the team in Buffalo himself almost 50 years, but who also sold the team to the one group dedicated to keeping the team in Buffalo.

 

Instead, let's take a look at Ralph Wilson as is. Over 90 years old, still whining about Buffalo's small market, to the point he has taken home games out of his own stadium 90 miles into Canada to "compete" with the other teams. At the same time, he and his marketing guru have already made quiet agreements that even more then one regular season game a year may be leaving Orchard Park down the line.

 

And finally, as he makes his induction speach this August, we BUFFALO Bills fans will know that the minute this guy passes away, our Bills will be sold to the highest bidder, regardless of their plans of what they will do with the franchise. And why has he taken this path? Pure greed. Greed to earn more money now, and greed for his heirs to earn more money after he dies. Money that he won't get any use of when he dies, and I am convinced he absolutely doesn't need now during his last years on this earth.

 

Business people reading this can flame away at me. I have always believed owning a sports franchise goes beyond just the business of making every last buck they can. At some point, the franchise owners that have won championships or that have really cared about their fans, have decided that money was not the most important aspect of owning their teams.

Shame on you Ralph, for making this deal with Toronto instead of just selling the team to a group that seems to just want to keep the team here in Buffalo.

Not to defend Ralph here, as many of your points have merit, but we do not know for certain what Ralph's final

plans are, I realize that after he dies the team gets sold to the highest bidder or whatever, but maybe it will be

contingent on the team staying in Buffalo, or maybe he has group (Kelly's?) lined up. Thhat way he still somewhat

maximizes his return, as he (really his family) dosesn't take a $600,000,000.00 hit. He will still lose some value with

the contingency in place, but not the type of value that would be lost with your scenario. Whatever the plans, I am sure

they will include Toronto somehow, as I think that everyone will agree that regionilization is the only thing that can

save them now, regardless of who owns them. If Ralph doesn't have any kind of contingency plan, and we lose the Bills,

then we should all make a pilgrimage to piss on his grave.

[nucci]

Not to defend Ralph here, as many of your points have merit, but we do not know for certain what Ralph's final

plans are, I realize that after he dies the team gets sold to the highest bidder or whatever, but maybe it will be

contingent on the team staying in Buffalo, or maybe he has group (Kelly's?) lined up. Thhat way he still somewhat

maximizes his return, as he (really his family) dosesn't take a $600,000,000.00 hit. He will still lose some value with

the contingency in place, but not the type of value that would be lost with your scenario. Whatever the plans, I am sure

they will include Toronto somehow, as I think that everyone will agree that regionilization is the only thing that can

save them now, regardless of who owns them. If Ralph doesn't have any kind of contingency plan, and we lose the Bills,

then we should all make a pilgrimage to piss on his grave.

Thank you for stating what needed to be said. I think it is pretty selfish for people to ask him to sell the team. Maybe he enjoys owning the Bills and going to games. He should sell because he is going to die? He could outlive some of us here. Let's wait until it happens because there is nothing we can do about it.

[FLFan]

The supposed "Jim Kelly ownership group" is a fantasy. There is no such thing - just a wish and prayer. I am really sick of so called Bills fans criticizing Ralph Wilson and calling him every name in the book. If not for him, there would be no Bills football. The simple fact is he could have sold this team 20 times by now to out of town groups, or moved it himself, and made tons more money. To say he has been all about money is being ignorant of the facts.

 

Today's NFL is all business, and there are no current owners who sacrifice profits for championships - another myth. The fact of the modern NFL is it takes luxury stadiums, mega corporate support, and very high end ticket priices to sustain the business model. Any group buying the bills will surely need to borrow in excess of $500 million and with that debt load survival in Buffalo alone is not an option. I live in Maryland - try buying a single game ticket for the Ravens or Redskins and you will see what I mean. The season ticket packages, which required PSL fees, when they were available, were out of the price range of 90% of Bills fans.

