May Day 10 Posted October 24, 2009 Share Posted October 24, 2009 recently i have come out of denial and come to terms with who Ralph Wilson really is and what his intentions are and always have been. Gotta agree 100% with everything JohnC says. his goal isnt to do the right thing for the people of WNY... the people who gave him everything he demanded each time he held the community and tax payers for ransom. His intent is to max out the payout for his heirs. There is no backroom deals going on to ensure the franchise stays. I give the team a 10% chance of being in Buffalo 5 years from now. The only way is is Ralph keeps on living and will not sell the team due to tax reasons. And then once he dies it is in an NFL landscape different than now. And Jacobs, Rich Jr, Golisano are interested and dont have to competitively bid for the franchise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfan89 Posted October 24, 2009 Share Posted October 24, 2009 On the Jets pre-game last week they were interviewing Thurman Thomas and towards the end of the interview he was asked about the Bills future in Buffalo and he said and I am para phrasing that Jim Kelly has made a promise to the city of Buffalo to do what ever it takes to keep the team in Buffalo for the long haul. Now he said that that's why the team will never move because Kelly among others (They never asked him how this was going to happen or who these others were) would never let it happen. Honestly it wouldn't surprise me if Ralph changes his mind about the team before he dies. In 2-4 years if Ralph sells the team to Kelly and his ownership group in an attempt to insure that the team stays in Buffalo. From an outsiders perspective it makes no sense to have Ralph just sell to the highest league approved bidder. Why spend your whole life keeping the team in Buffalo just to sell them to God knows who when you die? Maybe its just wishful thinking but Thurman sounded really really convinced that the team was there to stay and he didn't even think it was a possibility that they would move. I hope the Bills don't move to LA or even Toronto but if Ralph's will stays the same and he dies odds are a Kelly ownership group might not be able to outbid a group hoping for an LA team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted October 24, 2009 Share Posted October 24, 2009 recently i have come out of denial and come to terms with who Ralph Wilson really is and what his intentions are and always have been. Gotta agree 100% with everything JohnC says. his goal isnt to do the right thing for the people of WNY... the people who gave him everything he demanded each time he held the community and tax payers for ransom. His intent is to max out the payout for his heirs. There is no backroom deals going on to ensure the franchise stays. Has Ralph ever demanded a new stadium be built? Has he asked for anything more than any other NFL owner has? No. One thing I've learned to criticize Ralph over is his choice of head coaches. I don't know why he'll spend gobs of money on players and signing bonuses, but go cheap with the coaches? But I doubt it's from a desire to screw WNY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnC Posted October 25, 2009 Share Posted October 25, 2009 On the Jets pre-game last week they were interviewing Thurman Thomas and towards the end of the interview he was asked about the Bills future in Buffalo and he said and I am para phrasing that Jim Kelly has made a promise to the city of Buffalo to do what ever it takes to keep the team in Buffalo for the long haul. Now he said that that's why the team will never move because Kelly among others (They never asked him how this was going to happen or who these others were) would never let it happen. Honestly it wouldn't surprise me if Ralph changes his mind about the team before he dies. In 2-4 years if Ralph sells the team to Kelly and his ownership group in an attempt to insure that the team stays in Buffalo. From an outsiders perspective it makes no sense to have Ralph just sell to the highest league approved bidder. Why spend your whole life keeping the team in Buffalo just to sell them to God knows who when you die? Maybe its just wishful thinking but Thurman sounded really really convinced that the team was there to stay and he didn't even think it was a possibility that they would move. I hope the Bills don't move to LA or even Toronto but if Ralph's will stays the same and he dies odds are a Kelly ownership group might not be able to outbid a group hoping for an LA team. Billsfan89, Jim Kelly on a WGR55 interview stated that he has approached Ralph Wilson about putting together a group to buy the team from him. Kelly told the interviewer, Howard Simon, that the owner told him in no uncertain terms that he didn't appreciate Kelly's approach toward him in buying the team. The owner felt that he was being disrespected with all the talk about his selling the team and that he didn't want anyone fueling the speculation about his selling the team. Jim Kelly then curtly told Howard Simon that he won't discuss the matter any longer. The owner has made it clear that he is keeping the team as long as he lives and that it will remain in western NY as long as he owns it. Then the team is going to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Where it is eventually located is not an interest of his. At that point he will be dead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnC Posted October 25, 2009 Share Posted October 25, 2009 Has Ralph ever demanded a new stadium be built? Has he asked for anything more than any other NFL owner has? No. One thing I've learned to criticize Ralph over is his choice of head coaches. I don't know why he'll