Pegula: We Aren't Talking About 16 Years; Talking Future

[26CornerBlitz]

@JaySkurski

BN Blitz: #Bills owner Terry Pegula: 'In my mind, the team hasn’t been to the playoffs in one year': https://t.co/GLV0eVrk0S

Any time Terry Pegula speaks publicly, it's newsworthy.

The Buffalo Bills' owner very rarely does interviews, so it's understandable why his words are carefully scrutinized.

That leads us to Monday, and his appearance on the team-run John Murphy Show. Pegula raised at least some eyebrows when he said, "I don't think anybody is" thinking about his team's 16-year playoff drought.

The assumption here – and it is just an assumption, because it went unsaid – is that Pegula is referring to the team's employees.

 

[H2o]

 

Your interpretive and translation skills are excellent.

Really? Did not get that at all.

Did you remotely, if even the smallest amount, catch any sarcasm in there?

[C.Biscuit97]

Why would a player or an owner who just bought the team care about the drought? All players worry about is this year. As much as I hate the drought, I honestly just block them out and they all blend together. Drinking helps.

 

As unexcite as I am about this season, it has nothing to do with the last 16 years. It's a new season and anything can happen. I don't even think of guys like Losman unless some loser fan is wearing their jersey still.

[Gugny]

Have you been to a game in Buffalo recently? The Dallas stadium sucks. It is too big, fans are separated from the field and there is no tailgating. If you want a nice box and a big screen have at it. I would rather watch at home if that is all games at the stadium are about.

 

You seem ornery.

 

I agree with you 100%.

[Over 29 years of fanhood]

Pegs didn't read the contract closely enough. Liability for past futility conveys.

[May Day 10]

The problem is, when pegula took control, he decided to leave all the wilson legacy personnel in place. The decision makers largely responsible since donahoe was sent packing (who brought us our meaningful week 17 game for a decade and a half).

 

Under this management team, we had a young coach walk the plank into nothingness. The second time this has occurred in 10 years. Then he was treated like the source of all the problems and he paradropped in against managements will.

 

Reset when levy brought in

Reset when brandon became gm

Reset when nix and gailey brought in

Reset when nix passed the baton to his assistant

Reset when ralph ceded control of the team (as if he was controlling it)

Reset when pegula bought the team

Reset when marrone walked and rex brought in.

 

Next will be the reset when either rex or whaley take the fall.

 

 

This organization since 2005 has been built to run a slick operation, not necessarily a priority to win, and keep control close to ownership/president.

They need someone from the outside, who knows how a winning program in 2016 is built, to come in, assess all aspects of the football side, make changes, and create synergy from the top down. Starts and ends there.

I feel like pegula was going this route and someone poisoned the water for polian (gee, i wonder who had the most to lose if he were brought in). Instead, its the same thing we had with ralph, only with an involved and inexperienced pegula... and a very awful coaching hire that is headed for an iceberg.

 

I have been having this same discussion for close to 10 years. Really, since the "levy era"

Edited August 11, 2016 by May Day 10

[Mr. WEO]

In Petula's mind, 1 Buffalo Bills year----how many is that in Sabres years?

[C.Biscuit97]

In Petula's mind, 1 Buffalo Bills year----how many is that in Sabres years?

3. Not that hard.

 

He's a big part of the whole renaissance in Buffalo. I'll give him a pass for these tire fire teams he inherited not to be playoff teams yet.

[Mr. WEO]

3. Not that hard.

 

He's a big part of the whole renaissance in Buffalo. I'll give him a pass for these tire fire teams he inherited not to be playoff teams yet.

 

 

He's certainly been a boon to the city, no doubt.

 

But can you imagine if, after another 4,5,6 years---- the Bills were still well below .500? Would anyone be marveling at how much of a great young team they may become some day (or whatever is being said while they continue to dwell in last or next to last in their division)?

 

He's not going to that kind of pass in the NFL.

Edited August 11, 2016 by Mr. WEO

[Nihilarian]

 

 

He's certainly been a boon to the city, no doubt.

 

But can you imagine if, after another 4,5,6 years---- the Bills were still well below .500? Would anyone be marveling at how much of a great young team they may become some day (or whatever is being said while they continue to dwell in last or next to last in their division)?

 

He's not going to that kind of pass in the NFL.

Love the man...just not what path with the Bills FO he has taken so far.

 

He could attempt to do with the Bills what he did with the Sabres and tank the team for 3-4 years to get some high-end 1st round picks and perhaps a real franchise QB.

 

But then he will face what Ralph faced when the team tanks that badly and that is ticket sales dying with the team not making a profit anywhere and this time there is no fear of the team moving away to keep fans coming. The other problem is the team still doesn't have the proper talent evaluators in Buffalo who can tell the difference between elite, good and average talent. Because if he had those evaluators the team wouldn't have used two first rounders on a WR or overpaid for an older RB, for an injury prone TE and the team would have some solid depth with no holes in the roster.

