The Simple Truth

[Jan Reimers]

I said a while ago that I was finished caring about the Bills, and done wasting my time posting about them, and I basically am. But I have watched a few agonizing games since then - not expecting much, and therefore not being that disappointed with the excruciating losses - and have come to a very simple conclusion.

We spend mega-hours discussing and arguing about Fitz and Gailey, Nix and Ralph, our inexperienced cornerbacks, pedestrian wide receiver corps, mediocre linebacking, injuries to the offensive line and elsewhere, and the minutia of individual games - should Wilson have made that interception, etc., etc.

But the reason I have given up on the Bills is that no team has ever won anything with the lethal combination of a totally incompetent head coach and an equally lousy quarterback, which is exactly what we have. No matter what happens at any other position on the field, the sidelines or the front office, we will never win consistently with Gailey calling the shots and Fitz executing them. NEVER.

Sadly, we have had a series of mediocre head coaches and quarterbacks for many, many years now, since the era of Kelly and Levy. We have 13 years of futility, 13 years without a single playoff appearance, to show for our ever changing, yet consistently horrible, combinations of HCs and QBs.

If and when we hire a top flight head coach and acquire - via draft, trade, or free agency - a real quarterback, I will once again be interested in watching the team I have loved for 53 years. Until then - since there is no hope - I will try to stay emotionally disconnected from an organization that appears to have no collective clue as to how to make things better.

I applaud you guys and ladies for continuing to care about the Bills. I simply can't do it until we make major changes at the two positions that control every NFL teams' destiny.

[The King]

This Sunday was the last time (for the season) that my Sunday is built around the Bills game. From here on out if I catch it great if not who cares.

[DynaPaul]

No, tickets, merch, or NFL Sunday ticket for me next year. Hope you're happy Ralph and Russ!

[Albany,n.y.]

A top flight head coach comes in and will leave no stone unturned in order to upgrade (or at least try to upgrade) the QB position. They usually either have draft power or the GM is smart enough to know that the new HC needs help at QB. Now it's not just the coach's doing, but great head coaches don't settle at QB & neither do the decision makers above them.
Here's what recent top flight coaches in conjunction with their GMs have done while the Nix/Gailey record is to be satisfied with Fitzpatrick & sleep betwewen rounds on draft days:
John Harbaugh (who has one of the best GMs in Newsome)-trades up in 1st round for Flacco in Harbaugh's 1st season
Jim Harbaugh -Has Alex Smith & decides to work with him, but personally visits & loves Kaepernick & before he has ever coached a game in SF, trades up to draft his guy Kaepernick
John Fox- Stuck with Tebow his 1st season in Denver, he gets Peyton Manning to make the team a legit Super Bowl contender
Mike Shanahan-Moves heaven & earth (including giving up 3 #1s) to get RGIII.
Tom Coughlin-Instead of settling for Rivers, makes big trade for Eli Manning. NYG-2 Super Bowls, SD-0 & GM about to be fired
Also, look at other new coaches who took a shot at franchise QBs early on-while some are the result of the new coach coming to a bad team that had a top pick when there was a QB thought to be worthy of the top pick, good new coaches and their GMs on bad teams don't usually do the Nix/Gailey thing of accepting the QB status quo & making little to no attempt at upgrading the QB position. They came in with a depth chart of Edwards/Fitzpatrick/Brohm and all they did in the last 3 years is draft Levi Brown in the 7th round their 1st year cut Edwards after naming him the starter, sign Thigpen, re-sign Fitzpatrick, sign & cut Young & trade for Jackson then inactivate him every game. Meanwhile the good coaches & GMs have been drafting QBs in the 1st 3 rounds, of which many are starting, while our guys have been satisfied with the status quo or pretty darn close to status quo.

[dannyek71]

I said a while ago that I was finished caring about the Bills, and done wasting my time posting about them, and I basically am. But I have watched a few agonizing games since then - not expecting much, and therefore not being that disappointed with the excruciating losses - and have come to a very simple conclusion.

I applaud you guys and ladies for continuing to care about the Bills. I simply can't do it until we make major changes at the two positions that control every NFL teams' destiny.

Who cares about fair weathered fans.

When this team is doing well and winning (It WILL happen one day) you will come crawling back saying how you supported them all along. Yea, our team sucks. It has for years. Look at the bandwagon the Cheatriots have. Where were they for most of the 90s?

Close the door behind you and don't come back.

