Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Bills Fans

[SoTier]

I'm 68.  I have been a Bills fan since I was 13, which was back in 1963, and I think my parents did me a disservice by raising me as a Bills fan.  Sundays in the fall revolved around the Bills.  Even my mother was a fan back in the days when few women would admit to having any understanding of the game much less serious fandom.  It has been a very bittersweet legacy because the Bills have been so bad so often for so long.  My mother died without ever seeing the Bills make the playoffs in the NFL (only the AFL).  My dad never saw the Bills play in a Super Bowl.   I don't expect that I'll live long enough to see the Bills win a Super Bowl, but maybe I won't care about that since I'm about at the end of my fandom I think. 

 

I've been moving in that direction for a while.  I gave up my season tix after the 2008 season when Jauron was given an extension despite the team's collapse in the second half of the season.  I even toyed with the idea of getting them again in 2014 because I originally thought that new ownership would usher in a new course for this team. Boy, oh, boy, was I wrong!   Despite all the changes in names and faces, the Bills continue to play the same "money ball" game they've played for the last quarter of a century.  They remain as uncommitted to fielding a winning team now as they ever did under Ralph Wilson's ownership and Russ Brandon's last dozen years of stewardship, perhaps even more so. 

 

I don't watch entire Bills games any more because I refuse to subject myself to that kind of torture.   I have NFL Sunday ticket so I can watch real football games played by real NFL teams, not that crap that the Bills serve up with regularity.  I'm skeptical of every move the team or its staff makes  because I've seen and heard this same bull **** again and again over the decades.  I'm sick of seeing players who were supposedly "not good enough" for the Bills starring and/or playing key roles for playoff contending teams while the Bills fill their roster with trash gleaned from various NFL dumpsters.    I'm sick of seeing the Bills plodding along in a horse-and-buggy (and a very SLOW horse at that) and crying poverty while the rest of the league zooms by in SUVs and does just fine on the same budget.  I'm tired of waiting for "next season" when "next season" never gets any better than any of the other previous "next seasons" in this century. 

 

Of course, the cynic in me says that maybe the Pegulas' real plan for the Bills is to make the team so bad for long enough that many fans will give up on the team -- or die off -- and there won't be much hue and cry if they sell the team to some other billionaire for a fat profit so that he can move it to London or Mexico City or Timbuktu. 

[teef]

 

jesus.  people need to reflect on what really is important in life.  i'm 41 now.  if i'm 68 and let the bills bother me this much, i'm killing myself.

[gobills1212]

3 minutes ago, SoTier said:

I'm 68.  I have been a Bills fan since I was 13, which was back in 1963, and I think my parents did me a disservice by raising me as a Bills fan.  Sundays in the fall revolved around the Bills.  Even my mother was a fan back in the days when few women would admit to having any understanding of the game much less serious fandom.  It has been a very bittersweet legacy because the Bills have been so bad so often for so long.  My mother died without ever seeing the Bills make the playoffs in the NFL (only the AFL).  My dad never saw the Bills play in a Super Bowl.   I don't expect that I'll live long enough to see the Bills win a Super Bowl, but maybe I won't care about that since I'm about at the end of my fandom I think. 

 

I've been moving in that direction for a while.  I gave up my season tix after the 2008 season when Jauron was given an extension despite the team's collapse in the second half of the season.  I even toyed with the idea of getting them again in 2014 because I originally thought that new ownership would usher in a new course for this team. Boy, oh, boy, was I wrong!   Despite all the changes in names and faces, the Bills continue to play the same "money ball" game they've played for the last quarter of a century.  They remain as uncommitted to fielding a winning team now as they ever did under Ralph Wilson's ownership and Russ Brandon's last dozen years of stewardship, perhaps even more so. 

 

I don't watch entire Bills games any more because I refuse to subject myself to that kind of torture.   I have NFL Sunday ticket so I can watch real football games played by real NFL teams, not that crap that the Bills serve up with regularity.  I'm skeptical of every move the team or its staff makes  because I've seen and heard this same bull **** again and again over the decades.  I'm sick of seeing players who were supposedly "not good enough" for the Bills starring and/or playing key roles for playoff contending teams while the Bills fill their roster with trash gleaned from various NFL dumpsters.    I'm sick of seeing the Bills plodding along in a horse-and-buggy (and a very SLOW horse at that) and crying poverty while the rest of the league zooms by in SUVs and does just fine on the same budget.  I'm tired of waiting for "next season" when "next season" never gets any better than any of the other previous "next seasons" in this century. 

