Heitz Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 Post your stories, video clips, props and love for #78 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In space no one can hear Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 Great player, but not loved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nucci Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 Great player, but not loved. Not loved by whom? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cookiemonster Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 My brother and I,(both rabid Bills Fans) loved that commercial, and of course Bruuuuuce as well. That was Dennis Hopper, right? I have the Sports Illustrated Bruce article where he is standing in a blue body shirt looking absolutley ripped, and very menacing. That's my favorite Bruce pictureI also have video from his first or maybe second training camp and he was pulling in and was looking at me like he wanted to wrap the camera around my neck. I was close enough for him to do it He was very imposing then as well, and you could tell that he was special. By the way on that same video, I have Marv doing maybe like 75 or 100 straight push-ups at the start of one of the second two-a-days. He got a standing ovation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 Bruce is one of the few Bills "modern legends" that I never have met. I keep hearing that he is a jerk, that he has a raging ego, blah, blah, blah...all I can say is, who gives a flip? I think he is the greatest Buffalo Bill in my cognosent Bills life, which dates back to 1972. You can make a good case for OJ Simpson, but I will take Bruce. The guy was, year in, year out, the best player, on the best teams that my favorite sports franchise ever put on the field. He played with fire in his belly every Sunday, every play, right up to his last snap with the Bills. He came in as a fat kid, out of shape, and little discipline...and left Buffalo as a finely conditioned football machine. Opposing teams were forced to account for him on every down. His tremendous ability made average talent around him, look like pro bowlers. He made a solid, but not great linebacker in Bryce Paup, into a defensive MVP one year. Everyone says Bruce was a jerk, because he didn't participate in training camp every year, because he said that some Bills fans were racist (gee, I have never witnessed that at the Ralph!), because he missed a playoff game against the Steelers because of a fever, but mostly because every Buffalo media guy, to this day, seems to always signal out Bruce as someone who was difficult for them to deal with. I ask you, so what? He may have been surly with the media, maybe he is not fond of signing autographs, don't let that blind you to the fact that he was a phenomenal football player...he never killed anyone, as far as I know he doesn't have an army of illegitmate kids all over the east coast. He was suspended once for violating the leauge substance abuse policy. We never heard about that issue again. I would say by the current standards of the modern NFL player, Bruce Smiths' transgressions are pretty mild. I will never understand why so many on this board (many of whom I suspect were not even in double didgets when the Bills were making it to the Super Bowl) take such glee in trashing the best players this franchise has ever had. I have seen it with Andre Reed, and now, again, with Bruce Smith. If you are Bills fan, lets face it, there hasn't been a ton to be truly happy about. Why not appreciate the legit things. Bruce Smith is not only either the first or second best player to wear a Bills uniform over the last 40 years, he belongs in the elite in the history of the league. It seems that others around the country appreciate what we had, more than we do. My closest personal experience with Bruce was during the final game of the 1998 season, the Bills were playing in New Orleans, the Sunday after Christmas. The Bills routed the Saints, and were on their way to the playoffs. We were sitting in the first row, behind the Bills bench. Midway through the 4th quarter, the game in hand, the Bills sideline was very loose and celebrating their playoff berth, and the holidays, I suspect. Everyone was delighted, except for Doug Flutie (who for some reason gets a major pass by so many Bills fans for being a complete jerk), because he had been benched for the last game of the season, in favor of Rob Johnson. Flutie pouted on the sideline, far away from the bench and his teammates throughout the entire game. He wouldn't acknowledge any fans, or any teammates, except for Bruce and Thurman. RJ was having a great game, and after a nice td pass to Quinn Early, he ran off the field, and tried to get a high-five from Flutie. Flutie looked the other way. Anyways, as the game winded down, there were tons of Bills fans leaning over the wall trying to get autographs. Lots of people with Flutie Flake boxes, disappointed because the little general was having a tantrum this day. Bruce didn't sign a lot for people, and only kids, but was very friendly and shaking hands. At one point, some kid said, "Bruce, can you get Flutie to talk to us?" Bruce just smiled, took the box of Flutie Flakes out of the kids hand, walked over, and made Flutie, chatted for a minute, and got him to sign the box. Flutie turned around, and waived, with a forced smile on his face. It was the first time he had acknowledged any of he hundreds of Bills fans sitting behind the bench. I thouhght Bruce was cool. Bruce wasn't a jerk at all... