YoloinOhio Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Regardless of your thoughts on Maybin (or TG) this is a very interesting read in the BN today. http://bills.buffalonews.com/2015/07/26/aaron-maybin-a-first-round-draft-pick-for-bills-in-2009-finds-peace-through-art/
jester43 Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Wow what a great job by Tim Graham....turning one of the most vilified players in the history of this forum into an actual human being! It sounds like Maybin's doing well and I hope he keeps it together!
Corp000085 Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Maybin seems like an interesting guy. Also, I wonder how much truth there is to the way the Ralph Wilson bills were run. If this is some of the truth, it's no wonder we haven't made the playoffs in a generation.
Flutie Flakes Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Great article by TG. Glad to hear that Maybin is doing well and has found happiness through his artistic endeavors.
YoloinOhio Posted July 26, 2015 Author Posted July 26, 2015 Maybin seems like an interesting guy. Also, I wonder how much truth there is to the way the Ralph Wilson bills were run. If this is some of the truth, it's no wonder we haven't made the playoffs in a generation.that point stuck with me too. Certainly thought-provoking.
jester43 Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 (edited) I wonder how much truth there is to the way the Ralph Wilson bills were run. If this is some of the truth, it's no wonder we haven't made the playoffs in a generation. Hmmm....yeah, no wonder. Ralph had his one big drunken spending spree in the 90s but he spent the rest of his career nickel-and-diming this franchise into the joke status it has deserved since then. Soooooo many stories like this...is it even a question anymore? Do we have to bring up his coaching/front office hires? Coincidentally, Maybin came along at the absolute low-point in all of this. There are dozens of guys here who love to sneer sarcastically at you..."heh, Ralph is cheap ," but while we know he (RIP and thanks) had strong philanthropic instincts, his refusal to pay the going rate for talent hurt the franchise badly. I'm not suggesting Maybin deserved more than he got, but how many stories like this do we have to read before it sinks in? Edited July 26, 2015 by jester43
Hapless Bills Fan Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Regardless of your thoughts on Maybin (or TG) this is a very interesting read in the BN today. http://bills.buffalonews.com/2015/07/26/aaron-maybin-a-first-round-draft-pick-for-bills-in-2009-finds-peace-through-art/ Kudos to Maybin for having an outlet and interest that keeps him going in life, and for having invested well enough to be set for life to take care of his family. From a football perspective, Jauron was one scary guy and the story about Schobel and how he literally wouldn't practice (a vet, who should be a leader) - well, the Bills had a losing culture for sure. The part about lowballing contracts and causing holdouts rings true as well. I threw up a little bit in my mouth at the Bills organizational statements especially this one: "“We are proud of how supportive we are for individuals within our organization during difficult times,” the Bills replied in a statement to The Buffalo News. “We offer various elements of support, including counseling and NFL programs, to all of our players who are dealing with personal tragedy" Translation: we'll give you a phone number to call to some lowball firm with a choice of lowball "counselors" you can see (not even psychologists), but we don't do a damn thing to make empathy and genuine caring about human beings a cornerstone of our organizational philosophy or a part of our daily life - that's left to the individual coaches and staff, and if they suck at it, Oh Well. Jauron didn't strike me as a guy whose strong point was connecting with other human beings. Often it takes so little - "I'm really sorry, is there anything I can do?" goes a long way. OTOH, if Maybin didn't want his teammates to know about his sons death, people can't extend any sympathy if they don't know of the need.
machine gun kelly Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Yolo, thanks for the thread. I feel almost guilty to bash the owner who brought a team here and kept it here when there were better offers to move it. With that said, let's just say I'm so happy the Pegulas are our owners, all signs point to running well, spending where needed and getting the best product they can on the field in coaching and players. How can you not be a believer with the number of offensive acquisitions we made this year as we didn't have enough draft picks. I'm sorry for Maybin's loss and he may have been used poorly, and the points on the front office and coaching are valid, but we should have made a better pick back then. He's up there with Mike Williams as one of the worst first round picks.
chris heff Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Is anyone else having trouble opening articles from the Buffalo News?
Lurker Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Two names I haven't thought about for months. Welp. A fine use of Buffett's money...
Kirby Jackson Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 (edited) That was a good read. It sounds like Maybin has found his passion. With that being said I believe that the reason things didn't work out here was more mutual than just the Bills fault. Also, I probably should have mentioned in the thread of guys that were jerks but Schobel would have been a good nominee. Edited July 26, 2015 by Kirby Jackson
White Linen Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 The symbolism of Maybin’s painting “Forty Million Dollar Slaves” is unmistakable. “Fans can’t really wrap their minds around all the elements” of being NFL property, he says. Yet the money he made not earned in terms of production freed his family who wanted to retire - and allows him to be a knucklehead artist. Yeah Aaron I guess I'm not smart enough to wrap my head around the slavery of being NFL property.
Rubes Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Is anyone else having trouble opening articles from the Buffalo News? Yeah, they are opening much more slowly than usual. But they all eventually loaded.
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 Is anyone else having trouble opening articles from the Buffalo News? Yes; I can't even open this.
machine gun kelly Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 The symbolism of Maybin’s painting “Forty Million Dollar Slaves” is unmistakable. “Fans can’t really wrap their minds around all the elements” of being NFL property, he says. Yet the money he made not earned in terms of production freed his family who wanted to retire - and allows him to be a knucklehead artist. Yeah Aaron I guess I'm not smart enough to wrap my head around the slavery of being NFL property. You said what I was thinking.
TheLynchTrain Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 (edited) I'm happy that Maybin is doing something that makes him happy and I hope to god that money doesn't run out. That being said there was quite a bit of whine and hyperbole in that story - A rookie telling coaches to cut him if he's not playing after 6-7 games? Aaron Schobel weighing 300 pounds in the offseason? Give me a break. I for one like Tim's writing style, but he should have done a little more fact checking on this one, or at least separated some of the whine from reality. It sounds like whatever came out of Maybin's mouth went into the story. Edited July 26, 2015 by TheLynchTrain
eball Posted July 26, 2015 Posted July 26, 2015 There's no question the Bills were run poorly in the mid-late 2000s -- perhaps as poorly as ever in their history -- and I don't doubt they tried to nickel and dime players on contracts. That said -- I just can't bring myself to feel any empathy or appreciation for Aaron Maybin at all. And his art sucks.
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