Ralph Wilson jr passed away. He was the last, great owner in the NFL. He was a member of "The foolish club" where he payed $25,000 to purchase the rights to an AFL team. He parlayed that investment into the Billion dallar Buffalo Bills. along the way he ammassed 2 AFL championships and 4 AFC championships. the 4 AFC championships came in consecutive years, something that no other team has done.
Look. I could spout the same boring statistics that many other people will spout over the next week or so, but that isn't all that importaant. What is important is the impact he had. Not just on a city. Not just on the NFL. Not just on his players. I'm mostly interested in the impact he had on the fans.
Ralph cared about the people of Buffalo greatly. Any person who got a chance to talk to him before, or after Bills games knows how down to earth he was.You can't be down to earth if you don't have compassion for the people you're interacting with.
The greatest memory I have of Ralph wa after a football game a few years ago.As my family and I were leaving the stadium, I noticed a golfcart stopping near gate 1 which is the gate I use. I turned around and noticed Ralph was in that golf cart.
I made a slightly rapid stroll back towards the cart and the people that were traveling with him due to his failing health (he was 91 or 92 at the time) said that he wouldn't have a lot of time. Ralph thought otherwise and insisted that he make time to wave to us all and smile that wonderful smile. It warmed my heart to see that.
That trademark smile. I bet anyone living in Western NY could recognise that smile. He always wore it when he was out. Yes, if he thought his team was getting the short end of the stick, he made sure you knew it. He and Commissioner Paul Tagliabue sparred many times over the years. Ralph usually had the last word. Who can forget the statue of an NFL referee Ralph had in his office? You know, the one with the patch over his eye? The next offseason, Ralph changed his vote and replay review became the norm in the NFL.
More recently, Ralph was outspoken against the CBA. Nearly everyone made fun of him. Before deciding he was right and opting out of the agreement themselves. Ralph, it seems, was right all along.
4 days before Ralph Wilson Jr passed away, he was on the phone with Russ Brandon. They were talking about football. What else? Ralph wnted to discuss a player prospect that he thought was a third or fourth round draft pick. Now, less then a week later. Ralph Wilson Jr is gone.
Buffalo lost a great football mind, A wonderful ambassador, and, most importantly, a good friend. He will be sorely missed.
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
quick hits
Boy a lot has happened. I don't even know where to begin.
First, Ralph Wilson Stadium is getting an upgrade. Basically a bunch of new bells and whistles to keep "Joe fan" happy. I love the thought of two new video boards and WiFi, but let's not kid ourselves here. The Bills wanted almost double for renovations then what they got. That tells me something. "The Ralph" is not aging nearly as well as we've all been lead to believe. A new stadium is GOING to happen sooner, rather then later. Personally, I'd like to have it right next to the one we have but I don't see that happening. The proposal on the outer harbor seems to be picking up steam with the Buffalo Common Council sending a letter to the NFL saying they will endorse the project, but parking there will be a nightmare. Tailgating will be even harder. I'm still hoping for a dark horse proposal in the next year or two. Keep your eyes peeled on this one.
Doug Marrone has had his first year as head coach in the NFL. His dog was awfully lonely during the season. It's nice to finally have a coach with an attitude on the sidelines in Buffalo. Not since the days of Marv "Over-officious jerk" Levey have we seen that kind of emotion. After the monotone of Jauron and the same answers every week by Gailey, it was a nice change. I hope he's around for years to come.
People are upset that our defensive coaches are leaving for Cleveland? Let them go. We don't want the reputation of a franchise that kills coaching careers. It's hard enough to get coaches here to begin with. If we blocked these guys, the only candidates we'd get are bottom of the barrel guys. If we block these interviews, we might end up bringing Gailey back as our next offensive coordinator. Let that sink in for a minute. . .Yeah, I know. I don't want that either.
I hear people saying EJ Manuel is made of glass because he's had three knee injuries this past season. The only think I can say is at least he didn't screw up his knee walking TO practice like some other big-named quarterback did this year. Look for Kolb to be cut this year either before or during training camp.
Speaking of cuts. If Jeff Tuel is no longer practice squad eligible then I think the Bills will cut him as well. Thad Lewis has shown just enough that placing him on the practice squad means he's playing someplace else next season.