 

Of course, the cynic in me says that maybe the Pegulas' real plan for the Bills is to make the team so bad for long enough that many fans will give up on the team -- or die off -- and there won't be much hue and cry if they sell the team to some other billionaire for a fat profit so that he can move it to London or Mexico City or Timbuktu. 

Tell us how you really feel!

[wppete]

 

[BuffaloBillyG]

3 minutes ago, SoTier said:

I'm 68.  I have been a Bills fan since I was 13, which was back in 1963, and I think my parents did me a disservice by raising me as a Bills fan.  Sundays in the fall revolved around the Bills.  Even my mother was a fan back in the days when few women would admit to having any understanding of the game much less serious fandom.  It has been a very bittersweet legacy because the Bills have been so bad so often for so long.  My mother died without ever seeing the Bills make the playoffs in the NFL (only the AFL).  My dad never saw the Bills play in a Super Bowl.   I don't expect that I'll live long enough to see the Bills win a Super Bowl, but maybe I won't care about that since I'm about at the end of my fandom I think. 

 

I've been moving in that direction for a while.  I gave up my season tix after the 2008 season when Jauron was given an extension despite the team's collapse in the second half of the season.  I even toyed with the idea of getting them again in 2014 because I originally thought that new ownership would usher in a new course for this team. Boy, oh, boy, was I wrong!   Despite all the changes in names and faces, the Bills continue to play the same "money ball" game they've played for the last quarter of a century.  They remain as uncommitted to fielding a winning team now as they ever did under Ralph Wilson's ownership and Russ Brandon's last dozen years of stewardship, perhaps even more so. 

 

I don't watch entire Bills games any more because I refuse to subject myself to that kind of torture.   I have NFL Sunday ticket so I can watch real football games played by real NFL teams, not that crap that the Bills serve up with regularity.  I'm skeptical of every move the team or its staff makes  because I've seen and heard this same bull **** again and again over the decades.  I'm sick of seeing players who were supposedly "not good enough" for the Bills starring and/or playing key roles for playoff contending teams while the Bills fill their roster with trash gleaned from various NFL dumpsters.    I'm sick of seeing the Bills plodding along in a horse-and-buggy (and a very SLOW horse at that) and crying poverty while the rest of the league zooms by in SUVs and does just fine on the same budget.  I'm tired of waiting for "next season" when "next season" never gets any better than any of the other previous "next seasons" in this century. 

 

Of course, the cynic in me says that maybe the Pegulas' real plan for the Bills is to make the team so bad for long enough that many fans will give up on the team -- or die off -- and there won't be much hue and cry if they sell the team to some other billionaire for a fat profit so that he can move it to London or Mexico City or Timbuktu. 

The Bills have been bad for many years despite new owners, GMs, coaches and players. The only constant here is you, sir. Perhaps you are a jinx?

[teef]

also for the record, i have a 3 yr old daughter, and a 4 month old son. both will be brought up to be bills fans.  both will also be raised as emotionally stable, successful adults, that don't let a pro team, of which they have no control, effect their lives in any way.  

[fridge]

My level of fandom is actually at a pretty great spot these days. I think I’ve got it right where it needs to be in case they ever get good, without feeling like I’ve completely abandoned them when they were bad.

 

For the record - when they hit that “obviously missing the playoffs” in Week 12, I usually do other stuff while the game is on. The last few years we’ve been in it until the end, but that’s been rare.

[Buddy Hix]

1 minute ago, teef said:

also for the record, i have a 3 yr old daughter, and a 4 month old son. both will be brought up to be bills fans.  both will also be raised as emotionally stable, successful adults, that don't let a pro team, of which they have no control, effect their lives in any way.  

So you aren’t emotionally invested in the Bills whatsoever? Despite spending thousands of hours on here and BBMB...

[RochesterRob]

7 minutes ago, SoTier said:

I'm 68.  I have been a Bills fan since I was 13, which was back in 1963, and I think my parents did me a disservice by raising me as a Bills fan.  Sundays in the fall revolved around the Bills.  Even my mother was a fan back in the days when few women would admit to having any understanding of the game much less serious fandom.  It has been a very bittersweet legacy because the Bills have been so bad so often for so long.  My mother died without ever seeing the Bills make the playoffs in the NFL (only the AFL).  My dad never saw the Bills play in a Super Bowl.   I don't expect that I'll live long enough to see the Bills win a Super Bowl, but maybe I won't care about that since I'm about at the end of my fandom I think. 

