billsfreak Posted December 4, 2008 Posted December 4, 2008 I have been a Bills fan for over 40 years, but if they move to Toronto permanently I won't support them anymore. I am a huge Bills fan, but first and foremost I am a Western New Yorker and proud of it.
KRC Posted December 4, 2008 Posted December 4, 2008 I root for the team that plays in Western New York. End of story.
BuffaloBaumer Posted December 4, 2008 Posted December 4, 2008 I don't even believe I am reading this garbage. You would rather have the Bills move to TORONTO to be competitive!!!!! What the Hell is going on here. Why would anyone EVER give a crap about this team if they were not from Buffalo????!!
RRR Posted December 4, 2008 Posted December 4, 2008 I am all for it. I have to say when all this talk about moving to Toronto started, my stomach was turned in knots for days and days. I was diametrically opposed to it from the beginning, and didn't want anything to do with it. But here is the thing. This team hasn't been relevant in the NFL landscape in over 10 years. I am sorry to say that and it hurts me to say that. It just isn't good enough to field good teams every 20 years in the NFL, with how fast the roster can be tuned over with the ability to spend money and put yourself on an even playing field and by drafting well. I believe we draft fairly well...good enough to be a much better team than we are. The problem is that we are constantly trying to fight against good teams with our hands tied behind our back because we won't spend the money they will. I honestly would rather see this team move a few miles north and be able to spend the money to bring in good coaches and good players on a consistent basis, rather than watch the current team in Buffalo be mired in mediocrity and constantly trying to sell the hope of next season. I love this team, and am gonna love this team regardless of where they play. I know most people don't feel the same way, and I never thought I would hear myself say that, but I have come to the realization that no matter how many years they spend here, its just not going to happen with the deck becoming more and more stacked against us as other teams build bigger and better stadiums that generate double the revenue that we do in ticket sales just in personal seat licenses every year. Then fans can buy tickets that are priced 2 or 3 times higher than ours. Will extra money guarantee success? No, but it will give the team more options and it will allow them to cut bait if a player is not working and not worry about eating a few million dollars in cap cost. It will allow them to hire coaches that have more than 1 winning season in the NFL or hire new coaches that noone really wants anyways. It will allow them to stop eliminating half the free agent class every year because they can't afford the players. Does anyone think the Jets would be anywhere near as good as they are if they didn't go out and spend a TON of money in the offseason on high ticket free agents and then trade for Favre? The Cowboys go out and get Roy Williams from the Cowboys to line up opposite Terrell Owens and don't worry about the cost. These teams basically walk around with blank checks and go out and do anything they feel will make their team better, regardless of cost. Teams like the Bills walk around and eliminate half their options based on the cost and then are left to choose from the second and third tier free agents. Not to mention they end up having to let their own players walk away because they can't afford to pay them properly(although in some cases its probably a good thing) Anyways, enough of my ranting and raving. All I want to see is this team win and if it happens to be in another city close by, I am OK with that as long as we still get their games on TV. I will still love this team and its players. I am emotionally drained from living and dying with this team for years and never having anything to show for it. At least bad teams in big markets can keep changing and spending until they get it right. The Bills have to get it right and then have all the breaks go their way to have any chance of winning because they won't spend the money needed to ensure themselves of it. Obviously if another owner buys the team and wants to keep it here and spend the money to bring in a winner, I would love to see the team here. I just don't see how it is going to be possible... chuckle, chuckle...heh heh heh. Really? Is this truly what you are reduced to? Pssssst. Lean over here and let me tell you a secret. When they move to Toronto, they will no longer be known as the Buffalo Bills....pass it on. I think you're off the mark, though, when it comes down to "blank checks". There is a salary cap in place. Wilson is just a meiser who won't spend the money because Boofalonians keep filling his seats regardless of how bad the product is. The other part of it is that the real stars won't play there. Why would anyone want to live in Buffalo? I, for one, completely understood what Willis McGahee was talking about when he left that dump, though, I've been to Baltimore, too. Not much of an improvement, let me tell ya. When the Billies move on for greener pastures in Toronto, they WILL be competitive, because presumably, they won't be owned by Ralph Wilson and free agents will want to play in a dome in one hell of a PARTY TOWN! I've never had more fun than I've had in Toronto when I want to enjoy the nightlife. I wonder, though. With Rogers going off to that big igloo in the sky, does the move to Toronto appear as obvious as it did before?
