The personal attacks on Ralph Wilson are ....

[kernowboy]

... pretty damn disgusting and infantile.

Somehow he has dementia, needs his dipers changing etc because he cannot now sign Cowher, Shanahan etc and because we have not enjoyed success in the last few years.

Lets remember a few things:

There would be no Buffalo Bills if it had not been for Ralph Wilson.

Whilst the likes of Polian, Butler and AJ Smith left under Ralph Wilson, he had the kudos to hire them in the first place, and there are always power struggles in any organisations. People make mistakes ... that doesn't make him senile, it makes him human. And lets not forget the salary gap mess that Tom Donahoe inherited was caused by Butler and Smith

We are a small market team and none of us really know the financial pressures the team face in keeping the Bills in Buffalo.

Whilst we have had some poor drafts in the last few years, the guys making some of those decisions are or have been respected throughout the league like Tom Donahoe, Tom Modrak etc. Wilson has made some errors trying to find the right formula but then most owners have. Ask Randy Lerner.

I think there are far worse organisations in the league that a prospective coach might join, and there are many reasons why a prospective head coach might not want to come to this organisation which the Bills cannot control.
But the personal attacks on Wilson have nothing to do with following football and are a discredit to Bills fans.

[Novacane]

He's a joke of an owner dude. He's always hired cheap when it comes to coachs and thats why we have gotten the losers we've had. If you want to say people should not be making jokes about dementia, needs his dipers etc that's fine. You should have just stopped there after your first line. The rest is BS. He's a meddling cheapskate and that's why this team has been a loser most of his life. He got lucky with 1 hire (Polian) and screwed that up by firing him.

[Historian]

Wilson has no business being in sports.

[Novacane]

, and there are many reasons why a prospective head coach might not want to come to this organisation which the Bills cannot control.



That is such bull crap. Please give us these "many" reasons. There is 1 I can think of and thats the weather which I really don't think is that big of an obstacle to overcome. The rest of the reasons a coach would not want to come are ALL within the Bills control. Wilsons past history is the reason we don't have Cowher yet and probably won't have him. IMO of course!

[T-Long]

It's because of Ralph Wilson that the Bills even have a damn team. He brought this franchise here and stayed here the past 50 years, and he gets no credit for that? So, he has a history of going cheap for coaches...boo hoo. He has brought in great talent as well with the hiring of Bill Polian and the team they put together. Ralph Wilson is a Hall of Famer and deserves respect from all of the fans that he brought this team to. Is he 91 and "off his rocker" a bit? Absolutely. But I hope I am alive when I am 91...and he is an NFL owner! If he doesn't want to sell the team he created, then that is his decision. There will be a day when the old man passes away and new ownership takes over, so for all you guys calling for his head to die, eventually you will get your wish. But take a step back and realize what this guy has done for you as a fan for the past 50 seasons.

[ddaryl]

You should have just stopped there after your first line. The rest is BS. He's a meddling cheapskate and that's why this team has been a loser most of his life. He got lucky with 1 hire (Polian) and screwed that up by firing him.


I wouldn't call him a cheapskate because he has spent big money more then once on players... I do agree that after the 1st line the original post is off the mark some. Ralph deserve much scorn for the mess the franchise is in...

But his choices in regards to coaches and GM's have been mostly miss throughout his entire ownership, and yes he has gone cheap there.. accept when he extended Jauron.. All of sudden he was handling over money

[Night Train]

He got lucky with 1 hire (Polian) and screwed that up by firing him.

He got it right with Dick Gallagher in the 1960's and Chuck Knox in the late 1970's, in addition to Polian.

Football actually existed before 1980, I'm serious.

Wilson never adjusted to the modern age and let his bean counters drive his decision making more than he should. He has never accepted the pay scale for quality front office people, which has never been more important in the Free Agency era with heavy roster turnover each season.

Pointing to the fact he gave certain players healthy raises means he fails to allocate his resources properly. You pay the office managers first to keep the company moving forward and create a psoitive identity.. not the help. The help is far easier to find if you are prudent in your selection process.

Wilson all too often refers to "luck" . You don't need luck if you stick to the proper chain of command and lay out a strict business plan.

Are the Steelers just "lucky" the last 40 years, since they hired Chuck Noll, drafted wisely and stuck to a winning plan through 2 generations ? Hardly..