spend gobs of money on players and signing bonuses, but go cheap with the coaches? But I doubt it's from a desire to screw WNY. Doc, Ralph Wilson doesn't want a new stadium. He is 91 yrs old and has a sweetheart lease deal on the antiquated stadium his team presently plays in. Is Ralph Wilson going to make even a small contribution to help build a new stadium? Of course not. Let's remain sober here. Why would he want a new stadium when it would take a number of years to get completed and he is presently at the ripe age he is at with no intention of passing the franchise on to his heirs? Is Ralph Wilson going to sign a long term lease which will inhibit him from selling to an outside bidder? Of course not. The present situation suits him just fine. He is making plenty of money under the current circumstances. You may think that Ralph Wilson is a terrific benefactor toward the region which has enriched him beyond even his own imagination. That is your prerogative. I don't. I have a very different view on this man. You are correct that he is not out to screw WNY. He merely doesn't care about WNY. His view is if it happens it is not his problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
True Posted October 25, 2009 Share Posted October 25, 2009 Let's just upload Ralph's brain to the internets and then he will never truly be dead. We could even get him infected with a virus so that he might care about fielding a winner or OMG... A CONTENDER! B. Ralph, I dropped a quarter in lot D last game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted October 25, 2009 Author Share Posted October 25, 2009 Has Ralph ever demanded a new stadium be built? Has he asked for anything more than any other NFL owner has? No. One thing I've learned to criticize Ralph over is his choice of head coaches. I don't know why he'll spend gobs of money on players and signing bonuses, but go cheap with the coaches? But I doubt it's from a desire to screw WNY. Really?? When did you have this epiphany? Man, you have no shame. And what JohnC said about the stadium. Why would he need a new one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malazan Posted October 25, 2009 Share Posted October 25, 2009 The owner has made it clear that he is keeping the team as long as he lives and that it will remain in western NY as long as he owns it. Then the team is going to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Where it is eventually located is not an interest of his. At that point he will be dead. He's made it abundantly clear. I'm really not sure how much clearer it could be or why people keep talking about it. There is no plan to keep the Bills in Buffalo. Any ownership group for Buffalo would likely be outbid. If they weren't the surmounting debt from the purchase would eliminate the 30 million in profit they make so they'd end up with problems anyway. Perhaps Golisano or someone else who wouldn't have to finance the team steps in, but don't get your hopes up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted October 25, 2009 Share Posted October 25, 2009 Doc, Ralph Wilson doesn't want a new stadium. He is 91 yrs old and has a sweetheart lease deal on the antiquated stadium his team presently plays in. Is Ralph Wilson going to make even a small contribution to help build a new stadium? Of course not. Let's remain sober here. Why would he want a new stadium when it would take a number of years to get completed and he is presently at the ripe age he is at with no intention of passing the franchise on to his heirs? Is Ralph Wilson going to sign a long term lease which will inhibit him from selling to an outside bidder? Of course not. The present situation suits him just fine. He is making plenty of money under the current circumstances. You may think that Ralph Wilson is a terrific benefactor toward the region which has enriched him beyond even his own imagination. That is your prerogative. I don't. I have a very different view on this man. You are correct that he is not out to screw WNY. He merely doesn't care about WNY. His view is if it happens it is not his problem. My post was asking whether Ralph has demanded anything more than any other owner has from his/her county. The answer is "no." And he's had chances to move the team, but hasn't. And without the Bills, Buffalo is little more than a rest stop on the way to Niagara Falls/Toronto. The Bills are the only thing keeping Buffalo revelant, sorry to say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted October 25, 2009 Share Posted October 25, 2009 Really?? When did you have this epiphany? Man, you have no shame. And what JohnC said about the stadium. Why would he need a new one? Gee, I don't know. Why does any owner "need" a new stadium? Talk about having no shame, you've been saying for years how Ralph should pony-up the money (nevermind Ralph demanding that the taxpayers foot half the bill) for a new stadium, so that the richies can finally come out and watch football there. When did you have this epiphany that that's no longer the case? And WRT hiring name head coaches, it could very well be that they simply don't want to coach in small market like Buffalo. As we know, Buffalo isn't a top destination for players unless they're getting significantly more money there than anywhere else. Why should coaches be any different? They've got wives/families, and their own egos. I remember Marvin Lewis turning down the job because his wife didn't like the area. And if you recall, Ralph (and you) wanted Mike Sherman, but Marv preferred Jauron. I guess we'll see this off-season, given the plethora of "name" coaches out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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