 

Good thing Terry is in the film room with the mooks, learning to be the next Ralph Wilson.

[USABuffaloFan]

So what exactly is Pegula supposed to do about it? Seriously, what are you asking for? Terry & Kim are probably doing exactly what you want...making the team better. But I guess there needs to be some human sacrifice too if I read you correctly.

He wants to clock reset but keeps Brandon around, keeps Whaley around. Where is the reset, Marrone walked away, had to hire a new coach. Even the uniforms changed before he took over. He did the same thing for the Sabres before he cleaned house, now they are building through the draft, new leadership! As a fan I didn't see him reset this team, this still feels like a Wilson lead team except they are really quick to hand money out. Same kind of results, 7-9 to 9-7. I like the Pegula's they have helped Buffalo. I just don't see how he has reset this team!

[Paup 1995MVP]

 

 

It sure as hell is.. Just because hes a new owner does not remove the 16 before him.. He bought the franchise warts and all.. he has to accept it

I agree with you completely. Management, coaching and quarterback play have been for the most part abysmal over the past 16 years. And if last year is any indication, not much has changed. (nice improvement at QB is a start) Hopefully, Rex figures out how to win again on a consistent basis. I am cautiously optimistic that w TT taking the next step into being an above average QB, that we finally break the drought. But Rex is going to need to be much more on w his game day decision making and scheming. Go Bills! As for Pegula, not overly impressed w anything he has done since buying the Bills.

[C.Biscuit97]

 

 

He's certainly been a boon to the city, no doubt.

 

But can you imagine if, after another 4,5,6 years---- the Bills were still well below .500? Would anyone be marveling at how much of a great young team they may become some day (or whatever is being said while they continue to dwell in last or next to last in their division)?

 

He's not going to that kind of pass in the NFL.

I mean some idiots are already after him, so your point is take.

 

I will struggle to ever get made at the guy. I think the blaming the owner stuff is corny in the first place. Jerry Jones spends more money than anyone and he has been bad far more often than good. People act like Kraft is a great owner and he essentially lucked into a 6th round draft pick.

 

But your point is taken and I hope it doesn't ever come to that.

[May Day 10]

I love Pegula.

 

 

 

However, he severely botched the Sabres' transition and it took him about 3 years to figure out that throwing money at bad management and problems only amplifies them. He reluctantly changed and brought in outside eyes when the fans were making home games a very hostile (and embarrassing) atmosphere. Even then he took half-measures, trying to get Ruff out (early after an offseason and a lockout when it should have been done long before)... and then finally cleaning house and installing management and outside eyes early in another season (when it should have happened at the beginning of the offseason).

 

 

IMO he has done the exact same transition here.

 

 

 

Im fine and in a good place. Under Wilson I was a little more 'desperate' because I really thought the clock was ticking off on our opportunity to watch the Bills win in Buffalo. Fans were becoming more despondent and it would have helped the NFL justification to relocate them.

[CodeMonkey]

 

 

He's certainly been a boon to the city, no doubt.

 

But can you imagine if, after another 4,5,6 years---- the Bills were still well below .500? Would anyone be marveling at how much of a great young team they may become some day (or whatever is being said while they continue to dwell in last or next to last in their division)?

 

He's not going to that kind of pass in the NFL.

I completely disagree. If the past 16 years have taught us anything, it's that hard core Bills fans, of which there are a great many, don't require results to stay loyal including financially. 16 year "drought" in full effect, ticket prices I think went up for most, and how many season tickets were sold for the upcoming season? Bills fans may piss and moan to high heaven, but at the end of they day they will always support the Buffalo Bills.

Edited August 11, 2016 by CodeMonkey

[Mr. WEO]

I mean some idiots are already after him, so your point is take.

 

I will struggle to ever get made at the guy. I think the blaming the owner stuff is corny in the first place. Jerry Jones spends more money than anyone and he has been bad far more often than good. People act like Kraft is a great owner and he essentially lucked into a 6th round draft pick.

 

But your point is taken and I hope it doesn't ever come to that.

 

Jones and Kraft have SB rings. Every owner "lucks" into a HOF QB. HC is another story and Kraft got BB and Jones got Jimmy Johnson--perhaps the most underrated HC ever to win a SB.

 

I completely disagree. If the past 16 years have taught us anything, it's that hard core Bills fans, of which there are a great many, don't require results to stay loyal including financially. 16 year "drought" in full effect, ticket prices I think went up for most, and how many season tickets were sold for the upcoming season? Bills fans may piss and moan to high heaven, but at the end of they day they will always support the Buffalo Bills.