They want the team to reflect an winning identity and be a solid part of their community by sticking to a solid business plan. The fans in turn, embrace them with complete confidence. The botton line ($$) takes care of itself.

Ralph has been far too concerned with the bottom line in an economically challenged area and chose to make quick grabs at $$. I believe he's been practicing this in earnest ever since Chuck Knox walked away some 27 years ago. Bill Polian was nothing more than a blind squirrel finding the acorn. Wilsons meddling and having his daughter driving Polian nuts in the draft room ruined a good thing... And the failing business plan was once again in full motion.

People bit the hook like hungry salmon when they signed Owens as stickly a marketing move to sell ticket$, when sales were sluggish. The front office still stunk and the roster was still below average.

Short term thinking equals short term success and long term failure.

[Novacane]

You must be OLD night train. J/K. ;) I'm only 40. I don't remember the hires before 80. I do remember Chuck Knox. Point is still the same. Most all his hires have been bad and the last 10 years they have been disasters.

[Historian]

For those of you too young to remember, Wilson has threatened to move this team on several occasions...Seattle...Portland...hell, Buffalo was his second choice to begin with.

He's meddled when he should have stayed out, he's been hands off when he needed to get involved. He hires syncophats who tell him what he wants to hear, and wonders why his team is a perrennial loser.

He has undying fan, community, and business support, receives boatloads of taxpayer money, all while schools, hospitals and libraries are being closed in the area.

He's an absentee owner, and a leech, who would have never amounted to a hill of beans, had he not inherited everything he owns from Ralph Sr.

[Novacane]

Good point about Wilson and his stupid "luck" referances. Rooney must be the luckiest owner in FB. Every head coach he's ever hired has won a SB! :rolleyes:

[Historian]

You must be OLD night train. J/K. ;) I'm only 40. I don't remember the hires before 80. I do remember Chuck Knox. Point is still the same. Most all his hires have been bad and the last 10 years they have been disasters.

Sure, Knox was a good hire, but what did it take to get there?

1975: 8-6
1976: 2-12
1977: 3-11

And who was his first interview after the 1977 season?

Bill Walsh

And why did Knox bolt for Seattle?

Google: Tom Cousineau.

[X-Era]

... pretty damn disgusting and infantile.

Somehow he has dementia, needs his dipers changing etc because he cannot now sign Cowher, Shanahan etc and because we have not enjoyed success in the last few years.

Lets remember a few things:

There would be no Buffalo Bills if it had not been for Ralph Wilson.

Whilst the likes of Polian, Butler and AJ Smith left under Ralph Wilson, he had the kudos to hire them in the first place, and there are always power struggles in any organisations. People make mistakes ... that doesn't make him senile, it makes him human. And lets not forget the salary gap mess that Tom Donahoe inherited was caused by Butler and Smith

We are a small market team and none of us really know the financial pressures the team face in keeping the Bills in Buffalo.

Whilst we have had some poor drafts in the last few years, the guys making some of those decisions are or have been respected throughout the league like Tom Donahoe, Tom Modrak etc. Wilson has made some errors trying to find the right formula but then most owners have. Ask Randy Lerner.

I think there are far worse organisations in the league that a prospective coach might join, and there are many reasons why a prospective head coach might not want to come to this organisation which the Bills cannot control.
But the personal attacks on Wilson have nothing to do with following football and are a discredit to Bills fans.

I took a shot at him yesterday, it was just a quick joke, nothing more. It easy to do, its a message board.

I do think he is becoming a bit more senile and it seems to show when you see him speak. Hes 90 years old, that's to be expected. That's no reason to disrespect the man that brought football to Buffalo. Whether he deserves it or not, its still in poor taste.

You are 100% correct and I apologize.

[Jan Reimers]

The professional criticism of Ralph is well deserved.

The mean spirited personal attacks are not. He has done much for the community, charitable causes, etc.

[Typ0]

Wilson wants to die thinking he did a good deed to WNY so that's the spin you get on all the public relations. Don't believe it. Wilson has been nothing but a thorn in the side of WNY since he came here. What NT said above rings so true...times changed and RW didn't and he's been stabbing a knife into every WNYer since the 80s.

[Typ0]

But he never does, in fact he stands in the way of, what everyone really needs and wants.


The professional criticism of Ralph is well deserved.

The mean spirited personal attacks are not. He has done much for the community, charitable causes, etc.

[BoyILuvLoznStupidly]

He got it right with Dick Gallagher in the 1960's and Chuck Knox in the late 1970's, in addition to Polian.

