granitestatebillsbackers Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Imagine you knew little about NFL football and the Bills. If you read these message boards over the past few days, you'd think the sky was falling, the practice facilty was in flames, coaches were throwing themselves off the upper deck of The Ralph, and fans were tearing apart their Officially Licensed Bills Gear. We in Bills Nation have vented, fumed, wrung our hands and analyzed everything but the soil chemistry during the Buccaneers game Sunday. But even the most vicious critics of the game strategy and personnel last week will be at The Ralph; in rec rooms and home theaters; and in sports bars all over the U.S. this Sunday hoping against hope that the Bills will prevail. (A dozen or so of us will be sitting in a small sports bar in Manchester, NH--in the heart of "Patriots Nation." More on that later.) We are unique among NFL fans. Very few teams have fans with the same passion; Cleveland and Pittsburgh come to mind. I've been a fan since 1965. Some of you have been fans since the beginning of the franchise, and some of you came on board in the past few years. What we all share is a willingness to believe (billieve) that some way, somehow we will prevail and will see that Lombardi Trophy at Ralph Wilson Stadium soon. That's why, even in the darkest seasons during the past 40 years, Ralph Wilson knew that there's always be a contingent of faithful fans sitting in seats at home games. Our attendance fell off, to be sure, but we were still there. I'll close with some perspective on our AFC East rivals, the Patriots' fans. I have watched "Patriots Nation" with a great deal of amusement over the past twenty years. Back in '85, when I moved to New Hampshire, I was able to walk up to Foxboro Stadium on game days and get great seats to a Bills-Pats game. The Bills would usually prevail, and Foxboro would be half-empty by the end of the 3rd. You might see the occasional Grogan jersey around town, but the fans around here pretty much abandoned their team for years. When they started winning, you could hear the "fans" pounding nails into the bandwagon they were building. Now, it's practically lwritten into the law that you have to wear Patriots anything around here, and even Dunkin Donuts has the Official Breakfast Sandwich of the New England Patriots. They are a great team. Their fans, on the other hand, are the most capricious, mercurial, fair-weather group in the NFL. On opening night, when Robert Kraft pronounced that they are the "greatest fans in the world," I had to laugh. Kraft didn't own the team when the stadium was half-empty back in the day, but he will in a few years when the Pats start to decline and the Bills rise to the top team in the AFC again. He can have all the pre-game fireworks and rock concerts he wants, but that won't fill seats. That's why I have never been prouder to be a Bills fan: I know, deep down, that even if the Bills lose some games this season in horrendous fashion, there will still be a core of loyal fans prepared to back this team. Go Bills! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill from NYC Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Bravo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cugalabanza Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Damn straight, sir! Well said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plenzmd1 Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Atta Boy. BTW, i have been to Manchester a few times for business. Cool little town .BTW do you work for a certain IT Asset Management Company? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taterhill Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Nice Post Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Coli Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Outstanding post. As a fellow New Englander you are dead-on with the Pats fan assessment. The end is near for them my friend. The end is near. No more parades. No more Brady Jerseys for cats and dogs. We will rejoice in their misery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erynthered Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 <sniff> <snif> Thanks man. <snif> <snif> Golf clap................ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rastabillz Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 If we can survive 4 consecutive Super Bowl losess we can perservere through anything. I too have been fan of the Bills since the 60s. My earliest memories of the team were to be sitting on my granfathers porch on the west side listening to Van Millers call of the game on the radio. The first game my dad took me to was at the old Rockpile. We lost to the Baltimore Colts that day, but I was hooked. When I got older and could afford to, I went to most of the home games and finally became an official season ticket holder the year Jim Kelly signed. Unfortunately, my career took me away from WNY in 1994 and I could no longer attend games at the Ralph. But thanks to the TSW and Diretc-tv we can keep up with our team and still be part of Bills community. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hirly5 Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 I agree with your view of Patriots Nation. They aren't even the most beloved team in their area. They could win 20 Super Bowls in a row but the Red Sox rule that area of the country. I think that is why no one respects them because they don't even get love from their own fans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Wheels Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Nice to know there is an outpost of intelligence up in Cow Hampshire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. K Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 You speak for me as well, my friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dundy249 Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Imagine you knew little about NFL football and the Bills. If you read these message boards over the past few days, you'd think the sky was falling, the practice facilty was in flames, coaches were throwing themselves off the upper deck of The Ralph, and fans were tearing apart their Officially Licensed Bills Gear. We in Bills Nation have vented, fumed, wrung our hands and analyzed