Why the Bills "moving" makes no sense

[Bill Brasky]

Not to bash New Orleans, but why are the Bills primo real estate to be moved? I understand the assumptions that a new owner might have given the economic state of WNY, but it's not like the team is suffering eventhough the economics of the region are terrible.

New Orleans has virtually no city left, no economy to garner "business deals/endorsments", and a good majority of the people that once called it home probably will never return for several reasons. The stadium is a mess, eventhough partly rebuilt, and the state/city has no funds to consider building a new one. Their owner tried to move them, and they've been trying to flea town for years so it's appearant he doesn't even want to be there regardless of what he might say publically.

Jacksonville can't sell out a stadium with one of the lowest seating capacities in the league and is smack dab in the middle of a region with 4 football teams (ATL, MIA, TB, JAX) and 5 if you want to even consider CAR, or even 6 counting NO. Not to mention it's metro area is SMALLER than Buffalo's, and they had a hard time filling the stadium when it hosted the Super Bowl.

The Chargers play in one of the biggest cities in the entire country yet cannot sell out home games or gain fan interest, what makes anybody think that LA, an hour and a half north will be any different. They lost 2 high profile franchises, what would make anybody there care about a franchise like Buffalo (I'm going based on nationwide assumptions associated with the Bills, not facts on this one).

Yet, a city with a solid fan base surrounded by a couple decent-sized metro areas and an owner/org that is committed to keeping the team in the area is automatically the team to move just because the "economy" is bad and the senile owner is throwing a hissy fit over chump change in a multi-million dollar economy.

I guess I am not completely sold on the fact that this team will be relocated. I think any new owner, or the NFL for that matter, would be hard pressed in justifying the relocation of this team.

[slakjaw157]

Good points. I hope you are right.

[YardRat]

Individual, or even season ticket, sales don't mean as much as luxury box revenue and corporate sponsorships. Who cares if your 5000 seats short of a sell-out if you've got a dozen more luxury suites that you can charge twice as much for in Jax or San Diego than Buffalo? Ticket revenues are split, luxury suites aren't.

New Orleans won't move now simply because of the bad PR it would create.

Buffalo doesn't have the resources to draw the big corporate bucks from, and the NFL is more about big business than the fans at this point.

[FlyingDutchman]

good post, the thing i dont get is how Arizona has lasted so long. They have a long history of losing, they draw less fans than most Texas High school games, they dont have a large fan base, they have a owner who doesnt seem to really give a crap, yet they are getting a new stadium...whats up with that....

[billsaretrash]

hes nasty21 why u stop posting in the thread that we fins wont make playoffs in finheaven

[Dozerdog]

hes nasty21 why u stop posting in the thread that we fins wont make playoffs in finheaven


:rofl: Is this guy for real?


He types like he's had a severe head injury in the past.

[FlyingDutchman]

hes nasty21 why u stop posting in the thread that we fins wont make playoffs in finheaven

Thats someone else with a similar name. I heard about that on this board when someone from Finhaven wrote a thread about it...wasnt me...

[Devin]

New Orleans has virtually no city left, no economy to garner "business deals/endorsments", and a good majority of the people that once called it home probably will never return for several reasons. The stadium is a mess, eventhough partly rebuilt, and the state/city has no funds to consider building a new one. Their owner tried to move them, and they've been trying to flea town for years so it's appearant he doesn't even want to be there regardless of what he might say publically.

I guess I am not completely sold on the fact that this team will be relocated. I think any new owner, or the NFL for that matter, would be hard pressed in justifying the relocation of this team.

Its now speculated here that the Superdome will be ready to play in as early as September. Along with a few extra improvements that were going to be made anyway. The Saints also have a brand new state of the art training facility/HQ in Metarie thats been open for awhile now. The Saints are also in the middle of a ten year, 186 Million dollar contract with the state of Louisiana that runs through the 2010 season.

I dont know if you have been to N.O. as of late, but the city is pretty much back to business as usual for the most part anyway.

The state of Louisiana is pouring money into the team when they shouldnt be, but push comes to shove I dont see them moving. The general vibe here is the state is not giving Benson a reason....as well as the whole PR aspect of it. As I said in another thread dont count on the Saints moving.

