Wilson defends 'no' vote on labor

[The_Philster]

Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson voted against the NFL's new labor agreement with players on Wednesday night in Dallas because he said owners were given a mere 45 minutes to understand the latest complex proposal.
Given a day to digest the new pact that provides labor peace with the union through 2011 but will be much more costly to fund for everyone, how would Wilson vote? "It would be a larger no," he said Thursday night.
more (http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060310/SPORTS03/603100376/1007/SPORTS)

[slakjaw157]

Go Ralphy!!!:up:

[Turf]

So Ralph's crying about money again, not because he's not making any but because someone else is making more, so now he has to watch what he spends? That doesn't sound very encouraging.

[Night Train]

The economics of the game has changed drastically in the last 20 years. I do understand the position of small market Ralph and many old guard NFL owners who are more loyal to the overall good of the NFL. But the obscene $$ DOES change all that and the old guard is being taken away by father time. The new breed doesn't think like that.

While the higher revenue owners must contribute 150 Mil to a pool for the lower revenue clubs to divide, that's still only 8-10 Mil a team. Meanwhile, the Owners just saw another 5% of the pie go towards the players. Plus the cap and salaries are slotted to rise every year.

How long do you think one can buy a season ticket in the end zone Rockpile section for less than $300 a year ? Do you think that exists anywhere else in the NFL? No. Premium seats sell at 1/3 the price of many stadiums. That's $$ that isn't shared.

Ralph will have to find a buyer for the stadium naming rights. Outside of that, it's difficult to see a future beyond the current 6 years unless the local economy experiences a boom. I've been going to games since the '60's but the $$ seen in todays game doesn't bode well for many small market teams beyond 2012. Let's be realistic and not look at this through rose colored glasses. Most players are mercenaries who just follow the green and economics still drives how the future will unravel.

The Jones, Snyders and McNairs of the world will remeber in 2012 that they were forced to donate to a welfare fund for the lower 15 or so revenue teams in 2006. Next time, they won't be so accommodating.

The Bills are set up to compete with anyone on the field for the next 6 years. Ralph said they would be active in Free Agency and I do believe him.

Off the field, they will cut costs and probably continue to bump up tickets prices. Reality bites but have enough sense to see what is actually happening and enjoy the moment and hope things improve locally.

Whining is pointless

[Mr B]

Ralph may be old and slowing down, but he isn't stupid. He is old school and genuinely cares about his franchise and the fans in WNY. You could tell that in his apology to the fans after the TD 'sign' fiasco. All his critics will never l appreciate who he is until he is gone. (or the Bills are gone)

[ICE74129]

Here is what I was affraid of...

"Wilson said he spoke with coach Dick Jauron and general manager Marv Levy on Thursday to catch up on the team's plan for free agency, which starts Saturday. With the cap rising by $7.5 million to $102 million, the Bills are approximately $16 million under, according to reports. "We have to watch our costs, but we'll be active in free agency and try to make prudent decisions on any players we may get," Wilson said. "But we're not going to be able to throw money away like these high-revenue clubs."




Don't expect any 'name' players. 'We have to watch our costs'? 'We can't throw money away like high revenue clubs'?

What ralph wilson is saying is 1) he doesn't have the money to compete with other teams signing bonus wise, 2) He isn't willing to use the 102 mill cap.

[ICE74129]

The economics of the game has changed drastically in the last 20 years. I do understand the position of small market Ralph and many old guard NFL owners who are more loyal to the overall good of the NFL. But the obscene $$ DOES change all that and the old guard is being taken away by father time. The new breed doesn't think like that.

While the higher revenue owners must contribute 150 Mil to a pool for the lower revenue clubs to divide, that's still only 8-10 Mil a team. Meanwhile, the Owners just saw another 5% of the pie go towards the players. Plus the cap and salaries are slotted to rise every year.

How long do you think one can buy a season ticket in the end zone Rockpile section for less than $300 a year ? Do you think that exists anywhere else in the NFL? No. Premium seats sell at 1/3 the price of many stadiums. That's $$ that isn't shared.

Ralph will have to find a buyer for the stadium naming rights. Outside of that, it's difficult to see a future beyond the current 6 years unless the local economy experiences a boom. I've been going to games since the '60's but the $$ seen in todays game doesn't bode well for many small market teams beyond 2012. Let's be realistic and not look at this through rose colored glasses. Most players are mercenaries who just follow the green and economics still drives how the future will unravel.

The Jones, Snyders and McNairs of the world will remeber in 2012 that they were forced to donate to a welfare fund for the lower 15 or so revenue teams in 2006. Next time, they won't be so accommodating.

The Bills are set up to compete with anyone on the field for the next 6 years. Ralph said they would be active in Free Agency and I do believe him.

Off the field, they will cut costs and probably continue to bump up tickets prices. Reality bites but have enough sense to see what is actually happening and enjoy the moment and hope things improve locally.

Whining is pointless

Long story short...we all knew it was going to come to this. Western NY may not be able to handle having a Pro football franchise. It sucks but it is reality. I doubt RW will be able to keep them in Buffalo after the 2011 season, the market just isn't there.

The costs to run teams will keep going higher until something breaks. There will come a point when teams can't fill stadiums or luxury boxes because no one will be able to pay for it.

I do like what RW said though about the owners and Union. I have said for days, you want the union to come down then don't vote on a deal. The Union played the owners and they won.

[Michael82]

Good article! I'm glad that the real truth came out. All those ****ing morons in the media should be ashamed of themselves for how they ripped him for it. The truth is, Ralph may have been right. We are starting to hear other changes besides the cap that the players got in their favor. It's total bull****! Gene Upshaw raped the owners because they got scared.