 

I've been moving in that direction for a while.  I gave up my season tix after the 2008 season when Jauron was given an extension despite the team's collapse in the second half of the season.  I even toyed with the idea of getting them again in 2014 because I originally thought that new ownership would usher in a new course for this team. Boy, oh, boy, was I wrong!   Despite all the changes in names and faces, the Bills continue to play the same "money ball" game they've played for the last quarter of a century.  They remain as uncommitted to fielding a winning team now as they ever did under Ralph Wilson's ownership and Russ Brandon's last dozen years of stewardship, perhaps even more so. 

 

I don't watch entire Bills games any more because I refuse to subject myself to that kind of torture.   I have NFL Sunday ticket so I can watch real football games played by real NFL teams, not that crap that the Bills serve up with regularity.  I'm skeptical of every move the team or its staff makes  because I've seen and heard this same bull **** again and again over the decades.  I'm sick of seeing players who were supposedly "not good enough" for the Bills starring and/or playing key roles for playoff contending teams while the Bills fill their roster with trash gleaned from various NFL dumpsters.    I'm sick of seeing the Bills plodding along in a horse-and-buggy (and a very SLOW horse at that) and crying poverty while the rest of the league zooms by in SUVs and does just fine on the same budget.  I'm tired of waiting for "next season" when "next season" never gets any better than any of the other previous "next seasons" in this century. 

 

Of course, the cynic in me says that maybe the Pegulas' real plan for the Bills is to make the team so bad for long enough that many fans will give up on the team -- or die off -- and there won't be much hue and cry if they sell the team to some other billionaire for a fat profit so that he can move it to London or Mexico City or Timbuktu. 

  I think most of us go through cycles as fans and that is not limited to Bills fans.  There has not been a whole lot of positives for Bengals, Browns, and Titans fans over the last couple of decades.  Just pick up a couple of key players to get your hopes up then the season unfolds and by November wandering around Lowe's looking at closeouts on lawn equipment looks more attractive than your team.

[BuffaloSol]

Your dad's generation would be embarrassed to see a grown man write this.

[DaBillsFanSince1973]

well you could always take advantage of retirement and find a new hobby?

 

golf

 

fishing

 

or even shuffle board

 

it may ease your suffering..

 

[I'm Spartacus]

OP, I understand where you are coming from. I'm 61 now & went to the old Rock Pile to see the Bills.

In my 30's, 40's, and early part of my 50's - I got too emotionally involved in the Bills when they always looked terrible (except the 90's Bills).

I've learned to let it go, to keep my sanity and stress level down. With the Packer's game Sunday, I actually turned off the game and watch some 1960's western movie.

The movie was very enjoyable.

[teef]

8 minutes ago, Buddy Hix said:

So you aren’t emotionally invested in the Bills whatsoever? Despite spending thousands of hours on here and BBMB...

i love the bills.  i love discussing the team, going to the games with friends, or watching quietly on sundays.  the difference  is how i react when the bills play poorly, which has been the majority of my life...i move on.  i can't change the bills, so i just stop watching.  i honestly haven't let the bills upset me in years.  it's a sport for chirst sake.  i didn't even watch a chunk of the 4th quarter last week because it was more productive for me to shower.  see how easy it is?

 

on top of that, the op is 68 and lets it get to him.  my dad is 78, still has is own office, goes to work full time, cruises around in a z06 corvette, and just enjoys life.  why?  because he tells me there's too little of it left not to.  do you think he makes himself upset if the bills lose?  of course not.  the man has a life.

6 minutes ago, BuffaloSol said:

Your dad's generation would be embarrassed to see a grown man write this.

thank you.

Edited October 2, 2018 by teef

[Another Fan]

15 minutes ago, SoTier said:

I'm 68.  I have been a Bills fan since I was 13, which was back in 1963, and I think my parents did me a disservice by raising me as a Bills fan.  Sundays in the fall revolved around the Bills.  Even my mother was a fan back in the days when few women would admit to having any understanding of the game much less serious fandom.  It has been a very bittersweet legacy because the Bills have been so bad so often for so long.  My mother died without ever seeing the Bills make the playoffs in the NFL (only the AFL).  My dad never saw the Bills play in a Super Bowl.   I don't expect that I'll live long enough to see the Bills win a Super Bowl, but maybe I won't care about that since I'm about at the end of my fandom I think. 

