As I read the myriad of negative posts that tell us that we are doomed to continue making the same mistakes that past Bills' regimes have made, I am reminded of a few basic facts:
Buddy Nix, Chan Gailey and Doug Whaley are not Tom Donahoe/Marv Levy, Dick Jauron/Mike Mularkey/Gregg Williams or John Guy. It is somewhat foolish to automatically assume that they will make the same poor draft selections, FA moves, or coaching decisions as their predecessors.
With good, veteran football men in place, it is likewise silly to assume that Russ Brandon - a very bright marketing and business executive - would be so stupid as to try to control or dictate player personnel decisions.
Ralph Wilson, some would say, is the common denominator in our failures. But Ralph has owned this team in the '60s and the '90s, when we won 6 AFL/AFC Championships and went to 4 straight Super Bowls, as well as in our decade of decline. To assume we can never win again with Ralph as owner is specious as well.
Every season represents a new start, but this one especially. Brandon has been kicked back upstairs, and a new regime of grizzled, down-to-earth football men has been hired to breath fresh life into this team.
Sure, the naysayers might be right. It may turn out to be the same old thing we've experienced since the late '90s. But with the changes we've made, it is just plain ridiculous to flatly ASSUME that things won't get better.
Buddy Nix, Chan Gailey and Doug Whaley are not Tom Donahoe/Marv Levy, Dick Jauron/Mike Mularkey/Gregg Williams or John Guy. It is somewhat foolish to automatically assume that they will make the same poor draft selections, FA moves, or coaching decisions as their predecessors.
With good, veteran football men in place, it is likewise silly to assume that Russ Brandon - a very bright marketing and business executive - would be so stupid as to try to control or dictate player personnel decisions.
Ralph Wilson, some would say, is the common denominator in our failures. But Ralph has owned this team in the '60s and the '90s, when we won 6 AFL/AFC Championships and went to 4 straight Super Bowls, as well as in our decade of decline. To assume we can never win again with Ralph as owner is specious as well.
Every season represents a new start, but this one especially. Brandon has been kicked back upstairs, and a new regime of grizzled, down-to-earth football men has been hired to breath fresh life into this team.
Sure, the naysayers might be right. It may turn out to be the same old thing we've experienced since the late '90s. But with the changes we've made, it is just plain ridiculous to flatly ASSUME that things won't get better.
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