Stevie Johnson, Fred Jackson want to revive the Buffalo Destroyers

[Gregg]

Just now, PromoTheRobot said:

 

Would you trade the Bills for an NBA team? Because you can't have both.

 

Not a chance. Buffalo is a football mad city. I know it's also a very good hockey market, but the Bills are the #1 team in WNY.

[BigDingus]

11 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:

 

Would you trade the Bills for an NBA team? Because you can't have both. The Bills are a regional team and has a following nationwide now. An NBA team would be starting from scratch and would rely on a fan base travelling shorter distances because some games are on weeknights. Here is a rank of average NBA ticket prices from last season. Indiana was the lowest at $138. 

 

Why can't you have both?

 

Sure, you're starting from scratch, but excitement to support the new home team would be high. It'd be a source of regional pride. Of course, this won't happen, but just like with other pro sports franchises, I've always believed establishing a loyal fanbase in a smaller market with less to do is the better course than being the 21st option in a large market.

 

Look at attendance of some MLB teams... You can't convince me Buffalo wouldn't have done better than these other places that got expansion teams. Given how inept they've been, I'd rather get rid of the Sabres & start over with an NBA team. Again, I know this would never happen.

[JohnNord]

15 hours ago, PromoTheRobot said:

For those who don't remember, the Destroyers were an Arena Football League team that played five seasons in Buffalo (1999-2003) before moving to Columbus. They were never that good. 6-8 was their best year.

 

But now two former Bills greats, Stevie Johnson and Fred Jackson, want to bring an Indoor Football League (IFL) franchise to Buffalo and revive that Destroyers name. 

 

https://www.wivb.com/sports/former-bills-stevie-johnson-fred-jackson-working-to-bring-arena-football-team-to-buffalo/

 

I've been to a few indoor games and I really can't get into it. It just doesn't feel like football to me. I'd rather see a UFL spring team in Buffalo. What do you think?

Not me.  I don’t like the UFL because it largely lacks originality and appears inferior in every aspect.  Only good part is that it allows the NFL to test rules like kickoffs etc

 

Arena League Football was a distinct variation of football with unique presentation and rules. It was a genuine game, not a mere imitation of the NFL.

 

The issue is that there have been numerous localized indoor football leagues like IFL that were poor imitations of the AFL. I don’t see an IFL being successful in Buffalo but we’ll see  

 

 

Edited February 13 by JohnNord

[PromoTheRobot]

12 minutes ago, BigDingus said:

 

Look at attendance of some MLB teams... You can't convince me Buffalo wouldn't have done better than these other places that got expansion teams. Given how inept they've been, I'd rather get rid of the Sabres & start over with an NBA team. Again, I know this would never happen.

 

We couldn't sell out a single Jays game when we had them during COVID. And I'm talking about when attendance caps were lifted. Largest crowd was 13,000. Sahlens Field holds over 16,000.

13 minutes ago, JohnNord said:

Not me.  I don’t like the UFL because it largely lacks originality and appears inferior in every aspect.

 

 

I totally don't get this. What does original mean here?

[BillsPride12]

2 hours ago, BigDingus said:

 

Why can't you have both?

 

Sure, you're starting from scratch, but excitement to support the new home team would be high. It'd be a source of regional pride. Of course, this won't happen, but just like with other pro sports franchises, I've always believed establishing a loyal fanbase in a smaller market with less to do is the better course than being the 21st option in a large market.

 

Look at attendance of some MLB teams... You can't convince me Buffalo wouldn't have done better than these other places that got expansion teams. Given how inept they've been, I'd rather get rid of the Sabres & start over with an NBA team. Again, I know this would never happen.

For starters Buffalo sports fans are broke trying to pay for their PSL's right now lol 

[BillsfaninChicago]

I remember when I read the headline Buffalo Destroyers being moved to Columbus. I thought to myself how on Earth are they going to move that ship down to Ohio?

[ProcessTruster]

sure , why. not.   so Jackson and Johnson still live in WNY? 

[Heitz]

[Old Coot]

8 hours ago, BigDingus said:

If Buffalo can support an NFL team, I'm sure they can handle an NBA one.

