CodeMonkey

That is exactly the point. They should be considering all offers. The way they sprinted to the podium last year indicates a complete closed mindedness and/or inability to adapt to a dynamic situation. I would certainly hope that Nix being in his second draft as GM will be a bit smarter about it this year. And even if his phone does not ring with a good deal and they use the #3 pick that they at least give other GMs the opportunity to make Nix an offer he can't refuse. Brian Burke in an interview on last years NHL trade deadline day summed it up well. Luke Schenn is about as untouchable as any player in the league. But if someone offers me 10 first round picks he is on a plane. You always, ALWAYS listen to a deal. It costs you nothing and may end up being a big win for you.

Even if what you say is true, and there are only a couple people who know the truth, the GM is still ultimately responsible for staffing a team. With lack of proof to the contrary, I hold him responsible. My hope is the new front office has a new GM in mind, but they cannot pursue him until after the season. Drury, Briere, Campbell, knee jerk reaction overpaying Vanek ... Wilson for Warnerer doesn't even belong in that conversation in my opinion. Besides, I'm not saying everything Darcy did sucked. But look at the team in the cup finals and the one now. I was at the game the other night and couldn't help but think how many guys on the Sabres bench belong in Portland sweaters. Not that they can't someday be NHL caliber players, but they certainly are not now.

Except for the fact that Darcy Regier is still the Sabres GM. He put this team together and by his lack of action so far one has to assume he is satisfied with the current talent level of the team.

Neither. They are football players, not gods. I don't give a !@#$ what they do off the field.

Out of curiosity, what is your opinion of the speaking skills of say Wilson, Nix or Gailey?

Quit whining because the Sabres and not the Bills have a new owner who by all accounts is going to do his best to give Buffalo a major sports championship. Hopefully the Bills will be in the same position someday. I for one appreciate Golisano stepping in and keeping the Sabres in Buffalo, but the team did suffer during his reign. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens now. And as luck would have it, I will be at the game tonight!

I think he says that not just because of the weather (which is a valid reason in and of itself in my opinion, I certainly don't want to watch a SB played in a blizzard), but because of the city as well. The SB "event" is far far bigger than just the game itself with people flying in to party all week and go to the game almost as an afterthought. Buffalo and most other small markets have little to offer to make a great "event" as compared to those other venues.

Guys, he is telling the truth instead of "koolaid speak". What Ralph says to the press isn't going to make the coaching staff slack off, that is just nonsense. I would rather he tell the truth than blow smoke up my ass. I do think though, that taking a shot at Fitz was below the belt.

Are you serious? I can understand why some might want to say Kyle Williams. He did have a good season and seems to be a great kid. But a franchise player is someone who were he to leave, would cripple your team severely. Peyton Manning and Marcia Brady and excellent examples. Is Kyle Williams in this category? Of course not. Your other 4 are far too ridiculous to bother commenting on. Bottom line is the Bills have no one worthy of a franchise tag. We all were hoping Spiller would be tag worthy when he was drafted. And who knows, maybe someday he will be. But for now the Bills are a tag-less organization. I could understand someone wanting to hang a tag on Spiller if they firmly believed he was going to turn into something special however.

Say what you want about Mr. Wilson, but he took the county legislators to school with that contract.

Or wastes time complaining about it? I would agree. What other sport anywhere can afford to pay it's players so much money for so few games played.

I agree with both of you guys. But the original quote was "most popular sport anywhere" and I was just pointing out that the statement, as made, is simply not true. "most popular sport anywhere in the United States" no argument from me.

Soccer far and away is the worlds most popular sport. I don't believe there is even a close second. It's not about winning superbowls or even having a good team. It is about economics. Smaller market equals less money. Not saying I like or you should like it, but our not liking it does not change the facts.

Of course owners in major markets wouldn't want to share evenly with owners in dirt poor markets like Buffalo. Why would they? The NFL (owners and players alike) want more and more money every year. One way to achieve this is to dump small markets like Buffalo and only have teams in major markets. It is simple economics. Would this "ruin the sport"? Outside of the small markets that get boned in the process, no. And even these markets will probably get over it in a few years. And regarding your "most popular sport anywhere" comments at the end ... not even close. But you were rolling by that point so no worries

No. The curse of picking the supplier based strictly on who was the lowest bid. Companies on the verge of bankruptcy will make sweetheart deals because they are desperate for any income. But ultimately the reasons for them being near bankruptcy in the first place prevail and they go out of business.

Ahhh but didn't you see the posts here saying that the REAL fans will pay whatever the team tells them to? Be it their season tickets while getting no value in return, merchandise including new jerseys even if the team hasn't had a sniff of the playoffs in longer than you care to remember, and drafts so bad for so long it is comical. REAL fans support their team always! They won't let a simple thing like a greedy owner stand in their way. I mean ... why let a little thing like being blackmailed ruin a good time? It is THEIR TEAM dammit!!!!!![/sarcasm]

I buy none until the team is competitive.

"License fees" for jerseys are shared revenue. But I believe the raw profit from jerseys sold at the Bills store (minus license fee) goes into Ralphs pocket. At least that is my understanding.

I see it exactly the same way, so it's not just you.

Or maybe it is as simple as the Bills brain trust thinking that uniforms are something they actually have the ability to fix.

My guess is given the past 11 years and counting, what else is there to get excited about? or [sarcasm]That was the last piece of the puzzle. Who needs to know how to draft worth a **** when you have new uniforms! We are in the next superbowl for sure now![/sarcasm] I find it remarkable they would waste any time or energy on this. I see it as a slap in the face to loyal Bills fans expecting them to shell out money not just for seasons, but a few hundred more for this new schlock. They have no shame in my opinion. Fix the team first ... you know ... the important thing.

Homeland security huh. Now that's a great use of my tax money. Guess the taliban were planning on watching the superbowl illegally.

Man you guys still don't get this do you. Coaching staffs job to get players prepared to play in a game? Couldn't be more true in a game that means something. Couldn't be more off the mark for a silly little exhibition game like this. What does it matter which team wins? Did you watch (assuming you did) to see hard hitting football or to see the next draft class? It is the same with the scouts, but they also get value watching practice as well as the pretty little no-one-gets-hurt-above-all-else exhibition game. These scouts were pissed because they missed out on what they thought was a good opportunity to see the next draft class work out rather than watching walk throughs. Is this really hard to comprehend? Gailey can do whatever he likes and he did, I really don't give a ****. I was (and am still) explaining why the scouts - you know, the people whose job it is to evaluate players entering the draft - didn't like it and were bitching about it.

Geez. Don't you people get it? No one, particularly scouts, give a flying !@#$ if any team was "prepared to play" or who wins a dumb-ass exhibition game. They wanted to get a good look at the kids coming out in the next draft all together and feel Gailey wasted this opportunity while the other coach did not. That is what they were bitching about. They are scouting the kids, not the coaches. Get it? Move on.

Some banned ads: http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-02-03/12-banned-super-bowl-ads/