[TacklingDummy]

Levy-Kelly
Belicheck-Brady
Shula-Marino
Walsh-Montana
Siefert-Young
Reeves-Elway
Dungy-Manning
Johnson-Akiman
Coughman-Manning
Reid-McNabb
Coryell-Fouts
Holgren-Farve
Etc...

Bills coaches past 16 years: Fitzpatrick, Losman, Edwards, Holcomb, Brohm, Bledsoe, Robosack, Van Pelt, Collins, and Flutie. Anymore questions?

[ParanoidAndroid]

Who cares about fair weathered fans.

When this team is doing well and winning (It WILL happen one day) you will come crawling back saying how you supported them all along. Yea, our team sucks. It has for years. Look at the bandwagon the Cheatriots have. Where were they for most of the 90s?

Close the door behind you and don't come back.

Saints.... it took them 20 years before they finally played a playoff game.

Cardinals went 50 years before they won a playoff game.

[Night Train]

I went from owning Club Seats to DVRing games and watching them later while doing other stuff Sunday.

When Ralph is out of the picture, let me know.

I enjoy college football far more these days.

[TacklingDummy]

I went from owning Club Seats to DVRing games and watching them later while doing other stuff Sunday.

.my interest in the NFL over the past 16 years has been dwindling. I'm a Bills fan and I don't watch much of any other games besides highlights. This pAst weekend I didn't watch any football. I kept track of the bills game on espn. Haven't seen any highlights either. I guess I just don't care about sports as much as I did when I was younger. If they win, they win, if they lose they lose. Life goes on.

[Typ0]

Just remember the real demise of franchise hopes was Ralph Wilson telling Fade to fire the ST coach and him refusing...and then RW refusing to pay Fade and firing him.

Remember Thurman Thomas finding out in ESPN he had been cut...blah blah blah I can go on and on.

The core morals and values of the organization needs to change not the coach and the QB. Until the core values change there will be no success...and it's quite an uphill battle to build trust and integrity once it's been destroyed. Call it an organization or human being...you either own up to your demons and attempt to recover or wallow in sickness, denial and blame games. It's not the coach or the QB or GM. The fact is it's Ralph Wilson at the helm that needs to change...

I choose to detach but with love. I know that no matter what I do there will always be a deep lingering hope for the Bills to be a contender again. It's not about the Bills really. It's about the people in Western New York. When I lived there I got it. It may be the most liberating sense of anything binding a culture together than I have ever experienced. I would say the same thing about the Buffalo Sabres and they may end up being the last of a dying breed. So be it let the chips fall as they will. But the people in Western New York have my loyalty and love and I will stand strong and proud forever into eternity with that wonderful sense of human culture they have provided me.

[Typ0]

Who cares about fair weathered fans.

When this team is doing well and winning (It WILL happen one day) you will come crawling back saying how you supported them all along. Yea, our team sucks. It has for years. Look at the bandwagon the Cheatriots have. Where were they for most of the 90s?

Close the door behind you and don't come back.

Did you just call Jan Reimers a fairweathered fan? Your credibility has been destroyed.

[bf1]

I'll still watch every game. But the last 13 years wiped every bit of homer out of me.

[dannyek71]

Did you just call Jan Reimers a fairweathered fan? Your credibility has been destroyed.

I did. Any fan who quits on the team simply because they loose falls into this category. I don't care how long you've supported the team.

Maybe they've been a fan for decades. I honestly don't follow these boards much anymore.

[DraftBoy]

Ill keep watching, but Im nowhere near invested in the outcome like I have been this year in Notre Dame games. I can't begin to find the words to describe the difference in feeling I have between the Bills and Notre Dame games.

[HAMMER]

The Drama Queens are out this morning in droves.

[Night Train]

simply because they loose

It's "lose" ( speaks volumes ) and some of us have been going for close to 50 years, only to see them "lose" 75 % of the time.

Wears one down, unless you live for the tailgate and little else.

[bf1]

If you are still checking out the Zone, you probably still care a little.

[OpIv37]

Who cares about fair weathered fans.

When this team is doing well and winning (It WILL happen one day) you will come crawling back saying how you supported them all along. Yea, our team sucks. It has for years. Look at the bandwagon the Cheatriots have. Where were they for most of the 90s?

Close the door behind you and don't come back.


The Drama Queens are out this morning in droves.

And this is exactly what Russ Brandon wants.

If someone decides they can't take this BS anymore, then the other fans jump on him with insults and try to force him back in. It's why the team makes more money by losing than they would by winning. The support is there whether they win or not, so why bother paying for a winner?

