Bills issue new BS press rules

[DraftBoy]

http://www.buffalorumblings.com/buffalo-bills-opinion/2016/5/24/11759886/lets-talk-about-the-new-buffalo-bills-media-policy


Are you looking forward to OTAs kicking off today? Eager to see a Vine of LeSean McCoy doing a ladder drill, or Tyrod Taylor throwing fades in the end zone? Looking for Joe Buscaglia's daily writeup of the players going through the drills?

Sorry, that's not happening this year.

The Buffalo Bills announced a brand new set of media guidelines for the 2016 season, and they'll probably get a note of congratulation from the National Security Administration on their strict policy. Among the new limitations, which affect all media reporting on the Bills:

-They cannot report on who is playing with the first string or the second string
-They cannot report who is rushing the passer
-They cannot report if a quarterback is completing his passes or if they are intercepted, or if a receiver catches or drops the ball
-The media is not allowed to talk with players during or after practice, only during specified "media availability sessions"
-Photographers are only permitted to take pictures during stretches and individual drills, and they have to do it from a boxed area ten yards away from the field
-Media are not allowed to stream any parts of practice using applications like Meerkat or Periscope

This is the latest PR-unfriendly move from a franchise that has been embracing secrecy at the expense of the media, and by extension the fans that depend on news reports to give them something to hear and talk about with their favorite players.

Complete crap.

[justasportsfan]

So the only CREDIBLE reports will come from only Rex Ryans mouth. Yippeeee !

[more cowbell]

Just another embarrassment from the laughingstock of the NFL for the past 20 years. When will the Pegula's finally realize that every single person in the front office needs to go?

[OpIv37]

Brandon and Whaley must be conservatives.

"Noooo we didn't actually suck last year. Our fans just think we did because the biased liberal media won't report on the good games!"

[bleve]

Mark Ludwiczak ‎@MarkLud12 (https://twitter.com/MarkLud12)

A QB not named Tyrod Taylor or Cardale Jones just threw a pick-six on his first throw of team work.
7:55 AM - 24 May 2016 (https://twitter.com/MarkLud12/status/735121930173435904)



(https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?in_reply_to=735121930173435904)

55 Retweets (https://twitter.com/intent/retweet?tweet_id=735121930173435904)

1717 likes (https://twitter.com/intent/like?tweet_id=735121930173435904)


lol!

[DraftBoy]

A QB whose jersey number is the square root of 25 may or may not have just missed a WR whose name rhymes with fiddle.

[X-Era]

http://www.buffalorumblings.com/buffalo-bills-opinion/2016/5/24/11759886/lets-talk-about-the-new-buffalo-bills-media-policy



Complete crap.

Meh.

I mean how much do we really need to hear of Sully stroking his own douchey ego with the barrage of overly negative rhetorical questions?

How different is it really then when they give benign and diversionary answers?

If it gives us a competitive advantage then I'm for it. If it doesn't it just means us rabid fans won't be able to sift through Joe Douchscalia's incorrect assessments anymore.

Hopefully they will just list Tyrod as questionable every week with a "shoulder".

[Scumbag College]

Are the Bills trying to make their fans hate them?

[DraftBoy]

Meh.

I mean how much do we really need to hear of Sully stroking his own douchey ego with the barrage of overly negative rhetorical questions?

How different is it really then when they give benign and diversionary answers?

If it gives us a competitive advantage then I'm for it. If it doesn't it just means us rabid fans won't be able to sift through Joe Douchscalia's incorrect assessments anymore.

Hopefully they will just list Tyrod as questionable every week with a "shoulder".

I'm not sure how you think this gives us a competitive advantage and nothing in the new rules says Sully can't be negative.

And how different is it? Well on one hand we get several first-hand accounts of practice, who preformed well and who is struggling. Now we get nothing but team speak about awesome we are and how we're Super Bowl bound.

Watch by the end of this OTA's Taylor will have gone a perfect 150 for 150 for 10,000 yards and 70 TD's. With the new rules that report couldn't be disputed.