 

Grow up - enjoy the team while you can and pray that Wilson lives to 110. If sacrificing a few home games a year keeps the "Buffalo Bills" in business, then I am all for it, as sad and regrettable as it is. This efort by Wilson is his last, and perhaps best option, for ensuring survival in Buffalo in some form long term.

[rpcolosi]

Rather than your whining about Ralph Wilson, you should instead be venting your anger towards the government in New York State, whose bloated government and high taxes have driven out people and companies and made upstate New York a wasteland.

 

 

ain't that the truth.

 

everyone needs to chill for a second. any owner, committed to buffalo or not, is going to need all the revenue they can. We are way to quick to write off those with the ability to keep the bills here. Golisano, the Riches and Jacobs all have the money and interest to do it, not to mention the politics behind it. I have posted numerous times on this. This is no different than Milwaukee wanting more and more games from the Packers despite the packers being locally owned. Lind is not the owner of Rogers communication and he himself does not have the billions that now deceased Ted Rogers had. Just expect these things to occur and, as bad as this sounds, hope that the economy is still poor at the time of Ralphs Passing to limit the number of those willing to buy and move the team.

[Endzone Animal]

Time to start thinking about Buffalo as part of Toronto's extended market. Come on... we're talking a 90 minute drive. Toronto is still close enough to be considered Buffalo's team. Cheering for Ralph's legacy in Toronto is the least Bills fans could do should it come down to that.

[rpcolosi]

The supposed "Jim Kelly ownership group" is a fantasy. There is no such thing - just a wish and prayer. I am really sick of so called Bills fans criticizing Ralph Wilson and calling him every name in the book. If not for him, there would be no Bills football. The simple fact is he could have sold this team 20 times by now to out of town groups, or moved it himself, and made tons more money. To say he has been all about money is being ignorant of the facts.

 

Today's NFL is all business, and there are no current owners who sacrifice profits for championships - another myth. The fact of the modern NFL is it takes luxury stadiums, mega corporate support, and very high end ticket priices to sustain the business model. Any group buying the bills will surely need to borrow in excess of $500 million and with that debt load survival in Buffalo alone is not an option. I live in Maryland - try buying a single game ticket for the Ravens or Redskins and you will see what I mean. The season ticket packages, which required PSL fees, when they were available, were out of the price range of 90% of Bills fans.

 

Grow up - enjoy the team while you can and pray that Wilson lives to 110. If sacrificing a few home games a year keeps the "Buffalo Bills" in business, then I am all for it, as sad and regrettable as it is. This efort by Wilson is his last, and perhaps best option, for ensuring survival in Buffalo in some form long term.

 

 

agreed. 1 or 2 games a year in toronto is huge for us as long as that money is re-invested into keeping great players here and putting a quality product on the field.

[Arkady Renko]

Time to start thinking about Buffalo as part of Toronto's extended market. Come on... we're talking a 90 minute drive. Toronto is still close enough to be considered Buffalo's team. Cheering for Ralph's legacy in Toronto is the least Bills fans could do should it come down to that.

 

And yet I doubt the Blue Jays are very popular in Buffalo.

[Lori]

agreed. 1 or 2 games a year in toronto is huge for us as long as that money is re-invested into keeping great players here and putting a quality product on the field.

Let's hope they start doing that sometime soon, then.

[Endzone Animal]

And yet I doubt the Blue Jays are very popular in Buffalo.

Buffalo isn't a baseball town. Besides, the point is Bills fans OWE Ralph for giving them a team locally that they probably didn't deserve when he could have made a ton more money shipping them off to another city. If you don't want to root for the Bills because they play in Toronto, fine, but you OWE Ralph for a legacy of loyalty to Buffalo and should root for that organization no matter where they relocate. If Ralph's team moves to Toronto you can still get there without chartering a flight, so in that sense he's doing Bills fans a FAVOR by moving the games there instead of LA.

 

All of you on this board OWE Ralph, not the other way around. Don't forget it.