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJ (not THAT RJ) Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 That is a great story, both for what it says about Bruce and for what it says about Skin. Bruce is one of the few Bills "modern legends" that I never have met. I keep hearing that he is a jerk, that he has a raging ego, blah, blah, blah...all I can say is, who gives a flip? I think he is the greatest Buffalo Bill in my cognosent Bills life, which dates back to 1972. You can make a good case for OJ Simpson, but I will take Bruce. The guy was, year in, year out, the best player, on the best teams that my favorite sports franchise ever put on the field. He played with fire in his belly every Sunday, every play, right up to his last snap with the Bills. He came in as a fat kid, out of shape, and little discipline...and left Buffalo as a finely conditioned football machine. Opposing teams were forced to account for him on every down. His tremendous ability made average talent around him, look like pro bowlers. He made a solid, but not great linebacker in Bryce Paup, into a defensive MVP one year. Everyone says Bruce was a jerk, because he didn't participate in training camp every year, because he said that some Bills fans were racist (gee, I have never witnessed that at the Ralph!), because he missed a playoff game against the Steelers because of a fever, but mostly because every Buffalo media guy, to this day, seems to always signal out Bruce as someone who was difficult for them to deal with. I ask you, so what? He may have been surly with the media, maybe he is not fond of signing autographs, don't let that blind you to the fact that he was a phenomenal football player...he never killed anyone, as far as I know he doesn't have an army of illegitmate kids all over the east coast. He was suspended once for violating the leauge substance abuse policy. We never heard about that issue again. I would say by the current standards of the modern NFL player, Bruce Smiths' transgressions are pretty mild. I will never understand why so many on this board (many of whom I suspect were not even in double didgets when the Bills were making it to the Super Bowl) take such glee in trashing the best players this franchise has ever had. I have seen it with Andre Reed, and now, again, with Bruce Smith. If you are Bills fan, lets face it, there hasn't been a ton to be truly happy about. Why not appreciate the legit things. Bruce Smith is not only either the first or second best player to wear a Bills uniform over the last 40 years, he belongs in the elite in the history of the league. It seems that others around the country appreciate what we had, more than we do. My closest personal experience with Bruce was during the final game of the 1998 season, the Bills were playing in New Orleans, the Sunday after Christmas. The Bills routed the Saints, and were on their way to the playoffs. We were sitting in the first row, behind the Bills bench. Midway through the 4th quarter, the game in hand, the Bills sideline was very loose and celebrating their playoff berth, and the holidays, I suspect. Everyone was delighted, except for Doug Flutie (who for some reason gets a major pass by so many Bills fans for being a complete jerk), because he had been benched for the last game of the season, in favor of Rob Johnson. Flutie pouted on the sideline, far away from the bench and his teammates throughout the entire game. He wouldn't acknowledge any fans, or any teammates, except for Bruce and Thurman. RJ was having a great game, and after a nice td pass to Quinn Early, he ran off the field, and tried to get a high-five from Flutie. Flutie looked the other way. Anyways, as the game winded down, there were tons of Bills fans leaning over the wall trying to get autographs. Lots of people with Flutie Flake boxes, disappointed because the little general was having a tantrum this day. Bruce didn't sign a lot for people, and only kids, but was very friendly and shaking hands. At one point, some kid said, "Bruce, can you get Flutie to talk to us?" Bruce just smiled, took the box of Flutie Flakes out of the kids hand, walked over, and made Flutie, chatted for a minute, and got him to sign the box. Flutie turned around, and waived, with a forced smile on his face. It was the first time he had acknowledged any of he hundreds of Bills fans sitting behind the bench. I thouhght Bruce was cool. Bruce wasn't a jerk at all... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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