Football actually existed before 1980, I'm serious.

Wilson never adjusted to the modern age and let his bean counters drive his decision making more than he should. He has never accepted the pay scale for quality front office people, which has never been more important in the Free Agency era with heavy roster turnover each season.

Pointing to the fact he gave certain players healthy raises means he fails to allocate his resources properly. You pay the office managers first to keep the company moving forward and create a psoitive identity.. not the help. The help is far easier to find if you are prudent in your selection process.

Wilson all too often refers to "luck" . You don't need luck if you stick to the proper chain of command and lay out a strict business plan.

Are the Steelers just "lucky" the last 40 years, since they hired Chuck Noll, drafted wisely and stuck to a winning plan through 2 generations ? Hardly..

They want the team to reflect an winning identity and be a solid part of their community by sticking to a solid business plan. The fans in turn, embrace them with complete confidence. The botton line ($$) takes care of itself.

Ralph has been far too concerned with the bottom line in an economically challenged area and chose to make quick grabs at $$. I believe he's been practicing this in earnest ever since Chuck Knox walked away some 27 years ago. Bill Polian was nothing more than a blind squirrel finding the acorn. Wilsons meddling and having his daughter driving Polian nuts in the draft room ruined a good thing... And the failing business plan was once again in full motion.

People bit the hook like hungry salmon when they signed Owens as stickly a marketing move to sell ticket$, when sales were sluggish. The front office still stunk and the roster was still below average.

Short term thinking equals short term success and long term failure.


:goodpost: Couldn't have said it better. Great Post!

[THE END OF ALL DAYS]

those who say meddeling owners are the reason this is a crappy organization should look at dallas.

JJ the periah of the NFL has 2 superbowls and a team looking like a winner right now
of course on the other hand there is snyder in washington, but he has no football mind
at least JJ has a bit of football accuem

its deeper then the owner. its the whole stinking lot at OBD

anyone calling for ralph to die is just stupid

he deserves credit for keeping the bills here and he deserves blame for the status of the organization.

but the meddeling can also be called "involvement" and any business owner is INVOLVED

[ddaryl]

The professional criticism of Ralph is well deserved.

The mean spirited personal attacks are not. He has done much for the community, charitable causes, etc.

I agree... and I've never wished for Ralph's demise publicly


but I'd be a liar :liar: if I said the thought never slipped into my mind...

What I still don't quite understand is if he is this great WNY charitable person then why do we have no official contingency plan and personal guarentee that Ralph and his estate are committed to finding Buffalo owners to keep the franchise in Buffalo putting all our minds at ease once and for all....

If Ralph does that his legacy will be forever cemented as a great man to the community. But if he short arms the sale and we are left in limbo or worse we lose our team well then Ralph will be forever hated and his legacy is shot :nervous:

[Typ0]

it's the type of meddling and the people hired that is the problem. If you want to use Jones as an example fine. He gets involved but he listens to people and doesn't hire a bunch of yes man pussies. It's one thing to be involved with a team of competent people and another to be Hitler and drive that team into the ground. Jerry Jones is Winston Churchill and Ralph Wilson is Adolph Hitler.


those who say meddeling owners are the reason this is a crappy organization should look at dallas.

JJ the periah of the NFL has 2 superbowls and a team looking like a winner right now
of course on the other hand there is snyder in washington, but he has no football mind
at least JJ has a bit of football accuem

its deeper then the owner. its the whole stinking lot at OBD

anyone calling for ralph to die is just stupid

he deserves credit for keeping the bills here and he deserves blame for the status of the organization.

but the meddeling can also be called "involvement" and any business owner is INVOLVED

[THE END OF ALL DAYS]

I dont know typO... many people feel that JJ hires YESMEN only and that is why WADE is there.

Bottom line I think is we need a DOMINANT and strong coach here, not a lilly liverd gravey sucking wimp :)

[Historian]

What I still don't quite understand is if he is this great WNY charitable person then why do we have no official contingency plan and personal guarentee that Ralph and his estate are committed to finding Buffalo owners to keep the franchise in Buffalo putting all our minds at ease once and for all....

If Ralph does that his legacy will be forever cemented as a great man to the community. But if he short arms the sale and we are left in limbo or worse we lose our team well then Ralph will be forever hated and his legacy is shot :nervous:

It's a great question.

Because in the community, he's done a lot.

