Mickey Posted July 19, 2006 Author Share Posted July 19, 2006 madbuff, next time i'll scale it back, but i was on a roll. admittedly, it was a lot of reading for a bad gary/bennie anderson gag. as for happening/not happening, and as rufus pointed out about the cooze not wnting to play in buff, it happened and strange things continue to happen in today's nfl. i'd be alot more content with all the mysterious coincidences (from days past, and other issues like controversial officiatin in the most recent super bowl) if we had at least one SB ring in buffalo. can't recall if it was a Buffalo News article or sports clip on the news that refered to cousineau as "Cousin-no-show". Great journalism, and another former nfl'er who is dead to me. 725261[/snapback] I had a chance to check into Cousineau's side of the story thinking that so much time has passed, maybe he finally told his side of the behind the scenes story. He was initially elated that the Bills drafted him because he liked Knox and Buffalo was close to his hometown of Cleveland. After the draft he went to the airport in NYC to fly with his agent to Buffalo to meet everyone and talk to the media since he was the top pick in the whole draft and all. There was no ticket for his agent who thought it was a trick to give the Bills a chance to talk to Cousineau without his agent being there. Once that was straightened out, the two made it to Buffalo and were to have dinner with the GM, Stew Barber and Ralph Wilson. They were to meet in the hotel lobby but Barber and Wilson never showed up and also never bothered to call. Cousineau and his agent were insulted and believed it was part of a hardball negotiating strategy by the Bills. His agent called Montreal who offered him a lot of money. They told the Bills that they didn't have to match that offer, just get close or at least in the ball park. The Bills offered him half what the Alouettes offered. Again, Cousineau was livid and decided that he wanted nothing to do with the Bills. That is his side of story. In the end it worked out for everyone. Cousineau ended up in Cleveland, his hometown and Buffalo ended up with Jim Kelly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leh-nerd skin-erd Posted July 19, 2006 Share Posted July 19, 2006 well, when logic dictates, i really beleive there are 3 sides to every story. in this case, it's ralph's side, cousineau's side, and somewhere in the middle is the truth. this is an interesting story, from his side, and if true would make me rethink his being dead to me. sounds pretty disrespectful, and one could see how a pro athlete's ego would be damaged when treated this way. throw in a lot more money, and it's recipe for a trip to Canada. thanks for that additional information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ganesh Posted July 19, 2006 Share Posted July 19, 2006 The most famous example I can recall is Elway refusing to play for the Baltimore Colts and being traded to Denver. 725184[/snapback] Kobe Bryant refusing to play for the Hornets (if selected) and got himself picked by the Lakers.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve O Posted July 20, 2006 Share Posted July 20, 2006 My Gary Anderson theory: 1982, the year we drafted GAry Anderson to be our PK, there was a rookie deadline, if they didn't sign by then they got some sort of automatic, very cheap, contract. Anderson, who I watched practically never miss a kick in college here at SU, was picked by Buffalo who played hard ball with him on his contract knowing he had his back up against the rookie deadline wall. Reluctantly, he signed, came to camp and then proceeded to miss everything. I mean EVERTYTHING. Even xp's. He practically wiffed a few in Charlie Brown fashion. Last cut before the season we dropped him even though he was the highest drafted kicker we ever had. We ended up starting Efren Herrera who never played again after that year. Anderson was signed immediately after we cut him by the Steelers, I think he signed the deal at the airport. If memory serves, it was well above that rookie benchmark, well above. He suddenly ends up being their starter on opening day despite his dismal preseason. He nailed 83% of his kicks in his rookie year while Efren hit only 57%. Hmmm......Why would the Steelers sign a preseason washout rookie PK and have him start from day one with out so much as a hint of a tryout? Could it be that his agent called the Steelers when Buffalo played hard ball on the contract and set it all up with Gary missing all those easy kicks on purpose? Bad enough but it gets worse: After Herrera went back to selling insurance, we messed around for a few years with Joe Danelo as our kicker until, in 1985, we signed none other than Scott Norwood. The rest is history. Ralph's cheapness, at least in those days anyway, resulted, eventually, in Scott Norwood lining up that 47 yarder for the title when it would otherwise have been Gary Anderson, the most accurate kicker in NFL history. Screwing a 6th round rookie kicker out of a few samolians cost us a freaking Super Bowl title. The irony, the agony, the paranoia. Just a theory. 724419[/snapback] Nick Mike-Meyer was the kicker we kept over Anderson in 82. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted July 20, 2006 Share Posted July 20, 2006 yes- one of the biggest choke jobs of any kicker in history. It was a chip shot too- 47 yards is a tough FG to hit 724441[/snapback] I really didn't think it was a choke job....kickers are not 100% He simply didn't make the play in that instance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickey Posted July 20, 2006 Author Share Posted July 20, 2006 Nick Mike-Meyer was the kicker we kept over Anderson in 82. 725682[/snapback] Correct, but Mike-Mayer played in only 2 games for the Bills in 1982. Mike-Mayer Efren Herrera replaced him after the first two games in which Mike-Mayer missed 1 of 3 FGs including one under 29 yards and an extra point. Anderson was actually drafted to replace him as Mike-Mayer had been with the team since 1979. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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