Stevie Johnson is gone. Too many drops at clutch times. Not just last year, but throughput his entire career. Granted, we didn't have as many antics this year as in years past, but it is worth noting that EJ had his best career game when Stevie was hurt.
I think Byrd will sign a contract soon worth 43 million over 5 years with 22 million guaranteed. A little more guaranteed money then he's (reportedly) asking and a lower overall value then he's wanting. I'd also front load his contract so as to keep cap room when we need it down the road.
My pick at 9? Watkins. We need to give EJ all the tools necessary to succeed and he'd be a good start.
Don't let Brandon fool you. The Toronto series in it's present form is over. At the same time, he WILL make his money back somehow. He always does. Ticket prices haven't been announced yet, but I'd expect them to go up $3-$7 a seat, possibly more in some areas ( upper deck corners, for instance) In my opinion, that's a small price to pay for getting our 8th home game back. Let's just hope the Bills don't follow the Lions lead and introduce Variable pricing.
Enjoy the ride, Bills fans. It may be bumpy for a while longer, but I want to go on record right now as saying we will win 9 games next year. Hopefully, that's enough for a Wildcard, but if not, at least our December games will still have some importance to them.
First, Ralph Wilson Stadium is getting an upgrade. Basically a bunch of new bells and whistles to keep "Joe fan" happy. I love the thought of two new video boards and WiFi, but let's not kid ourselves here. The Bills wanted almost double for renovations then what they got. That tells me something. "The Ralph" is not aging nearly as well as we've all been lead to believe. A new stadium is GOING to happen sooner, rather then later. Personally, I'd like to have it right next to the one we have but I don't see that happening. The proposal on the outer harbor seems to be picking up steam with the Buffalo Common Council sending a letter to the NFL saying they will endorse the project, but parking there will be a nightmare. Tailgating will be even harder. I'm still hoping for a dark horse proposal in the next year or two. Keep your eyes peeled on this one.
Doug Marrone has had his first year as head coach in the NFL. His dog was awfully lonely during the season. It's nice to finally have a coach with an attitude on the sidelines in Buffalo. Not since the days of Marv "Over-officious jerk" Levey have we seen that kind of emotion. After the monotone of Jauron and the same answers every week by Gailey, it was a nice change. I hope he's around for years to come.
People are upset that our defensive coaches are leaving for Cleveland? Let them go. We don't want the reputation of a franchise that kills coaching careers. It's hard enough to get coaches here to begin with. If we blocked these guys, the only candidates we'd get are bottom of the barrel guys. If we block these interviews, we might end up bringing Gailey back as our next offensive coordinator. Let that sink in for a minute. . .Yeah, I know. I don't want that either.
I hear people saying EJ Manuel is made of glass because he's had three knee injuries this past season. The only think I can say is at least he didn't screw up his knee walking TO practice like some other big-named quarterback did this year. Look for Kolb to be cut this year either before or during training camp.
Speaking of cuts. If Jeff Tuel is no longer practice squad eligible then I think the Bills will cut him as well. Thad Lewis has shown just enough that placing him on the practice squad means he's playing someplace else next season.
Stevie Johnson is gone. Too many drops at clutch times. Not just last year, but throughput his entire career. Granted, we didn't have as many antics this year as in years past, but it is worth noting that EJ had his best career game when Stevie was hurt.
I think Byrd will sign a contract soon worth 43 million over 5 years with 22 million guaranteed. A little more guaranteed money then he's (reportedly) asking and a lower overall value then he's wanting. I'd also front load his contract so as to keep cap room when we need it down the road.
My pick at 9? Watkins. We need to give EJ all the tools necessary to succeed and he'd be a good start.
Don't let Brandon fool you. The Toronto series in it's present form is over. At the same time, he WILL make his money back somehow. He always does. Ticket prices haven't been announced yet, but I'd expect them to go up $3-$7 a seat, possibly more in some areas ( upper deck corners, for instance) In my opinion, that's a small price to pay for getting our 8th home game back. Let's just hope the Bills don't follow the Lions lead and introduce Variable pricing.
Enjoy the ride, Bills fans. It may be bumpy for a while longer, but I want to go on record right now as saying we will win 9 games next year. Hopefully, that's enough for a Wildcard, but if not, at least our December games will still have some importance to them.
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