Ever been to the Ralph and Mary Wilson Hospice Center? It's magnificent, and the staff are true angels of mercy.

Why he does so much for charity, and lets his football team live in mediocrity I will never know....or understand.

[YardRat]

-The Bills influence on the local economy has been far, far greater than any 'profit' Wilson has or will make on his original investment. If you think the economy and mindset in this area sucks now imagine what it would be like without the team.

-Pittsburgh was the professional football version of the Detroit Lions for the vast majority of their existence, making the playoffs ONE time in their first FORTY years of existence. THIRTY-FIVE of those seasons the teams record was ONE game above .500 or worse. Wilson won two league championships before his first decade was over, something the Rooney's were still trying to figure out after being in the business for over 30 years.

-Tom Cousineau was a douchebag that thought he was going to break the bank, and if he and his agent would have actually negotiated instead of bailing for the CFL after the initial offer he probably would have been a Bill.
A couple more points regarding Tom...Great for us that he didn't sign, otherwise we would have never ended up with Jim Kelly who was taken with the pick we raped out of Cleveland for trading for the POS LB, and other teams have had other similar issues...Google Cornelius Bennett.

-While you're at it, google Bruce Smith+free agent+Denver offer, and tell me once again that Ralph is cheap. At least he's upfront and not a back-stabber, something Pat Bowlen can't claim. Then Google OJ Simpson+contract.

-Wilson is by no means perfect, but he certainly isn't the cheap, un-caring, ******* that many like to believe he is. His biggest issues aren't frugality or apathy, but rather absentee ownership and trusting those around him that he hires to do a job.

[Historian]

Doesn't matter what happened to Cousineau after the fact.

The point is, that Ralph wasn't willing to give Knox the tools he felt he needed to do the job....and that type of thing gets around. These guys talk.

He wouldn't match Wolford...the list is endless.

Lick his boots all you want Rat, the truth is that he's been an abysmal failure as an owner, and the couple of years he actually had success were pretty much despite himself.

[Typ0]

I dont know typO... many people feel that JJ hires YESMEN only and that is why WADE is there.

Bottom line I think is we need a DOMINANT and strong coach here, not a lilly liverd gravey sucking wimp :)


There was a short time that RW wanted to get away from this. He hired Donahoe, got screwed over, and went right back to it. Jones does not hire yes men. Is Jimmy Johnson a yes man? How about Bill Parcells? Jones hires strong figures as well...he's doing what is best for the team as evidenced by their actually being able to compete sometimes. Wilson, on the other hand, does enough that he can sell he's doing enough but too little to actually get over the hump. He's many times threatened to move the team and in the last decaded balked at any talk of a stadium deal so he wouldn't have to lock the team into a lease and it could be sold. Sorry, I see Wilson as the epitome of arrogant anti-social scumbag that believes he's doing the right things and sells it to enough followers to pacify himself he is...but the reality is he's the true holdup.

[patmoran2006]

It's because of Ralph Wilson that the Bills even have a damn team. He brought this franchise here and stayed here the past 50 years, and he gets no credit for that? So, he has a history of going cheap for coaches...boo hoo. He has brought in great talent as well with the hiring of Bill Polian and the team they put together. Ralph Wilson is a Hall of Famer and deserves respect from all of the fans that he brought this team to. Is he 91 and "off his rocker" a bit? Absolutely. But I hope I am alive when I am 91...and he is an NFL owner! If he doesn't want to sell the team he created, then that is his decision. There will be a day when the old man passes away and new ownership takes over, so for all you guys calling for his head to die, eventually you will get your wish. But take a step back and realize what this guy has done for you as a fan for the past 50 seasons.

We've done more for Ralph Wilson than he's done for us.

We've made him a very very rich man.

He's made us lose our minds for most of our existence with the exception of the Polian led run, who ended up getting fired.

[Goobylal]

What most of you chuckleheads fail to/cannot realize is that Buffalo isn't a place most people, much less highly-paid athletes/celebrities, want to be. Maybe it's because most of you are too close to the action. But most everyone else sees it as a depressing place with bad weather most of the time, a tiny market with "nothing to do," and a bad economy with high taxes. So right off the bat, Wilson has had to fight to get players and coaches to come to Buffalo, needing to overpay them, and even then it doesn't always work.