cody Posted December 4, 2008 Posted December 4, 2008 The Bills need TO's $ to be competitive. The CFL does not want an NFL team in Canada. I propose Canada pass the CFL protection act. Canada passes a law preventing more than 5 nfl games per year from being played in Canada. The Bills play 1/2 of the regular and pre-season games in TO and 1/2 in Buffalo. The Bills get some TO $ and long-term stability. The NFL gets international exposure. Canada gets to show it can compete with the US when it comes to hosting America's most popular sport. The CFL gets to survive by limiting the NFL's exposure north of the border, allowing rich and influential Canadians to keep there sports franchises. Everybody with deep pockets wins. The only loosers are 50,000 season ticket holders and the few businesses that count on those 10 games at the Ralph to break even.
DrDawkinstein Posted December 4, 2008 Posted December 4, 2008 if/when the Bills move to any other city, I will not only not follow them anymore, I will most likely never watch the NFL again. The team in my hometown is the only reason i watch and follow as it is. If the Bills were gone, I'd finally be able to get away from the NFL and move to watching college football fulltime (which is huge down here in the south). I already watch a lot more college ball than pro. I'd be happy to leave the prima donnas behind. but until then... GO BILLS!
Canadian Bills Fan Posted December 4, 2008 Posted December 4, 2008 I am from Toronto and it makes me sick to think the Bills may move here. Fans in Canada are not as passionate about the NFL as Americans are. For some stupid reason most Canadians love the CFL which in my opinion is the biggest slap in the face to the greatest game in the world. How do you take a league seriously that only has 8 teams!? Furthermore, I know what it will be like if or when they move here. I will use this as an example. So many people in Toronto are huge Maple Leafs fans (obviously) But no one can go to games. Why? Because 70% of all tickets sold go to corporations that give them away to clients who could care less about the game that they are watching and only care about the drinks in the martini bar at the Air Canada Center.( If you notice at Leaf games on TV that all the seats near ice level are empty until half way through each period because all the suits are still having their drinks in their private suites) The rest of the tickets are baught up by scalpers and sold for 3 times more than face value. I know this because a friend and I bought 2 tickets off EBAY for STANDING ROOM (I kid you not my back was against the rafters and the beams) for $80.00 each! (Face value was $19.50) We asked a scalper if we gave him our standing room tickets plus $50.00 each for 2 seats in the very last row at the highest level (so we could sit during the game) he laughed and said we would have to give him our tickets plus $100.00 each! The same will apply to the Bills if they move. We already see it with the stupid prices they charge for tickets. I can almost get season tickets in Buffalo for the price of 1 lower bowl ticket at the Rogers Center! I have been going to Buffalo Bills games every year for the past 25 years and it is the amazing atmosphere that adds to the NFL experience. And lastly, As a Canadian I know this for a fact that it is ILLEGAL to consume alcohal in public. Translation= NO TAILGATING! The best thing is getting to Ralph Wilson Stadium and going to that 7-11 and buying a tall boy and just walking around the vendors and enjoying my beer. In Toronto they have what they call a "Tailgate Party" where you have to pay admission and then pay absured prices for beer! I believe its like $6.50 just for a bottle of Bud! Yes I am Canadian and I DO NOT want the Bills to move here. The city of Toronto does not deserve the Buffalo Bills! I would rather the Bills go 0-16 then have them move to Toronto and become a corporate attraction for clients.
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