Edited August 11, 2016 by Mr. WEO

[Nihilarian]

I completely disagree. If the past 16 years have taught us anything, it's that hard core Bills fans, of which there are a great many, don't require results to stay loyal including financially. 16 year "drought" in full effect, ticket prices I think went up for most, and how many season tickets were sold for the upcoming season? Bills fans may piss and moan to high heaven, but at the end of they day they will always support the Buffalo Bills.

That wasn't always the case. What you may not realize is exactly how close Ralph Wilson almost came to becoming another Art Model in moving his team to a different city or another Al Davis in either selling part of the team or simply selling the whole bundle. There were several occasions over the 50 plus year history of the franchise that Ralph Wilson became very desperate and was almost forced to make those drastic changes.

 

In 1977 Lady Luck threw him a bone when the foolish owner of the Rams fired a man who had taken his Rams team to five straight NFC West championships and he managed to do that with five different players at QB each year. Also, along the way had lost three NFC Championship games with a regular season record or 54-15-1 but had gone 3-5 in the playoffs. When Ralph Wilson hired Chuck Knox the Bills hadn't beaten the Miami Dolphins for the entire decade of the 70's and at the end of the decade the team couldn't even have preseason games in Buffalo because no fans would attend. Season ticket sales were abysmal in the late 70's. Chuck Knox didn't come cheap either.

 

 

The next time Lady Luck kicked in was in finding and promoting Bill Polian to GM and in signing QB Jim Kelly and then making him the highest paid QB in the league because Al Davis already had his hooks in ole Jimbo to become a Raider. The Bills were coming off back to back 2-14 seasons and season ticket sales were around 20k for a stadium that held over 80k and the fans that did show up for games had paper bags on their heads.

 

Bills fans have kept the team mediocre over the last 15 years in fear of losing the team to another city if Wilson suddenly passed and fear is a powerful motivator. Ticket prices were also some of the lowest in the league to allow blue collar / tailgating fans to go to games. Still, had the team bottomed over that period of time the team might have changed hands.

 

As much talent as this team currently has on the roster in stars it is paper thin in depth at almost every position and it wouldn't surprise me to see the team crap the bed with a rash of injuries to a bunch of starters this year.

[Helpmenow]

Making a ton of cash from the bills and those seats are filled.

[thebandit27]

That wasn't always the case. What you may not realize is exactly how close Ralph Wilson almost came to becoming another Art Model in moving his team to a different city or another Al Davis in either selling part of the team or simply selling the whole bundle. There were several occasions over the 50 plus year history of the franchise that Ralph Wilson became very desperate and was almost forced to make those drastic changes.

 

In 1977 Lady Luck threw him a bone when the foolish owner of the Rams fired a man who had taken his Rams team to five straight NFC West championships and he managed to do that with five different players at QB each year. Also, along the way had lost three NFC Championship games with a regular season record or 54-15-1 but had gone 3-5 in the playoffs. When Ralph Wilson hired Chuck Knox the Bills hadn't beaten the Miami Dolphins for the entire decade of the 70's and at the end of the decade the team couldn't even have preseason games in Buffalo because no fans would attend. Season ticket sales were abysmal in the late 70's. Chuck Knox didn't come cheap either.

 

 

The next time Lady Luck kicked in was in finding and promoting Bill Polian to GM and in signing QB Jim Kelly and then making him the highest paid QB in the league because Al Davis already had his hooks in ole Jimbo to become a Raider. The Bills were coming off back to back 2-14 seasons and season ticket sales were around 20k for a stadium that held over 80k and the fans that did show up for games had paper bags on their heads.

 

Bills fans have kept the team mediocre over the last 15 years in fear of losing the team to another city if Wilson suddenly passed and fear is a powerful motivator. Ticket prices were also some of the lowest in the league to allow blue collar / tailgating fans to go to games. Still, had the team bottomed over that period of time the team might have changed hands.

 

As much talent as this team currently has on the roster in stars it is paper thin in depth at almost every position and it wouldn't surprise me to see the team crap the bed with a rash of injuries to a bunch of starters this year.

 

No.

The Sabres will be good this year me thinks, but it only took them what? 5 years?

 

I imagine it will be the same with the Bills considering he made the same mistake with the Bills that he made with the Sabres. Keeping the trash around.

 

I can't blame the guy for not being fire-and-brimstone from day 1.

 

There's something to be said for getting the pulse of the organization prior to taking major action.

[Nihilarian]

 

No.

 

I can't blame the guy for not being fire-and-brimstone from day 1.

 

There's something to be said for getting the pulse of the organization prior to taking major action.

Yep, no question. I should have worded it that "Bills fans have helped keep the team IN Buffalo while the team being mediocre over the last 16 years".

 

 

 

Something can be said for taking 5 years to correct and what would that something be?