Also this ends the ability of any fan to report either, so Mikey's annual camp reports are done as well.

[swiper]

Draftboy, you bet me to posting this. It's 2 heads of the coin. As the article alludes to, the NFL in general is coming out with some some stricter generalized rules for these circumstances for all clubs. The advent of social media has teams scurrying around trying to put out fires constantly. Some of them real. Some of them not. So I get the desire to reel in some of the access. But I would certainly agree they seem to have gone full-boat overboard here.

[X-Era]

I'm not sure how you think this gives us a competitive advantage and nothing in the new rules says Sully can't be negative.

And how different is it? Well on one hand we get several first-hand accounts of practice, who preformed well and who is struggling. Now we get nothing but team speak about awesome we are and how we're Super Bowl bound.

Watch by the end of this OTA's Taylor will have gone a perfect 150 for 150 for 10,000 yards and 70 TD's. With the new rules that report couldn't be disputed.

Also this ends the ability of any fan to report either, so Mikey's annual camp reports are done as well.

Heres the word on the thinking by the Bills:

https://twitter.com/JaySkurski/status/735146963096731649

"Scott Berchtold says the #Bills (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bills?src=hash) don't want play by play or statistical information reported from practice."

Back to the point: If I wanted to be an insider on whats going on I'd start with being a fly on the wall during the draft or during free agency discussions. Personally, I don't care that much about the OTA play by play.

And open practices are still open as well as fan nights. Furthermore, nothing prevents Mikey or anyone else from weighing in on how players are performing; that is speculative opinion and it really always has been. It seems to simply limit the data a bit. But the reporters will still be there and will watch just as much as they did before.

At least that's my read.

Now if they shutdown Mikey I'm burning Orchard Park to the ground. And then the Zone can take up a collection to build a new stadium at the Hammer Lot.

[DraftBoy]

Heres the word on the thinking by the Bills:

https://twitter.com/JaySkurski/status/735146963096731649

"Scott Berchtold says the #Bills (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bills?src=hash) don't want play by play or statistical information reported from practice."

Back to the point: If I wanted to be an insider on whats going on I'd start with being a fly on the wall during the draft or during free agency discussions. Personally, I don't care that much about the OTA play by play.

And open practices are still open as well as fan nights. Furthermore, nothing prevents Mikey or anyone else from weighing in on how players are performing; that is speculative opinion and it really always has been. It seems to simply limit the data a bit. But the reporters will still be there and will watch just as much as they did before.

At least that's my read.

Now if they shutdown Mikey I'm burning Orchard Park to the ground. And then the Zone can take up a collection to build a new stadium at the Hammer Lot.

You need to read the whole policy because his reports would certainly qualify as reporting and he would forced to comply with the same limitations that anybody reporting on practice would be.

[streetkings01]

Don't most NFL teams do this? 27 of 32 NFL teams dont allow it.........the Bills make 28 now. You guys will get bent out of shape over everything I swear.

[Victor7]

Doug Whaley and Russ Brandon

****ing douchebags.

[swiper]

Doug Whaley and Russ Brandon

****ing douchebags.

Welcome to the Donald Trump realm.

[Pinkerton Security]

Meh.

I mean how much do we really need to hear of Sully stroking his own douchey ego with the barrage of overly negative rhetorical questions?

How different is it really then when they give benign and diversionary answers?

If it gives us a competitive advantage then I'm for it. If it doesn't it just means us rabid fans won't be able to sift through Joe Douchscalia's incorrect assessments anymore.

Hopefully they will just list Tyrod as questionable every week with a "shoulder".

I agree. Who gives a crap - this hyper-microscopic reporting is becoming ridiculous anyways, at least to me. Maybe some of us on here can get a little bit of our lives back rather than focusing on minute details about every single play of these training sessions.

[coastal]

Just one more reason to never watch the NFL again.

[justasportsfan]

Brandon and Whaley must be conservatives.

"Noooo we didn't actually suck last year. Our fans just think we did because the biased liberal media won't report on the good games!"

they are libs. Everyone get s trophy for showing up.