Prior to the institution of the salary cap in 1993, Buffalo was competing against the big markets and their big budgets. Hence the reason he had to go cheap. Once the salary cap was in place, he started to spend money, only recently going to "cash to cap" after that albatross of a CBA in 2006.

As for HC's, after Levy, Wade Phillips, the Bills' successful DC and a former HC, was promoted. After his tenure ended, Ralph turned to TD to right the ship, a move that was widely hailed given his work in Pgh. TD ran everything and the Bills went nowhere. So Ralph turned to Levy, his coach during the most successful period in Bills' history, and Levy failed to make a mark, thanks in large part to hiring Dick Jauron (Ralph wanted Mike Sherman). Now he's turning things over to a real football GM in Nix, but still can't get Cowher to commit to coaching, despite throwing $7M/year at him. Wonder why? Oh yes, because he's "meddling," "senile," "ready to die..."

Yes Ralph has threatened to move the team. So too have other owners like Bob Kraft. However Ralph has never even gone to the lengths Kraft did (he had a deal with Hartford in place until it was cancelled at the 11th hour), and the team has never moved, despite being in the worst market in the NFL (well, outside of Jax). And he's kept prices the lowest in the NFL, knowing what the fans can reasonably afford.

If anything, the Bills are a perfect reflection of Buffalo. And in true American spirit, we have to blame someone else for our problems.

[kernowboy]

That is such bull crap. Please give us these "many" reasons. There is 1 I can think of and thats the weather which I really don't think is that big of an obstacle to overcome. The rest of the reasons a coach would not want to come are ALL within the Bills control. Wilsons past history is the reason we don't have Cowher yet and probably won't have him. IMO of course!

Oh I think 'FAMILY REASONS' are a huge one, especially if the coach has a young or youngish family.

[kernowboy]

He's a joke of an owner dude. He's always hired cheap when it comes to coachs and thats why we have gotten the losers we've had. If you want to say people should not be making jokes about dementia, needs his dipers etc that's fine. You should have just stopped there after your first line. The rest is BS. He's a meddling cheapskate and that's why this team has been a loser most of his life. He got lucky with 1 hire (Polian) and screwed that up by firing him.

I see to recall Wilson hired Donahoe and handed over control to him making him both President and General Manager.

Please explain how that equates with wanting to meddle?

or are you too lazy to look up the facts?

[SabreEleven]

If Ralph would have owed any money on the Stadium, the Bills would have been out of here years ago.

[Goobylal]

If Ralph would have owed any money on the Stadium, the Bills would have been out of here years ago.
If he'd owed money on the stadium and/or on the team, he'd have been out of here years ago. The only reason they're still in Buffalo is because he only invested $25K in them originally and the stadium is owned by the county, like most NFL stadiums are.

[SABURZFAN]

For those of you too young to remember, Wilson has threatened to move this team on several occasions...Seattle...Portland...hell, Buffalo was his second choice to begin with.

He's meddled when he should have stayed out, he's been hands off when he needed to get involved. He hires syncophats who tell him what he wants to hear, and wonders why his team is a perrennial loser.

He has undying fan, community, and business support, receives boatloads of taxpayer money, all while schools, hospitals and libraries are being closed in the area.

He's an absentee owner, and a leech, who would have never amounted to a hill of beans, had he not inherited everything he owns from Ralph Sr.


well said. :bf1:

before the NFL became a cash cow, he used the Bills as a tax write off, while tending to business in Michigan. for Bills fans who know and have lived through the dark days, it something that we'll never forget. it's easy to use the four Super Bowls and the AFL days to sing his praises but what has he REALLY done for the other 40+ years? he's hornswoggled Bills fans out of their hard earned money and threw crappy products on the field year in and year out.

[BigZ]

Well guys, if you don't like Ralph Wilson, the way he runs the team and the fact that he's getting old, you've got a few choices:

1. buy the team yourselves (now if we could own the team as a corporation like in Green Bay I'd probably contribute to it myself)

2. root for another team

3. keep complaining because it makes you feel good

We're all probably going to choose #3 but we do need to dial the venom down a little.

[Ebenezer]

I dont know typO... many people feel that JJ hires YESMEN only and that is why WADE is there.

Bottom line I think is we need a DOMINANT and strong coach here, not a lilly liverd gravey sucking wimp :)
Jones is a megalomaniac owner who interferes and has nothing but yes men and they win - he's a jerk.

Wilson is a megalomaniac owner who interferes and has nothing but yes men and they lose - he's an ok guy??