[k-oneputt]

It's "lose" ( speaks volumes ) and some of us have been going for close to 50 years, only to see them "lose" 75 % of the time.

Wears one down, unless you live for the tailgate and little else.

I hear that, and I still go every week, but if they don't draft a qb this year I could be coming to an end with these games.

[Jeff1220]

I'm so glad that I completely forgot that football or the Bills existed until about 9PM last night. The wonders of going to the beach and learning to surf on a Sunday afternoon. :surf:

[HAMMER]

And this is exactly what Russ Brandon wants.

If someone decides they can't take this BS anymore, then the other fans jump on him with insults and try to force him back in. It's why the team makes more money by losing than they would by winning. The support is there whether they win or not, so why bother paying for a winner?

I am as frustrated as anyone else here, trust me. It just gets old having to read the same overly dramatic posts about how "I can't take it anymore, I'm not going to watch, blah, blah, blah." Then a week or two later they are right back on the wagon. I thought Jan was a die hard, then he quit last year and lost my respect, then he came back this year, now he's leaving again. It's just a cry for attention

[Bill Cody]

Jan I think we will see a coaching change and a QB change next year.

[Jan Reimers]

Who cares about fair weathered fans.

When this team is doing well and winning (It WILL happen one day) you will come crawling back saying how you supported them all along. Yea, our team sucks. It has for years. Look at the bandwagon the Cheatriots have. Where were they for most of the 90s?

Close the door behind you and don't come back.

Thanks, Danny. I haven't quit caring because the Bills lose most of the time, so much as they have stopped trying to do everything in their power to win. For all of these playoff-less years, I've felt that I've cared more than Wilson, the FO, the HC and the players. I'm burned out living and dying for an organization more interested in the bottom line than putting a quality product on the field.

So call me a 53 year fair weather fan. But talk to me when you've invested 53 years in it, only to realize that as a fan of the Bills, you have no value other than your willingness to spend your money on a thankless organization. I know this is true for every fan of every team. But fans of most other teams are rewarded with a playoff game or two, or even a Super Bowl win, once in a while. Many teams actually try their best to win. We are rewarded, year after year, with mediocrity, by an organization where winning doesn't really seem to matter.

[Bill Cody]

I am as frustrated as anyone else here, trust me. It just gets old having to read the same overly dramatic posts about how "I can't take it anymore, I'm not going to watch, blah, blah, blah." Then a week or two later they are right back on the wagon. I thought Jan was a die hard, then he quit last year and lost my respect, then he came back this year, now he's leaving again. It's just a cry for attention

Cries for attention are ok but you've got to pick your spots. Crying to your wife still ain't going to get you blown.

[Jan Reimers]

I am as frustrated as anyone else here, trust me. It just gets old having to read the same overly dramatic posts about how "I can't take it anymore, I'm not going to watch, blah, blah, blah." Then a week or two later they are right back on the wagon. I thought Jan was a die hard, then he quit last year and lost my respect, then he came back this year, now he's leaving again. It's just a cry for attention

That's funny. At my age, I don't need attention. I just want a team that actually tries its hardest to win on behalf of one of the best fan bases in the league.

I guess I've just been at it a lot longer than most of you, and have probably put more into it. So the frustration, anger and disappointment may be more intense for me than for many of you.

[dannyek71]

Thanks, Danny. I haven't quit caring because the Bills lose most of the time, so much as they have stopped trying to do everything in their power to win. For all of these playoff-less years, I've felt that I've cared more than Wilson, the FO, the HC and the players. I'm burned out living and dying for an organization more interested in the bottom line than putting a quality product on the field.

So call me a 53 year fair weather fan. But talk to me when you've invested 53 years in it, only to realize that as a fan of the Bills, you have no value other than your willingness to spend your money on a thankless organization. I know this is true for every fan of every team. But fans of most other teams are rewarded with a playoff game or two, or even a Super Bowl win, once in a while. Many teams actually try their best to win. We are rewarded, year after year, with mediocrity, by an organization where winning doesn't really seem to matter.

In my 30 years of life, I have never "quit" on the team once. I guess that tops being a fan of 50+ years and quitting several times.

Believe what you want though. If you actually did quit the team, you wouldn't even both posting it. You especially wouldn't bother following up on a call for attention thread. You'd merely walk away.

Like it or not, if we don't support the team they are gone.

[Bill Cody]

In my 30 years of life, I have never "quit" on the team once. I guess that tops being a fan of 50+ years and quitting several times.