 

I've been moving in that direction for a while.  I gave up my season tix after the 2008 season when Jauron was given an extension despite the team's collapse in the second half of the season.  I even toyed with the idea of getting them again in 2014 because I originally thought that new ownership would usher in a new course for this team. Boy, oh, boy, was I wrong!   Despite all the changes in names and faces, the Bills continue to play the same "money ball" game they've played for the last quarter of a century.  They remain as uncommitted to fielding a winning team now as they ever did under Ralph Wilson's ownership and Russ Brandon's last dozen years of stewardship, perhaps even more so. 

 

I don't watch entire Bills games any more because I refuse to subject myself to that kind of torture.   I have NFL Sunday ticket so I can watch real football games played by real NFL teams, not that crap that the Bills serve up with regularity.  I'm skeptical of every move the team or its staff makes  because I've seen and heard this same bull **** again and again over the decades.  I'm sick of seeing players who were supposedly "not good enough" for the Bills starring and/or playing key roles for playoff contending teams while the Bills fill their roster with trash gleaned from various NFL dumpsters.    I'm sick of seeing the Bills plodding along in a horse-and-buggy (and a very SLOW horse at that) and crying poverty while the rest of the league zooms by in SUVs and does just fine on the same budget.  I'm tired of waiting for "next season" when "next season" never gets any better than any of the other previous "next seasons" in this century. 

 

Of course, the cynic in me says that maybe the Pegulas' real plan for the Bills is to make the team so bad for long enough that many fans will give up on the team -- or die off -- and there won't be much hue and cry if they sell the team to some other billionaire for a fat profit so that he can move it to London or Mexico City or Timbuktu. 

The flip side to that is a lot of times life isn’t always fair.

 

Being a Bills fan can prepare you for those realities 

[wppete]

9 minutes ago, Buddy Hix said:

So you aren’t emotionally invested in the Bills whatsoever? Despite spending thousands of hours on here and BBMB...

 

I miss Buddy Nix. Pure Comedy Gold!

 

 

 

Edited October 2, 2018 by wppete

[Seasons1992]

16 minutes ago, teef said:

 

jesus.  people need to reflect on what really is important in life.  i'm 41 now.  if i'm 68 and let the bills bother me this much, i'm killing myself.

 Yeah I used to feel this way until about 5 years ago. I'm 40, I have WAY more problems than my lousy hometown team disappointing me most days!

 

And mental health is no joke, people. Seek help, I did, it changed things for the better.

[COTC]

? 

 

There are far too many storied, winning franchises with years of history. 

 

There needs to be losers to balance it out. 

 

This is the Bills. We are and always will be the “losers” of the league. We don’t have a long tenured coach and fo. We don’t have a long history of winning.

 

Our history consists of embarrassing, heartbreaking loses. Expecting anything more is unreasonable. 

 

Love the losers or jump on a bandwagon of a good team (if you care) 

 

but again, this is just some sport to watch and read about. 

 

The Bills, priority wise, are nothing in the grand scheme of our lives. 

[ghostwriter]

11 minutes ago, teef said:

also for the record, i have a 3 yr old daughter, and a 4 month old son. both will be brought up to be bills fans.  both will also be raised as emotionally stable, successful adults, that don't let a pro team, of which they have no control, effect their lives in any way.  

Seems kind of lifeless to me, that's called apathy, real fans should care IMO. Might as well just not watch football at all then. Even when I watch other teams play, I always pick a team to root for, makes it more fun and less robotic! Show some passion teef!!!!

[Captain Murica]

21 minutes ago, teef said:

 

jesus.  people need to reflect on what really is important in life.  i'm 41 now.  if i'm 68 and let the bills bother me this much, i'm killing myself.

I’m 33 and was inaccurate on all my attempts but still trusting the process I’ll eventually get it right. 

[teef]

1 minute ago, NewDayBills said:

Seems kind of lifeless to me, that's called apathy, real fans should care IMO. Might as well just not watch football at all then. Even when I watch other teams play, I always pick a team to root for, makes it more fun and less robotic! Show some passion teef!!!!

i have passion and enjoy the game.  i still buy tickets in the clubs and spend money on the team.  i just don't let it bother me if they're not good.  that's the difference.  i chose to invest my time and money in the team, and if i get sick of them, i just stop.  adult decisions.