[Guest dog14787]

Buffalo isn't a baseball town. Besides, the point is Bills fans OWE Ralph for giving them a team locally that they probably didn't deserve when he could have made a ton more money shipping them off to another city. If you don't want to root for the Bills because they play in Toronto, fine, but you OWE Ralph for a legacy of loyalty to Buffalo and should root for that organization no matter where they relocate. If Ralph's team moves to Toronto you can still get there without chartering a flight, so in that sense he's doing Bills fans a FAVOR by moving the games there instead of LA.

 

All of you on this board OWE Ralph, not the other way around. Don't forget it.

 

 

I agree with some of what what you say, but you are addressing allot of fans that for the most part have showed their loyalty and stood behind the organization through thick and thin and always will.

 

I believe we do deserve our Buffalo Bills football team and nobody should ever take them away from us, not even Ralph Wilson.

[JPicc2114]

you can't be serious

 

Bill smove to Toronto I am done watchng NFL football games

 

 

Well.. that sucks because its happening slowly.

[JPicc2114]

I agree with some of what what you say, but you are addressing allot of fans that for the most part have showed their loyalty and stood behind the organization through thick and thin and always will.

 

I believe we do deserve our Buffalo Bills football team and nobody should ever take them away from us, not even Ralph Wilson.

 

 

Buffalo is BROKE

 

 

The Bills are doing what is necessary to keep the Bills in Buffalo one way or another, it may come to playing some games in Toronto. But its better than nothing at this point.

[Delete This Account]

Folks:

Can someone explain to me how the story has significantly changed since Dec. 5, see below? Though Lind refers to the NFL potentially expanding its schedule as an ideal chance to add a game, he never ruled out wanting another game no matter what happens.

 

jw

 

Lind open to Bills playing more games in Toronto

 

Friday, December 05, 2008

By JOHN WAWROW, AP Sports Writer

ADVERTISEMENT

 

TORONTO — The executive who lured the Buffalo Bills into playing in Toronto foresees having the team make more than one regular-season stop a year north of the border _ especially if the NFL goes through with its proposal to lengthen the schedule.

 

"Depending on the arrangements, I wouldn't mind one more game here," Rogers Communications vice chairman Phil Lind told The Associated Press on Friday. "Especially if the NFL's going to nuke two of their preseasons game, I would think for certain we would have one of those games."

 

Lind was referring to preliminary discussions within the NFL of adding one or two more games to the 16-game regular season by shortening the preseason. That proposal, though, is in limbo until the league negotiates a new collective bargaining agreement with the NFL Players Association.

 

Lind also continued to allay fears his company is intent on purchasing the Bills and relocating them to Toronto. He instead suggested the Bills could become a true two-city entity, an arrangement that would secure the team's long-term financial viability in the region and end speculation of the franchise being a candidate for relocation.

 

"If we can devise a scheme whereby the Bills can get more revenue for a season, that may even mean another game or so here, I don't know. But if we can devise that scheme and still keep the team in Buffalo and keep the whole thing in this area, I think that's a win-win, far better than the whole darn thing moving to L.A."

[Guest dog14787]

Buffalo is BROKE

 

 

The Bills are doing what is necessary to keep the Bills in Buffalo one way or another, it may come to playing some games in Toronto. But its better than nothing at this point.

 

Actually, I think the two games a year in Toronto is a Brilliant move and one that only helps the Bills stay where they are, my previous post was in response to the Bills relocating.