everything but the soil chemistry during the Buccaneers game Sunday. But even the most vicious critics of the game strategy and personnel last week will be at The Ralph; in rec rooms and home theaters; and in sports bars all over the U.S. this Sunday hoping against hope that the Bills will prevail. (A dozen or so of us will be sitting in a small sports bar in Manchester, NH--in the heart of "Patriots Nation." More on that later.) We are unique among NFL fans. Very few teams have fans with the same passion; Cleveland and Pittsburgh come to mind. I've been a fan since 1965. Some of you have been fans since the beginning of the franchise, and some of you came on board in the past few years. What we all share is a willingness to believe (billieve) that some way, somehow we will prevail and will see that Lombardi Trophy at Ralph Wilson Stadium soon. That's why, even in the darkest seasons during the past 40 years, Ralph Wilson knew that there's always be a contingent of faithful fans sitting in seats at home games. Our attendance fell off, to be sure, but we were still there. I'll close with some perspective on our AFC East rivals, the Patriots' fans. I have watched "Patriots Nation" with a great deal of amusement over the past twenty years. Back in '85, when I moved to New Hampshire, I was able to walk up to Foxboro Stadium on game days and get great seats to a Bills-Pats game. The Bills would usually prevail, and Foxboro would be half-empty by the end of the 3rd. You might see the occasional Grogan jersey around town, but the fans around here pretty much abandoned their team for years. When they started winning, you could hear the "fans" pounding nails into the bandwagon they were building. Now, it's practically lwritten into the law that you have to wear Patriots anything around here, and even Dunkin Donuts has the Official Breakfast Sandwich of the New England Patriots. They are a great team. Their fans, on the other hand, are the most capricious, mercurial, fair-weather group in the NFL. On opening night, when Robert Kraft pronounced that they are the "greatest fans in the world," I had to laugh. Kraft didn't own the team when the stadium was half-empty back in the day, but he will in a few years when the Pats start to decline and the Bills rise to the top team in the AFC again. He can have all the pre-game fireworks and rock concerts he wants, but that won't fill seats. That's why I have never been prouder to be a Bills fan: I know, deep down, that even if the Bills lose some games this season in horrendous fashion, there will still be a core of loyal fans prepared to back this team. Go Bills! 449044[/snapback] I am glad that you are proud. But with that being said I had season tickets to the Bills games for 15 years when I live in Buffalo. I can tell you our fans are just as fair weather. many a game I sat there with 20,000 other people. When the Bills were 2-14 it was hard to find anyone wearing Bills gear. It is the same everywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Coli Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Nice to know there is an outpost of intelligence up in Cow Hampshire. 449086[/snapback] I got to get to the Harp one of these weeks. Heard you guys ran out of grub this week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BackInDaDay Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Well said, Granite! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrader Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Please don't ever call us "Bills Nation" again. The whole "nation" thing is the most idiotic trend in sports over the last few years. Other than that, good post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dib Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Glory, glory halleluah...........glory, glory halleluah Sorry, I was carried away by the youthful enthusiasm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IDBillzFan Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Outstanding post. As a fellow New Englander you are dead-on with the Pats fan assessment. The end is near for them my friend. The end is near. No more parades. No more Brady Jerseys for cats and dogs. We will rejoice in their misery. 449063[/snapback] I'll almost miss the trolls. Almost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bills_fan_in_raleigh Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 I am glad that you are proud. But with that being said I had season tickets to the Bills games for 15 years when I live in Buffalo. I can tell you our fans are just as fair weather. many a game I sat there with 20,000 other people. When the Bills were 2-14 it was hard to find anyone wearing Bills gear.It is the same everywhere. 449094[/snapback] well I was one of the 20K you talk about but during the 2 - 14 years we had more than 20K in the stands each sunday. I have had season tickets since 1974 ( first time I was old enough to drive to a game ). I always wear my bills gear and fly my flag on my house from opening day until the end of the bills season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramius Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 We in Bills Nation have vented, fumed, wrung our hands and analyzed everything but the soil chemistry during the Buccaneers game Sunday. Actually, the soil at RJS was slightly more alkaline than usual, with increases amounts of nitrates and a higher microorganism count. This could have led to the defense being unable to "dig in" and stop the run, and thus allowing cadillac to run free. Great post man, you said it right! As much as we love to hate each other on here, this place will be one giant orgy when we win the SB. Actually, it wont be, the board will probably crash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buffaloboyinATL Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Here here. I had a conversation with some fans at the Tampa game who were from various parts of Florida and the Southeast. Bills fans seldom change allegences when they leave Buffalo. We continue to cheer for the Bills, even if the new "home" team has a better team or season than us. True Bills fans are fans for life, even when the going gets tough. Go Bills Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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