I used to hate Jones...I'll take Jones.

[NOT THE DUDE...]

kernowboy....

when buffalo is the only opening to coach, and bill cowher still turns us down, i think we all know ralph wilson is the problem

he has fired polian, fired butler and smith, fired donahoe, and now u think bill cowher will come here as vp of football operations and hc....

get real man, the owner is cheap and full of crap........ he has ruined this franchise.....

[Ebenezer]

kernowboy....

when buffalo is the only opening to coach, and bill cowher still turns us down, i think we all know ralph wilson is the problem

he has fired polian, fired butler and smith, fired donahoe, and now u think bill cowher will come here as vp of football operations and hc....

get real man, the owner is cheap and full of crap........ he has ruined this franchise.....

I'll disagree with cheap...that needs to be taken off the table...the second part of the statement is entirely true. Too many people want to gloss over RW because he put the team here...so what! The point is he put the team here...now, review and honestly critique the job he has done since putting it here. Be objective. What would you think RW the owner had he put the team in Shreveport? San Antonio? Yellow Knife? You'd laugh at his franchise like people laugh at the Bills. Although he did some great things for the AFL and the league after the merger, as owner of the Buffalo Bills he has been an object failure.

[SABURZFAN]

Well guys, if you don't like Ralph Wilson, the way he runs the team and the fact that he's getting old, you've got a few choices:

1. buy the team yourselves (now if we could own the team as a corporation like in Green Bay I'd probably contribute to it myself)

2. root for another team

3. keep complaining because it makes you feel good

We're all probably going to choose #3 but we do need to dial the venom down a little.


i'll settle for #4, wait for The Old Fart to croak.

[Typ0]

i'll settle for #4, wait for The Old Fart to croak.


How about we keep complaining while we wait for him to croak?

[Goobylal]

I'll disagree with cheap...that needs to be taken off the table...the second part of the statement is entirely true. Too many people want to gloss over RW because he put the team here...so what! The point is he put the team here...now, review and honestly critique the job he has done since putting it here. Be objective. What would you think RW the owner had he put the team in Shreveport? San Antonio? Yellow Knife? You'd laugh at his franchise like people laugh at the Bills. Although he did some great things for the AFL and the league after the merger, as owner of the Buffalo Bills he has been an object failure.
So what that he put the team here and KEPT it here? Would you rather have the team the way they are now, or have no team?

[Aliceinchainsbills15]

Wilson will not face reality and relize that it's 2010, not the 1960s.

[Nighthawk]

Ralph deserves every bit of criticism that he gets.

[ddaryl]

So what that he put the team here and KEPT it here? Would you rather have the team the way they are now, or have no team?


one more year like the last 10 and no real HC and I am down with entertaining the latter


if were not going to try and win it all every year then there really is absolutly no reason to even pretend....

[Aliceinchainsbills15]

Wilson will not face reality and relize that it's 2010, not the 1960s.
Also, to add on to my point, the fact that die hard Bills fans pack the stadium every home game to watch mediocity back to back shows how pathetic Wilson is unable to bring winners but rather foucus more on the money he is taking away from us fans. At this point, until he hires a proven coach, like Cowher, i will believe he is in it for the money/cheap way out of things and doesn't seem to care about a winner in Buffalo.

[YardRat]

Doesn't matter what happened to Cousineau after the fact.

The point is, that Ralph wasn't willing to give Knox the tools he felt he needed to do the job....and that type of thing gets around. These guys talk.

He wouldn't match Wolford...the list is endless.

Lick his boots all you want Rat, the truth is that he's been an abysmal failure as an owner, and the couple of years he actually had success were pretty much despite himself.

He couldn't match Wolford because of the poison pill contract that Indy wrote up. Believe it or not, I spoke with John Butler about that very issue myself.

[Goobylal]

He couldn't match Wolford because of the poison pill contract that Indy wrote up. Believe it or not, I spoke with John Butler about that very issue myself.
That was common knowledge...BACK when it happened in 1993. The NFL conveniently outlawed it AFTER allowing it. Well, not really. They allowed the Vikings (Steve Hutchinson) and Patriots (Wes Welker) to do it again.

[YardRat]

That was common knowledge...BACK when it happened in 1993. The NFL conveniently outlawed it AFTER allowing it. Well, not really. They allowed the Vikings (Steve Hutchinson) and Patriots (Wes Welker) to do it again.