[Devin]

Besides it makes no difference the fan base, RW argument isnt the lack of fans or fan support.

RW believe his team cannot stay competitive under the new CBA. Truth be told if he desires to move this team there isnt much anyone can do.

[OpIv37]

Besides it makes no difference the fan base, RW argument isnt the lack of fans or fan support.

RW believe his team cannot stay competitive under the new CBA. Truth be told if he desires to move this team there isnt much anyone can do.

I can kick him in the nuts, and if he moves the team I probably will.

[STAMPY]

Stop crying. The teams not moving. Jeez. Countless *****fests daily

[SABURZFAN]

:rofl: Is this guy for real?


He types like he's had a severe head injury in the past.



i bet it was from marino's last game too.


63-7....wasn't it?

[billsaretrash]

yea but it wasnt the bills did u even make the playoffs that year

[alohabillsfan]

Not to bash New Orleans, but why are the Bills primo real estate to be moved? I understand the assumptions that a new owner might have given the economic state of WNY, but it's not like the team is suffering eventhough the economics of the region are terrible.

New Orleans has virtually no city left, no economy to garner "business deals/endorsments", and a good majority of the people that once called it home probably will never return for several reasons. The stadium is a mess, eventhough partly rebuilt, and the state/city has no funds to consider building a new one. Their owner tried to move them, and they've been trying to flea town for years so it's appearant he doesn't even want to be there regardless of what he might say publically.

Jacksonville can't sell out a stadium with one of the lowest seating capacities in the league and is smack dab in the middle of a region with 4 football teams (ATL, MIA, TB, JAX) and 5 if you want to even consider CAR, or even 6 counting NO. Not to mention it's metro area is SMALLER than Buffalo's, and they had a hard time filling the stadium when it hosted the Super Bowl.

The Chargers play in one of the biggest cities in the entire country yet cannot sell out home games or gain fan interest, what makes anybody think that LA, an hour and a half north will be any different. They lost 2 high profile franchises, what would make anybody there care about a franchise like Buffalo (I'm going based on nationwide assumptions associated with the Bills, not facts on this one).

Yet, a city with a solid fan base surrounded by a couple decent-sized metro areas and an owner/org that is committed to keeping the team in the area is automatically the team to move just because the "economy" is bad and the senile owner is throwing a hissy fit over chump change in a multi-million dollar economy.

I guess I am not completely sold on the fact that this team will be relocated. I think any new owner, or the NFL for that matter, would be hard pressed in justifying the relocation of this team.

Where did you get the information on Jacksonville having trouble selling out the Superbowl are you mad! Or did you just make that up? They do struggle to sell their own games even when they are winning.
As far as the location of Jacksonville with other teams ATL(346 MILES)/MIA(351 MILES)/CAR (383 MILES)/TB (228 MILES)/ NO (547 MILES), can't the same be made for Buffalo-PITT (219 MILES)/CLE (193 MILES)/CIN 421 MILES)/PHIL 403 MILES)

[TheGhostofJimKelly]

I am starting to think that the NFL has outgrown Ralph. I don't think he knows exactly what is going on anymore. I think that he feels the new systems are set up to destroy the small teams and that nobody listens to him anymore. I think there is more to this that we don't know about. I think Ralph got a sweet deal from Erie County and if they did it once, they will do it again. It might be time for Ralph to put up a for sale sign in the front window and move on with the rest of his life.

[Bill Brasky]

Its now speculated here that the Superdome will be ready to play in as early as September. Along with a few extra improvements that were going to be made anyway. The Saints also have a brand new state of the art training facility/HQ in Metarie thats been open for awhile now. The Saints are also in the middle of a ten year, 186 Million dollar contract with the state of Louisiana that runs through the 2010 season.

I dont know if you have been to N.O. as of late, but the city is pretty much back to business as usual for the most part anyway.

The state of Louisiana is pouring money into the team when they shouldnt be, but push comes to shove I dont see them moving. The general vibe here is the state is not giving Benson a reason....as well as the whole PR aspect of it. As I said in another thread dont count on the Saints moving.
Well, I'd take your word for it over the papers/news/media since you actually live there.