[swiper]

they are libs. Everyone get s trophy for showing up.

Nobody at OBD is getting trophies. But a lot of them are talking out of both sides of their mouths, hence they are Republicans.

[swiper]

Back to topic. Did Sal break the rules with this report?

http://www.wgr550.com/Boykin-Blanton-make-impression-Bills-Tuesday-OTA-n/22753850

[Mace]

It won't last. For no good reason I can think of they just made themselves look nationally stupid again for a while. Have to wonder what is going on in Pegula's mind about it.


In an email to The Associated Press, Jeff Legwold, President of the Professional Football Writers of America, described the Bills’ new rules as “a vast over-reach of the guidelines in the current media policy.” Legwold added that the Bills’ policy is “not only unnecessary, it is not in compliance.”

The PFWA works with the NFL in establishing a league-wide media policy that includes rules on what can be reported during practice, and when teams must make players and coaches available to the media.

The NFL’s media policy states teams can limit the videotaping or photographing of certain portions of closed sessions. As for open practices, the NFL policy states: “Clubs must allow reporting (tweeting, blogging, etc.) of newsworthy events, such as VIP visitors to practice, exceptional catches, standout rookie performers, etc.”



http://www.newsday.com/sports/football/buffalo-bills-restrict-media-from-reporting-parts-of-practices-1.11835788

[Gilly]

Who cares? With Patriot fans like Sully doing the commentary I'm not interested anyways.

Only bad thing about new policy is having to listen to all the whiny Bills on forums like this one moan about t..

[Mace]

Who cares?

Well, basically anyone who cares, depending on your level of interest and attention to detal, and how much fun you get from being informed.

I know a lot of people prefer to be sheep, and detail is too hard to think about, but if that's how you feel why pay attention anyway ?

If anyone actually cared to do any reading about it, it is a bizarre media policy. "Tyrod Taylor had problems in practice today."...."What problems ?"....."Can't say."

Why would Kevin Seymour taking 1st team reps with Gilmore out be unreportable ?

Manuel threw a pick, can't report it ?

But um, meantime, fans in the stands can, even stream it live. On the other hand, if a reporter interviews a fan in the stands who says Manuel went 5 of 10 with a pick, he can report it, making pretend he didn't see it himself ?

It's a really bizarre action for the Bills to take, makes no real sense, and if you can't recognize it you just can't be bothered to think it through or read up on it, in which case why even bother endorsing it unless you're going out of your way to be an apologist, an aggressive sheep or trolling for the crap of it.

[k-oneputt]

This is coming from a team that hasn't made the play-offs in a generation. Keep pissing off your remaining fans.

[YardRat]

16 years of not having anything to celebrate except for what happens in OTA's and training camp, and now that's been diluted.

THIS IS WHY WE CAN'T ****ING HAVE NICE THINGS!

[HAMMER]

Are the Bills trying to make their fans hate them?

If so they are doing a pretty good job. It gets harder to root for the Bills by the month. For me it started with the hiring of Homie the Clown.

[The Jokeman]

You need to read the whole policy because his reports would certainly qualify as reporting and he would forced to comply with the same limitations that anybody reporting on practice would be.
But is Mikey doing these reports as a reporter or a fan? As if he has no press credentials not sure they can limit his activity except for taking photographs.

[Historian]

Doug Whaley and Russ Brandon

****ing douchebags.

This is Scott Berchtold. (the redheaded douchebag)

Vanity run amok. (pretty ironic considering this team has been a laughingstock for almost two decades)

This is tantamount to trying to shut down fan sites, IMO.

All these clowns need to be let go.

[Dude]

I'm not sure how you think this gives us a competitive advantage and nothing in the new rules says Sully can't be negative.

And how different is it? Well on one hand we get several first-hand accounts of practice, who preformed well and who is struggling. Now we get nothing but team speak about awesome we are and how we're Super Bowl bound.

Watch by the end of this OTA's Taylor will have gone a perfect 150 for 150 for 10,000 yards and 70 TD's. With the new rules that report couldn't be disputed.