Yes, it was common knowledge....which makes a statement indicting Ralph for not matching it even more ridiculous.

[Historian]

All he had to do was pay the salary.

Instead, he let his LT walk.

Sound familliar?

:snicker:

[YardRat]

All he had to do was pay the salary.

Instead, he let his LT walk.

Sound familliar?

:snicker:

:rofl: Yeah...Ralph is going to guarantee that his LT is the highest paid offensive player on a team with the likes of Thurman Thomas, Jim Kelly and Andre Reed.

C'mon Dave...you know better than that.

[Historian]

Why not?

Its the most important position on the team, is it not?

Instead, as usual, Ralph pays for the star system, like with Joe Willie and the days of the AFL.

The guys been two decades behind the rest of the league since 1975.

[Goobylal]

Why not?

Its the most important position on the team, is it not?

Instead, as usual, Ralph pays for the star system, like with Joe Willie and the days of the AFL.

The guys been two decades behind the rest of the league since 1975.
More important than QB? Um, no.

[Historian]

Now you got me thinking Rat...

Wrap up Wolford long term, (which only would have costed you 3.2 mil or something like that in 1993) and....

You probably don't lose your 1994 opener at home to Pete Carroll's Jets 23-3.

You probably don't need to install Jerry Crafts on your starting line (lol)

You probably don't go 7-9 in 1994, wasting a year of your superstars' careers.

You probably don't get Kelly knocked out cold in the Jag playoff game.

Kelly and Hull probably don't retire after 96, because the team's still winning.

Todd Collins and Billy Joe Gunrack probably never get to line up under center for this team.

Just imagine the possibilities if Ralph wasn't such a crappy owner!

:snicker:

[YardRat]

You're really reaching now :D

Nice of you to gloss over the 12-4 record and fourth trip to the Super Bowl their first year without Wolford.

[mybills]

... pretty damn disgusting and infantile.

Somehow he has dementia, needs his dipers changing etc because he cannot now sign Cowher, Shanahan etc and because we have not enjoyed success in the last few years.

Lets remember a few things:

There would be no Buffalo Bills if it had not been for Ralph Wilson.

Whilst the likes of Polian, Butler and AJ Smith left under Ralph Wilson, he had the kudos to hire them in the first place, and there are always power struggles in any organisations. People make mistakes ... that doesn't make him senile, it makes him human. And lets not forget the salary gap mess that Tom Donahoe inherited was caused by Butler and Smith

We are a small market team and none of us really know the financial pressures the team face in keeping the Bills in Buffalo.

Whilst we have had some poor drafts in the last few years, the guys making some of those decisions are or have been respected throughout the league like Tom Donahoe, Tom Modrak etc. Wilson has made some errors trying to find the right formula but then most owners have. Ask Randy Lerner.

I think there are far worse organisations in the league that a prospective coach might join, and there are many reasons why a prospective head coach might not want to come to this organisation which the Bills cannot control.
But the personal attacks on Wilson have nothing to do with following football and are a discredit to Bills fans.
:bf1:

[Ebenezer]

Whilst the likes of Polian, Butler and AJ Smith left under Ralph Wilson, he had the kudos to hire them in the first place,

Wilson didn't hire any of the three...Polian was hired by Terry Bledsoe. Butler and Smith (and Levy) were hired by Polian. Wilson gets no credit in the hiring of the guys who brought this team 4 AFC titles.

[Historian]

-While you're at it, google Bruce Smith+free agent+Denver offer, and tell me once again that Ralph is cheap. At least he's upfront and not a back-stabber, something Pat Bowlen can't claim.


Pat's a two-time Super Bowl winner...something Ralph cannot claim.

Funny you mention Bowlan though.

He sees his defense as the weak spot on the team. He then (astonishingly) sees the best team in the conference low-balling the best Defensive end of the era, with a measly one mil per year offer.

So he says to his coach..."Hey dan, would you like Bruce Smith on your line?"

"Of course, the Coach agrees, let's make him a tender offer and see if the skinflint that owns the Bills will match it."

Yea...Bowlan is a real scumbag for wanting to add the best player in football to his team.

:rolleyes:

It simply never ceases to amaze me how Bills fans will rationalize this stuff.

You have been conditioned to lose. You are now assimiliated

[SABURZFAN]

Ralph deserves every bit of criticism that he gets.


:bf1:

[HAMMER]

Jan nailed it, no need to say anymore.

