Kirby Jackson

Can I ask a question a different way? Let’s separate this from the anthem for a second. Would people have an issue if the 2 minute warning in the 1st half was a chance recognize what they are trying to achieve by kneeling? It could be like the 7th inning stretch in baseball. If everyone on the field took a knee at the 2 minute warning to bring awareness to their cause would people still have an issue? I guess the question is it the anthem that needs to be held sacred or their protest that needs to be silenced? Just curious...

It’s not though it’s earned. If Patrick Mahomes takes a dump on Andy Reid’s desk nothing happens to him. This isn’t an employer/employee relationship necessarily. The sports model is different. The players are your assets. Ford sells cars. The NFL sells the talent of the players.

You hit on something here that kind of crossed my mind. Athletes are different. They aren’t guys at the call center that can easily be replaced. If Mahomes, for example, decides that he’s kneeling no matter what the league is in a corner. There’s nothing that the league can do. They need him.

So they should speak up when they have no audience? I’m not sure how a guy kneeling changes your experience? I really don’t understand that. Can someone explain. When it’s 20-17 in the 4th quarter I’m not thinking about how much more I would have enjoyed this game if a guy didn’t kneel during the anthem. I’m not trying to be sarcastic I just can’t wrap my head around it. I don’t care if they do cartwheels during the anthem or intros or whatever. My interest in football is what happens between kickoff and when the clock hits zero.

I’m not going to go too far down the rabbit hole but “should” and “will” aren’t the same. Athletes are some of the most recognizable people in this country. They are some of the most recognizable black people in this country. When we are in the situation that we are in it is unreasonable to expect the loudest voices to remain quiet. It just isn’t going to happen now or in the future. That ship has sailed. This is something that people are going to have to get comfortable with and accept or find something else to occupy their time. In the social media era they have a megaphone and advertisers haven’t shunned the socially active. We won’t see politics and sports split in my lifetime. This is the new norm.

It’s a different world!! It’s the most intimidating atmosphere to compete in since the Roman Coliseum. Come for either the Texas game or one of the SEC games. It’s a different atmosphere. Be prepared though you’re probably looking at $300-$400 a ticket for Alabama or Texas. I’ve thought about getting season tickets. You can get decent seats for like $1000 for the year. I can sell Alabama and Texas and recoup most of my money. Add Ole Miss in there and I’d be even. Go to South Carolina and Miss. St. Giveaway UTSA & Nicholls St.

I really think Vegas is going to be like this for a while. It’s always going to be brutally expensive. It feels like a trip that everyone will commit to when the schedule comes out and then bail on as we get closer. My hope was that a group would go and that I’d only have to buy my own ticket, room, flight, meals, etc.. At the moment, that’s not looking so good. I’m having a hard time finding people that want to go. We talked about doing it as a bachelor party which would be fun (but even MORE expensive). This doesn’t feel like a trip that you want to bring a girl, that won’t care about the game, and double your expenses (actually that’s every road game ?). I may end up pulling the plug on Vegas if things don’t change. It just feels kind of forced at this point.

Nope, we are all trying to get tickets the same way. Vegas is going to be nuts. I think that you’ll be looking at $1K for a pair. It’s going to be what it’s going to be but it’ll be like that in Vegas for a while (maybe forever). I have a flight booked but won’t buy tickets to that until much closer to the game. They aren’t going to get a lot higher IMO so I’m going to wait until I know that they’ll let us in.

If you’re going to chime in without reading I’m going to do the same ??‍♂️

Lol, that was in response to someone demanding that we keep politics out of sports (which is never going to happen again). If you aren’t going to read the whole conversation don’t jump in. I quoted Laura Ingraham’s freezing cold take, and they agreed. Clearly see where you stand on the issue of SYSTEMIC racism though.... Thanks for your contribution ?. Feel free to go back to sticking your head in the sand.

I really don’t know Hap. I know that he had to earn trust after the tweets. It seems like Allen is in good with that locker room now. I could be wrong but it appears that way.

