The Reason: Why Ralph Hires A Big Coach NO MATTER WHAT

[BuffaloBlitz83]

The man is OLD. He knows this is his last hire. This is most likely his last 5, maybe 10 God willing years in his lifetime. He has done a lot for the city of Buffalo. Cause Honestly, if he didn't come to Buffalo originally, we'd probably never gotten a team Period.

I feel Ralph Wilson, no matter what wants to get the TOP GUY willing to come to Buffalo to give him in his eyes, the best chance to finally WIN. Money will not be an issue. He knows once he's dead, he can't use his money. He wants to die a happy man. To finally win the Super Bowl and to be loved by his loyal fans not hated for not trying hard enough. He knows he's dropped the ball, but this is his FINAL RUN. So I don't even think an undefeated season will save Fewell. Ralph will get the guy he wants and it'll cost 10-12 Million. The fact he offered partial ownership, speaks volumes.

We are overlooking, Ralph's age and desire to win before he is gone forever. We as fans have suffered, but we have 5-10 years. Ralph likely has only a few years left. I hope he does follow his heart. It will put his legacy on the map. HOF Owner wins the big one, opens the wallet before dying.

[trapezeus]

so what you are saying is that you have a hunch.

my hunch is slowly turning to the fact that a guy doesn't change a successful model of 50 years just to win now. The guy doesn't care about winning. he wanted to turn a profit and satiate his ego by being the lone owner.

my hunch is that he's made peace that his chance to win was in the 90's and it got away from him. Now he just wants to hand the team over to his family and let them do as they please.

It's just too much to believe that he's had a huge change in heart. plus the fact that modrak and guy have stayed shows that he has more loyalty to his failed people than in changing the company. He is a thief. nothing more nothing less.

Again, that's my opinion.

[Mudflap1]

My hunch is that Ralph is going to try to hire a relatively big-name coach... if the big-name coach is willing to come here (big "if"). The main reason he is doing so is to re-energize the fan base so that tickets and merchandise are sold. He probably figures that for the $6.5 million he threw at T.O., he could hire a pretty big-name guy, and the fans would be excited about it. If he hires another lame duck, then the fans are not going to buy tickets or merchandise and there will be a pretty big crisis at OBD.

The secondary reason is, yes, Ralph probably would like to see a halfway competitive team on the football field at some point this millenium.

[BuffaloBlitz83]

Yes just a hunch. I just see no reason for the firing midseason. Then meeting with Shanahan before a holiday and offering 10 plus million plus ownership. That showed me something. He is very serious about getting the big guy.

[paladin warrior]

Where is Mike Shanahan? How come He did not sign :list: :list: with Buffalo Bills. What happen??

[trapezeus]

i think the firing wasn't ralph's call. he just told dick jauron that he couldn't have him back next year and that he was just closing out the season and jauron quit based on those terms. that what was reported. Ralph didn't need to see the Titans game and the birds to conclude the bills weren't winning under jauron.

the shanahan thing could be real. it could be as you described and ralph wants to win. but remember during the offseason prior to TO a number of free agents came in, got the offer, and then got matched with a team that was perceived better than Buffalo organizationally.

If wilson offered $10MM plus ownership, who wouldn't take that? even upon failing, you'd still have a percentage of an almost $1bn entity. The fact that shanahan walked away suggests he's looking to leverage the deal. Cowher showed that he wants to see all options.

Even if ralph's intent is genuine, the years of being awful as an owner is making it very hard for him to pull this off.

[billistic]

http://z.about.com/d/cruises/1/0/O/S/3/pyramids01.JPG

[Typ0]

I think he's been trying to win for years and just hasn't gotten it done. All the current hub bub is because they missed the boat during the hiring process previously and didn't get the right guys in to interview. Maybe they will do better at that but he's still going to do what give him the best chance of winning in his mind and the track record hasn't been so good. It would be the right time to get lucky again because it's his last chance.

[Meathead]

thats not why, at least not the biggest reason. ralphs been old a long time so if that was his thinking he would have done it a while ago

the reason ralph is splaying out the paper is because if he doesnt the team will leave bflo, and he wants his legacy to be that he was able to keep the team here

thats why its so silly when people say ralph is cheap and all he cares about is profit. if all he cared about was making money he woulda yanked this team and taken it to one of the twenty cities where he could make at least three times what the team makes now. hell, thats what i would do if i owned it, and i live here

the reason hes pulling out all the stops now centres mainly around toronto:

- teams dont share luxury suite money (or concessions/parking) like they do gate receipts
- corporations almost exclusively buy luxury suites
- most teams get ridiculous amounts of money for their suites and they are SOLD OUT
- the city of bflo absolutely cannot fill those suites due to a scarcity of successful corporations. we dont even sell out all the luxury suites and they are the cheapest in the league
- thus the reason why slicky russy marketed heavily to rochester and then toronto. rochester helped but it doesnt have enough major corporations to fill the ivory tower void

- toronto is the key: if they dont buy boxes this team is gaan. case closed

- the initial forey into toronto failed, mainly due to a ****ty product but also ripoff ticket prices. they never created the buzz that creates the demand that they intended. without the buzz, few tix sold
- with no buzz, ralph has no leverage to make toronto companies buy boxes in buffalo just to get one in toronto

- thus, this is a hail mary, an attempt to buy the buzz that they tried to create just by showing up, which didnt happen

- a brand name coach is the most reliable way to create that buzz. the downside is that it is far more expensive, but if they dont do it this time the team is gaan

thats why i am in the extreme minority and enthusiastically support sharing games with toronto. i said five years ago that i would be happy splitting the schedule with toronto if thats what it takes, and it still might, and i would be relatively happy with that

cuz if we dont find a successful sharing arrangement of some sort with a city that can support the luxury suites (to is the only one avail) then the team is gaan

quite frankly, id lay odds no better than fitty fitty the team is still here in a decade. it would be quite an accomplishment if they can manage to get toronto companies to buy suites in bflo just to get one in canada, but thats what they have to do. thank god we have russ brandenberg, the brilliant marketeer that would make even the shiftyest jew proud

so stop pretending ralph is cheap, stop thinking ralph is old and stupid, stop resisting toronto getting games, pat the canucks on the back when you see them, and pray that the next coach is a grand slam cuz otherwise ... you guessed it, the team is gaan

so rules judge mh so it shall be

[trapezeus]

i think you are right meathead.

i think i misrepresented my idea of ralph's "cheapness". He isn't all about the money. his ego makes keeping the team his and in the same city his source of pride. but as a result, he refuses to lose money or go all in on a couple seasons to win. he'd rather have the steady profit to show the league, "all these teams are fine where they are. Stop moving them all the time."

I also agree that the toronto game has to become successful because if it isn't , there is zero chance of them sending $78MM to get another 5 games.

[Jan Reimers]

Ralph's been old since I was young, and I haven't been young in quite a while. I simply think Ralph finally realizes that this franchise needs a real GM and a successful coach, if only to keep the fans rolling in.

[Novacane]

thats why its so silly when people say ralph is cheap and all he cares about is profit. if all he cared about was making money he woulda yanked this team and taken it to one of the twenty cities where he could make at least three times what the team makes now


Holy exaggeration Batman. L.A. and Toronto are the only 2 markets where that might and I stress MIGHT be possible. L.A. has proven time and again they could care less if they have an NFL team and I'm not sold the NFL will sell in Canada.


The rest of the markets that don't have a team already are in the same size markets as Buffalo. Can you seriously see someone wanting to move a team to Louisville, Birmingham, Memphis, Oklahoma City? Please..........those would be lateral moves at best.

Once LA gets their team our only worry is Toronto.