[Bill Cody]

I have said a couple times things to the effect "Ralph should do us a favor and die". When I think about that, I agree that's mean spirited and wrong. I take that back.

What I don't take back is this:

The game passed Ralph by a long time ago. It's passed Al Davis by too. Should every Oakland fan just sit back and kiss Al's ring for yet another lost decade just because he was a genius for 3 decades? Sorry, don't work that way. We'll all chip in and buy Ralph a nice engraved watch if he just does the right thing and sells the team NOW to a local group.

Buffalo fans and the NFL have made Wilson a very rich man. Anyone that thinks Bill Cowher is looking at Buffalo and not saying "do I want to sign up for a team with an owner that can't remember if the ball is stuffed or pumped" is kidding themselves. Thanks for keeping the team here Ralph. Thanks for the memories. Now don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.

[Historian]

Should every Oakland fan just sit back and kiss Al's ring

At least they have a ring to kiss.

Two as a matter of fact.

All I ever wanted to be able to say, is that one year, we were the best in the NFL.

Jusy once.

Then I would be content.

[Nighthawk]

At least they have a ring to kiss.

Two as a matter of fact.

All I ever wanted to be able to say, is that one year, we were the best in the NFL.

Jusy once.

Then I would be content.

I hear ya...Ralph is going to cost us that chance...the guy is a total loser of an owner. He talks about what a failure the City of Buffalo is, well, he should look in the mirror and see what a failure he has been as an owner!

[Run_Two_Three]

He's a joke of an owner dude. He's always hired cheap when it comes to coachs and thats why we have gotten the losers we've had. If you want to say people should not be making jokes about dementia, needs his dipers etc that's fine. You should have just stopped there after your first line. The rest is BS. He's a meddling cheapskate and that's why this team has been a loser most of his life. He got lucky with 1 hire (Polian) and screwed that up by firing him.

YES YES YES YES YES

[Typ0]

I hear ya...Ralph is going to cost us that chance...the guy is a total loser of an owner. He talks about what a failure the City of Buffalo is, well, he should look in the mirror and see what a failure he has been as an owner!


That's exactly how he feels too. He's be Jerry Jones if the city of Buffalo wasn't dragging him down. We owe him.

[axe1174]

Spot ON !!

[justasportsfan]

Ralphy is credited for bringing and keeping the team here in buffalo.

BUt creating a winning organization on the football field was his failure.

[Bill Cody]

At least they have a ring to kiss.

Two as a matter of fact.

All I ever wanted to be able to say, is that one year, we were the best in the NFL.

Jusy once.

Then I would be content.

I'm with you. But thanks to some frustrated fans expressing their opinions no good coach will ever want to come here apparently.:drool:

[MikeNC]

What most of you chuckleheads fail to/cannot realize is that Buffalo isn't a place most people, much less highly-paid athletes/celebrities, want to be. Maybe it's because most of you are too close to the action. But most everyone else sees it as a depressing place with bad weather most of the time, a tiny market with "nothing to do," and a bad economy with high taxes. So right off the bat, Wilson has had to fight to get players and coaches to come to Buffalo, needing to overpay them, and even then it doesn't always work.


Blame your civic leaders for this.....Your local leaders cound'nt run a one car funeral...That stadium should have built downtown, there would have been plenty of business' building around a downtown stadium..Ralph can't be blamed for the negativity Buffalo gets, your government is to blame....

[Goobylal]

Blame your civic leaders for this.....Your local leaders cound'nt run a one car funeral...That stadium should have built downtown, there would have been plenty of business' building around a downtown stadium..Ralph can't be blamed for the negativity Buffalo gets, your government is to blame....
True, the leaders of the city, county, and state are to blame for a lot of the problems, as they relate to the economy, population size, and market. But the weather is another major factor, over which no one has control.

[trapezeus]

the personal attacks on Ralph wilson are.....

a. hardly that personal and actually fairly on point
b. are frustration from being a joke when all we want is get to the playoffs. 50% of the AFC gets into the playoffs. That's some pretty horrible failure right there.
c both options.

This man should have handed this team over years ago. if the bills would have moved in 98 and saved us from this disaster, i'd be thankful.

I'm just completely disgusted with him. The fact he couldn't convince cowher that he'd get out of the way and let him run it is a complete *****ing joke.

I want him to know his legacy will forever be known as a miserly loser. Scrooge even had the good fortune of seeing christmas future and change.