That’s certainly true to an extent. The only major difference is the precedent that’s been set. It’s easy in stadium financing to go the public/private route because some government will. That gives you the leverage with your government. It’s been done so many times that it’s just the way that it is. In terms of handling a pandemic everyone is doing it for the first time. Every league, team, concession company, etc... is flying blind. They are trying to learn from people operating low Korean Baseball and the Bundesliga. At the same time there isn’t a playbook. It’s trial and error as opposed to a proven recipe.

Was Jason Botterill considered a great hire? Kruger was about their 10th choice. The arena is falling apart. That’s all a part of it. Ownership is in charge of EVERYTHING. They’ve failed as owners of the Sabres to this point. They’ve done it while acquiring 2 generational talents. That’s hard to do. In terms of the Bills, they got the right people. It was a mess prior. Now they are hands off there. We can go back and forth all night but it’s exhausting. You believe that they are good owners. I believe that they are bad owners. To each his own I’d bet every dime that I have that if the Sabres went up for sale tomorrow the sale price wOils be north of $500M.

Couldn’t agree more here. You almost have to try to fail. Imagine if they were in South Florida doing this?

Yeah, I like that bet at +300. As calculated as Brees is, those are great odds. He’s going to do whatever makes him look the best.

1. Of course they can make whatever decision they want. They aren’t immune to criticism either. 2. Define “making money.” A franchise value increase of $25M if certainly a good year. In terms of the Pegulas they have been a godsend to Buffalo for saving the teams. They aren’t good owners. Both of those things are true IMO. They were extremely fortunate to get Beane and McDermott. It took a few tries but they were able to get elite leadership. They still haven’t managed that with the Sabres.

Make that money!! https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2020/06/odds-of-drew-brees-kneeling-during-the-national-anthem.html%3foutputType=amp

Because my point was the parent organization was profitable. There is so much crossover. It was 104 PSE employees furloughed and 21 PSE employees fired. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/29036724/sabres-parent-company-announces-layoffs-furloughs-125-employees%3fplatform=amp The organization that I worked at is the same model (Saints and Pelicans) and they didn’t do that with anyone. In terms of profitability I didn’t want to go too far down the rabbit hole. Sports are different from other businesses. The value of the Sabres was up $25M last year. Obviously, this year is going to be different for everyone but the point remains. This wasn’t a necessity. This was an effort to save money because they WANTED to not because they NEEDED to. https://www.forbes.com/teams/buffalo-sabres/#68324f9464f3

Not the case look up a few posts.

Feel free to quote where I said that and then we can discuss...

I didn’t say the Sabres. I said PSE

Then why is protesting cancer okay during a game? That’s where I’m having a hard time seeing the difference. Both are topics that we universally agree with. If someone DOESN’T agree than the protest is even more necessary.

Sarcasm it is

I appreciate that. It was a couple years of the worst situation that you could imagine. It’s a brutal, brutal disease. In terms of the “when” I guess that the anthem is better than 2nd and 6. I’m only kind of kidding here. That’s an opportunity for them when they have their most eyes without having any impact on the actual game. I suppose the 2 minute warning of the 1st half could work? You could do it similar to the 7th inning stretch. It’s a moment that pauses the game to bring eyes on it. Just thinking out loud here...

I lost my mom to brain cancer in 2015. I understand. I appreciate them raising awareness. I’ve never experienced racism but I appreciate them bringing awareness to that as well. These men have a voice and a platform. Our country/world has major problems. If we bury our head in the sand or avoid the issues we don’t do anything to move forward. I also don’t understand how someone else’s views on the world can hinder your game-watching experience? Someone explain that to me please. I just don’t get it. Whether I agree with someone or not it doesn’t influence my experience as a fan in any way. When it’s 3rd and 6 I’m not thinking about a guy’s tweet from 4 days earlier. Explain how it’s different. You said earlier that you wanted them to play and not bring their beliefs into it. I’d like to think that the same amount of people support cancer as racism, zero. When is it okay for someone to speak up? When you’re comfortable with their message? It’s an honest question. What is “divisive” about protesting racism? Who is it that is supporting a different part of that message?