But one thing I'm curious to know... teams rely on luxury box revenue, that is a given.

With NO taking such a hit to it's business infastructure, wouldn't they be hard pressed to fill luxury boxes with high-paying clients? I mean, I've heard that tons of businesses have yet to return and probably won't because 1- population has not stabilized, so running a business is not a sure fire thing and 2- can they afford to go back and dump money into rebuilding the businesses to what they once were... only to worry about when another massive natural disaster takes place?

To me, it seems like they are in the same boat as us, perhaps worse. Though I'd like to say that Buffalo's fanbase is more solid, but given what's happen I wouldn't be surprised to see new fans rally around NO.

I would be questioning the viability of the Super Dome as well. First, I believe it was outdated to begin with, which is why Benson was trying to get a new stadium or move for years before the Hurricane hit anyways. Now, they've got an outdated stadium that was completely destroyed but repaired "well enough" to play in "maybe" by September... maybe for a few years it can work, but how long can it hold up?


Where did you get the information on Jacksonville having trouble selling out the Superbowl are you mad! Or did you just make that up? They do struggle to sell their own games even when they are winning.
As far as the location of Jacksonville with other teams ATL(346 MILES)/MIA(351 MILES)/CAR (383 MILES)/TB (228 MILES)/ NO (547 MILES), can't the same be made for Buffalo-PITT (219 MILES)/CLE (193 MILES)/CIN 421 MILES)/PHIL 403 MILES)
Go back and watch the tapes leading up the the Super Bowl. Almost everyone agreed it was one of the worst organized in history. The city doesn't have the infastructure to cope with that influx of people. Yeah, they filled the stadium, but so would Syracuse if they had it in the Carrier Dome... it's the Super Bowl, people will go wherever it is... but as far as Jax, but good luck hosting it again because by all accounts it was an organized nightmare.

The stadium is smaller than most, the team was 12-4, and they can't even put butts in the seat. Their metro area is smaller than Erie County's for godsakes.

If WNYers are so poor and Floridians are so wealthy, they will have no problems making the extra 50-100 mile drive to see the Dolfags or the Bucs. Remember, WNYers are poor, we cannot afford to fix our teeth or put gas in our cars to drive to Cleveland.

[BillsFever21]

good post, the thing i dont get is how Arizona has lasted so long. They have a long history of losing, they draw less fans than most Texas High school games, they dont have a large fan base, they have a owner who doesnt seem to really give a crap, yet they are getting a new stadium...whats up with that....

Like the Bengals, the Cardinals are trying to turn it around. They have netted some great players from the draft lately, they went out and put the bucks up for a real coaching staff and they have also spent some money on great players like Edgerrin James and others.

They are at least making an attempt to improve. They have a ton of offensive weapons and if they can have another good draft and build up some defense they will be a playoff caliber team this season. At least they are trying now.

The Bengals and Cardinals were a joke for a decade. The Bengals have finally did what it takes to turn it around by paying for a top coach and players and the Cardinals are trying to get out of the gutter.

Now you have the current state of the Bills. We only have 1 playoff apperance in the last 10 years, we keep hiring the cheapest coaching staff we can find and the last few years we haven't hardly spent any money except for the Schobel signing.

The last two years we haven't spent any money to re-sign players or bring in any new talent in FA. We dumped as much salary as we could even though we have more money to play with then we know what to do with and we haven't brought anybody else in even though there were players out there who could've helped.

Ralph spent some money when TD first came aboard and it didn't work. He's now in his cost cutting mode. Seeing as we're at least 2+ years away from sniffing the playoffs, we hire cheap coaches and won't pay money to any players we sadly are the new Bengals of the AFC.

[The_Philster]

We only have 1 playoff apperance in the last 10 years, not to get picky but since when does 1996, 1998, and 1999 only equate to 1 playoff appearance? :shakeno:

[Don't Panic]

yea but it wasnt the bills did u even make the playoffs that year

I'd rather miss the playoffs than lose 63-7!