Also this ends the ability of any fan to report either, so Mikey's annual camp reports are done as well.Not true. The rules only apply to the media. Training camp sessions are open to the public.

[DraftBoy]

Not true. The rules only apply to the media. Training camp sessions are open to the public.

We'll have to see, the mentioning of blog posts to be included under their new policy would make me lean towards any published reports being set to the same restriction. Granted I have no idea how they would enforce that, but I do believe that is their intent. I know a few people at other sites who report on practice as non-credentialed persons who are pretty pissed about the new rules making a similar or same assumption.

We won't know much until we see how the Bills react to a report going up.

Also need to see what the PFWA will do.

[sahlensguy]

No one locks down the internet better than the Bills, and China.

[trapezeus]

for those of us not in town that can go to training camp, we do read articles to see how the progress is going. if we don't get the progress report, then there is nothing to read and we essentially have no idea what to look for in TC. for a small market team that hardly makes any noise with their actual play that would gain fans, you'd think they'd be more proactive in trying to keeping the few of us that they already have tied around their finger.

[sahlensguy]

for those of us not in town that can go to training camp, we do read articles to see how the progress is going. if we don't get the progress report, then there is nothing to read and we essentially have no idea what to look for in TC. for a small market team that hardly makes any noise with their actual play that would gain fans, you'd think they'd be more proactive in trying to keeping the few of us that they already have tied around their finger.

Brandon did sell a record number of season tickets last year. Hard for OBD to say that they are doing it wrong.

[Pinkerton Security]

Well, basically anyone who cares, depending on your level of interest and attention to detal, and how much fun you get from being informed.

I know a lot of people prefer to be sheep, and detail is too hard to think about, but if that's how you feel why pay attention anyway ?

If anyone actually cared to do any reading about it, it is a bizarre media policy. "Tyrod Taylor had problems in practice today."...."What problems ?"....."Can't say."

Why would Kevin Seymour taking 1st team reps with Gilmore out be unreportable ?

Manuel threw a pick, can't report it ?

But um, meantime, fans in the stands can, even stream it live. On the other hand, if a reporter interviews a fan in the stands who says Manuel went 5 of 10 with a pick, he can report it, making pretend he didn't see it himself ?

It's a really bizarre action for the Bills to take, makes no real sense, and if you can't recognize it you just can't be bothered to think it through or read up on it, in which case why even bother endorsing it unless you're going out of your way to be an apologist, an aggressive sheep or trolling for the crap of it.

Dude. Chill out, its May. Get a life - the point of it is to let the players focus on their play and not how position battles are playing out in the media, as well as any other media distractions. You just don't recognize that because you're a sheep.

People criticize Rex for being too outspoken, yet when they then limit media exposure, those same people get their panties in a bunch.

[X-Era]

Douchescaglia apparently didn't heed the new rules so maybe we'll get a taste of what the Bills will do to violators:

http://www.wkbw.com/sports/bills/buscaglia-7-bills-observations-from-otas-524

[Mace]

Dude. Chill out, its May. Get a life - the point of it is to let the players focus on their play and not how position battles are playing out in the media, as well as any other media distractions. You just don't recognize that because you're a sheep.

People criticize Rex for being too outspoken, yet when they then limit media exposure, those same people get their panties in a bunch.

I have a life, but thanks. If you don't like detail you never have to read it. That's the thing about any knowledge, it's there for you to obtain.

The simple man is free to choose a simple path with less knowledge to make his life less complicated, where those who seek knowledge are free to move away from simple obliviousness if they wish better understanding of whatever they choose to understand.

Sheep are fine not knowing anything. I'm not a sheep. If you want a path of ignorance you're free to choose it.

- - - Updated - - -


Douchescaglia apparently didn't heed the new rules so maybe we'll get a taste of what the Bills will do to violators:

http://www.wkbw.com/sports/bills/buscaglia-7-bills-observations-from-otas-524

I think like more you're going to see the NFL square the Bills away because they're violating league media policy.