Back in the 70s Buffalo was a tough market for professional basketball. College basketball was so much more popular. The original owner of the Braves sold the team because it wasn't going to make him any money, long-term.

[BigDingus]

2 hours ago, Old Coot said:

Back in the 70s Buffalo was a tough market for professional basketball. College basketball was so much more popular. The original owner of the Braves sold the team because it wasn't going to make him any money, long-term.

 

Understandable, but back then the NBA in general was struggling & only popular in specific markets. It wasn't until Magic & Bird pretty much "saved" the NBA & helped turn things around. In the decades since then, basketball has become a global sport & is has huge interest in many countries.

 

TV deals, superstar international players, and a salary cap has helped allow teams in all market sizes to compete. Whether it's Oklahoma City or Milwaukee, NBA teams can succeed in smaller markets just fine. And if Buffalo could sell out an NHL arena, they could do the same with an NBA one (given that they often share the same arena)

Edited February 14 by BigDingus

[T master]

I love both of those guys i just hope they do a lot of research before they spend a ton of money on something that has a good chance of failing, is this something the fans in Buffalo would support ? 

[Just Jack]

5 hours ago, BigDingus said:

And if Buffalo could sell out an NHL arena, they could do the same with an NBA one (given that they often share the same arena)

 

You don't need that many season ticket holders either, when compared to an NFL stadium.  Several years ago there was talk of Syracuse University building a new stadium for football and basketball.  One article discussed where the teams could play while construction was happening.  Part of the article pointed out that there are more season ticket holders for SU basketball, than most NBA arenas could hold.  

[BobbyC81]

On 2/12/2025 at 11:47 PM, Old Coot said:

I'm ot that old. I didn't see the game. I'm a student of football history. I am old enough to hve see Y.A. play for the Giants.

When I went to the Super Bowl at Stanford, YA Tittle sat behind me.

[SirAndrew]

5 hours ago, Just Jack said:

 

You don't need that many season ticket holders either, when compared to an NFL stadium.  Several years ago there was talk of Syracuse University building a new stadium for football and basketball.  One article discussed where the teams could play while construction was happening.  Part of the article pointed out that there are more season ticket holders for SU basketball, than most NBA arenas could hold.  

This is a good point. People forget the NBA does just fine in a place like Memphis. 

[Mr. WEO]

Well I guess the name “Kansas City Chiefs” was already taken…

 

(too soon?)

[GreggTX]

This isn't a major league like the NFL or NHL. I see no reason why it can't work. They won't need to fill a 100,000 seat stadium for every game to be financially viable. Might be a fun diversion since we have no major NCAA teams in Buffalo.

[PromoTheRobot]

On 2/14/2025 at 1:09 PM, SirAndrew said:

This is a good point. People forget the NBA does just fine in a place like Memphis. 

It's their only pro team.

3 hours ago, GreggTX said:

This isn't a major league like the NFL or NHL. I see no reason why it can't work. They won't need to fill a 100,000 seat stadium for every game to be financially viable. Might be a fun diversion since we have no major NCAA teams in Buffalo.

 

We have a D1 university named after our city. They had ranked football and basketball teams in the past 10 years.

Edited yesterday at 03:17 AM by PromoTheRobot

[BuffaloBillsGospel2014]

Stevie, Fred if you're seeing this... Don't bother! 

You're Welcome!!!

[Buffalo716]

3 hours ago, GreggTX said:

This isn't a major league like the NFL or NHL. I see no reason why it can't work. They won't need to fill a 100,000 seat stadium for every game to be financially viable. Might be a fun diversion since we have no major NCAA teams in Buffalo.

UB would like to say hi

 

You know 9-4 last year ... Have been ranked before in the last 5 seasons ..

 

4 bowl wins in the last 7 years... Not bad for nothing major

 

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

On 2/13/2025 at 8:05 AM, BillsPride12 said:

I remember the Destroyers but could never get into them.  Kinda like the Buffalo Wings roller hockey team

I have trouble getting emotionally invested into those kinda niche teams

The Buffalo Wings is a genius name