[SouthGeorgiaBillsFan]

Look I moved away from the Buffalo Area more than 10 years ago, and I haven't lost an ounce of passion toward the Bills. As much as I'd hate to see them move to Toronto, and I mean the thought makes me sick to my stomach, I have to say that I would still be a die hard Bills fan. I grew up watching them play in (and lose) four superbowls. Despite the heartache those are some of my fondest childhood memories, and I the only reason NFL football is appealing to me is because I know that some day my Bills will rise up and win the SB. Football is such an important game to me, as it represents everything I believe in: hard work, mental sharpness and toughness, unity, physical prowess and intelligence, and it would be too great a part of my life to simply stop watching. And it could be worse - how would you feel about rooting for the Los Angeles Bills? I don't think the Bills will move to Toronto. I believe this is a prudent move by Mr. Wilson to ensure that no other team tries to relocate there and suck up much of the Bills desperately needed Toronto market share. I believe that Mr. Wilson earnestly wants to keep the team in Buffalo, and is taking actions to that effect as much as possible. If that simply is not possible, then he will have positioned the Bills to move to as nearby a city as possible. You people who spew your venomous "Buffalo First" hatred jargon should be ashamed, as you are only providing fuel to the arguments of those who would like to convince Mr. Wilson to get the !@#$ outta dodge while the getting is still good. But if the worse comes to pass and the Bills do move to Toronto, I will remain a fan, a true fan, and will cheer them on as fervently as ever. At least when the Bills finally gain redemption and win that SB that has for so long eluded and devastated us all, I'll be one of the few who can rest in ultimate satisfaction, knowing I have been here through it all.

[Arkady Renko]

Buffalo isn't a baseball town. Besides, the point is Bills fans OWE Ralph for giving them a team locally that they probably didn't deserve when he could have made a ton more money shipping them off to another city. If you don't want to root for the Bills because they play in Toronto, fine, but you OWE Ralph for a legacy of loyalty to Buffalo and should root for that organization no matter where they relocate. If Ralph's team moves to Toronto you can still get there without chartering a flight, so in that sense he's doing Bills fans a FAVOR by moving the games there instead of LA.

 

All of you on this board OWE Ralph, not the other way around. Don't forget it.

 

If anything, the Blue Jays should have an easier case to make to potential WNY fans because the Blues Jays did not actually leave Buffalo. Usually people have a worse relationship with the ex that jilted them who still live down the street versus the neighbor who just moved next door.

 

You talk about how Buffalo does not deserve a team and how shiny and nice Toronto is. Beyond the different country issue, this is exactly why the team would not be the same. It would no longer represent the city, WNY and Upstate NY. There would no longer be any emotional attachment from me and most others. This isn't like moving them moving to Rochester.

 

Yes, I appreciate what Ralph Wilson has done to keep the team here when he could have left for greener pastures. I also appreciate that my wife has been faithful to me thus far. But if either abandon me, I think it's reasonable for me to be a little annoyed.

 

The fact that you cannot see this suggests either that you lack emotional maturity or are just acting as a troll.

[SouthGeorgiaBillsFan]

It would no longer represent the city, WNY and Upstate NY.

 

Seems to me that it is always up to those fans whether or not the team represents them. If the Bills move to Toronto but you drive down Buffalo St. in Jamestown NY and see Bills helmets still plastered all over the sides of houses, then I would say the team definitely represents those fans, regardless of where they live. And I suspect that though the Bills may lose some of those fans, a majority of them will still be there.

[EndZoneCrew]

If TO catches 15 touchdowns, Marshawn rushes for 1,500 yards, Dante has 8 INT's, and the Bills go 13-3 while moving their home games to Toronto, everyone will still be going nuts with Bills fever.

 

Most Bills fans realize that Toronto has more money and a bigger population, and are reconciled that it makes sense for Mr. Wilson to allow the team to migrate north. He's paid his dues keeping the team in Buffalo despite all of his lucrative offers to relocate, so we now should get behind him when he looks to finally make some money. Toronto is still close to Buffalo, so he should be applauded for keeping the Bills within driving distance instead of shipping them off to LA. Some posters here should show more loyalty to Ralph, and lose the immature, selfish "Buffalo first" mentality.

 

You are such an idiot!

[EndZoneCrew]

This team will never be serious about winning playing in two cities.....less people here will be able to bring emotion to the Ralph, and Toronto will likely never provide any homefield advantage....it's a lose-lose relationship!