Believe what you want though. If you actually did quit the team, you wouldn't even both posting it. You especially wouldn't bother following up on a call for attention thread. You'd merely walk away.

Like it or not, if we don't support the team they are gone.

You haven't quit once? Wow someone give him a cookie

[TacklingDummy]

You haven't quit once? Wow someone give him a cookie
Is not caring the same as quitting?

[dannyek71]

You haven't quit once? Wow someone give him a cookie

I've most definitely said "This team blows" during a major blowout and shut the TV off, but I've never said I am done with the team.

Kind of like getting into a fight with your wife vs. filing for divorce.

[Novacane]

Someone is coming off as a self righteous little ***** in this thread. Let's give him a big round of applause. He hasn't "quit" on his team ever! Give yourself a pat on the back.............SUCKER!

[GingerP]

Wow. First Fireman Ed, now Jan Reimers. The NFL will never be the same.

[TrEd FTW]

Who cares about fair weathered fans.


He seems more like a smart fan who's been beaten down long enough and can't take it anymore. It takes strength to emotionally disconnect from this disaster. Most Bills fans have battered wife syndrome and keep expecting the team to change for the better, but it's pretty hopeless as long as Wilson and his band of bean-counting worms are in charge.

[Typ0]

I think it's more about the realization that the more you support the more you continue to be a part of the problem. At least that's what did it for me almost ten years ago! Right now the Bills exist as a black stain on WNY sucking the energy and many resources right out of the region....

[HAMMER]

I think it's more about the realization that the more you support the more you continue to be a part of the problem. At least that's what did it for me almost ten years ago! Right now the Bills exist as a black stain on WNY sucking the energy and many resources right out of the region....

Case in point for an overly dramatic post.

[THE END OF ALL DAYS]

Did you just call Jan Reimers a fairweathered fan? Your credibility has been destroyed.
yeah i was going to say the same.... JanReimers has been a pillar of faith for the bills for as long as I can remember
when Jan bailed you know armagedon was here

[SABURZFAN]

i'm just here for the beer. :beers:

[Albany,n.y.]

This is the 1st season I haven't had season tickets in 21 years. I once went 16 straight seasons without missing a home game (except preseason).
They just wore me out & I got tired of having to drive 295 miles each way to watch them suck in person. Now when the game isn't on home tv, I just go somewhere locally that has the Sunday Ticket & save myself 5 hours of misery driving home. I did go to one home & 1 road game this year, but those 2 games are the fewest I've been to since I went to only 2 games in 1987 when I was still living in Long Island and there was a strike.

[stuckincincy]

I went from owning Club Seats to DVRing games and watching them later while doing other stuff Sunday.

When Ralph is out of the picture, let me know.

I enjoy college football far more these days.

Sorry to say, I'm fast losing interest in college football, too. :teary:

U of Cinn has just seen their 3rd coach bolt in 9 years, before a bowl game. They then hired hired a fellow, Tuberville, who bolted from Texas Tech a day after he assured them he was staying. This season, UC stiffed the fans and alums and had their opener moved to a big stadium on the east cost for the $. That's not sour grapes, that's the reality today.

The conferences, the traditional rivalries are being ripped up. NCAA signs a $25 billion contract with ESPN. Tons of hype, clownish pre-game shows, the stoking of today's cult of celebrity and so on.

This year there are 35 bowl games - 70 teams. Amazing.

I've taken to watching the little guys...the McNeese Sts., Howards, and so on.

[NC-BILLS44]

I feel your pain Jan, 30+ years for me. Why doesn't Ralph just sell the club to Jim Kelly and his group? If he's not going to demand a quality product from his management team, sell to someone who cares enough to raise the expectations.

[better days]

And this is exactly what Russ Brandon wants.

If someone decides they can't take this BS anymore, then the other fans jump on him with insults and try to force him back in. It's why the team makes more money by losing than they would by winning. The support is there whether they win or not, so why bother paying for a winner?

The Bills paid big this year. LUCK is also involved in putting a winning team together.

If Peyton Manning does not get injured, the Colts continue to make the playoffs a few more years, but they don't get a francise QB for the next decade.
And Tebow is the long term QB in Denver.
If Eli Manning did not refuse to play for the Chargers, The Giants would have had to settle for Rivers.

[Typ0]

for all you "hang in there" people I'm sorry but we are being shafted and played for fools. We have one of the best and most electric players in the league...a guy that clearly can win us games and we don't even play him. What kind of slap in the face is that? Because a 24 year old running back is winded after running 15 yards. Give me a break! If you buy into this crap you are just plain dumb.