Who's to Blame? Options, Options, Options
09/15/2009
BUFFALO BILLS FOOTBALL LIVES HERE!!!
Michael has been a Bills fan for quite some time now. He is an aspiring Bills journalist that can usually can be found blogging on the message boards at billszone.com. He would like to thank the creators of billszone.com for seeing something in his article and inspiring him to write. You can check out his article A Sense Of Urgency at Billszone.com. Michael enjoys writing, but knows he is still green. He doesn't write to many controversial articles, but enjoys hot debates and isn't afraid to take an unpopular stance.
Michael was recently offered a chance to showcase his writing for Fan Huddle, a sports site that will be launching this fall. He looks forward to the opportunity. You can check out Fan Huddle's group here. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=62771582703
Thanks for reading my article again and defending me, Michael. Let me make one thing clear: I personally do not want to see Buffalo lose the Bills after so much loyalty over the years. What I am writing about is a series of articles that try to illustrate what is going on behind the scenes that the public may not grasp and what other insightful writers in newspapers attempt to do. (I am currently writing lots of similar articles about the Balsillie-Phoenix bid.) In this and other articles, I have written about the Buffalo situation, I have been trying to point out the arrogance of the NFL particularly to foreign fans. There is a lot of mindless worship of the NFL in Toronto that wants overlook the things the NFL is doing in order to get a team at any cost. One trend in major North American professional sports (except maybe the CFL) is the growing elitism of the leagues. This is shown in ticket prices, the new stadiums/arenas that are being built (Yankee Stadium, the new Mets stadium, the Dallas stadium, and the new one that will be built in Los Angeles), and other things like the growing number of sports on pay-per-view and cable/satellite channels that the average fan can't afford.
The NFL has shown particular contempt for the average fan that no matter how much we love football, we can't be blind to. Fans like you in Houston, Cleveland, Baltimore, Oakland, and St. Louis lost their teams no matter how much loyalty and devotion were shown. The NFL has already allowed Ralph Wilson to tap into the Toronto market, (another elitist ploy) no matter how loyal the fans in Buffalo have been. If they are going to allow teams in more glamorous cities like Houston to leave, they certainly aren't going to defend Buffalo with any ardor. The only city to stand up to the NFL was Los Angeles where athletes take second place to movie stars and told the NFL to take a hike when they lost the Raiders and Rams.
The potential builders of the new Los Angeles stadium have publicly stated (you can read it on the Internet) that they will not build the stadium until they are assured of stealing an established team from another city. Buffalo is a target and given Ralph Wilson's recent show of non-loyalty to Buffalo, he would certainly be interested if Los Angeles approached him. And I doubt if that the NFL would be in any hurry to grant Buffalo a new expansion franchise. Perhaps Buffalo might be better off in the CFL with cheaper tickets, a more fan-friendly atmosphere, and where the franchise might be appreciated more.
117 days ago
Thanks for reading and commenting on my article, Michael, but I have to disagree with you. The NFL would much rather be in Los Angeles than Toronto. As I've pointed out, the NFL doesn't want a team outside the US which can't be counted in American television ratings and which would be a bad draw because it is "foreign". You are right, they have lowered the price of tickets but not by much. They are still a gouging ripoff when you compare the prices to other cities. As for the NFL fan base in Toronto, there is a large mindless NFL worshiping element that wants a team at all cost, but even they had to wince at the cost of the tickets which is why the game wasn't sold out last year and I would be surprised if it is this year. I agree with you that the NFL will expand, first to 36 teams and then 40 but I don't think they will go to the cities you've listed. The leading cities I think for the next four NFL franchises are Los Angeles (though the NFL would like to have 2 teams there), San Antonio, Portland, and Oklahoma City.
119 days ago
Hi Michael.
I completed the edit. Check it out.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/228515-buffalo-bills-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly
Thanks again.
119 days ago
Thanks the critique. I'll edit the article in question taking your comments into consideration. Thanks again.
120 days ago
Check out my list of teams primed to disappoint in 2009. Thanks for the read!
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/224285-nfl-teams-primed-to-disappoint-in-2009
126 days ago
the defense is up for a look :
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/220816-the-almost-all-time-cleveland-browns-defense
132 days ago
I'm doing an all-division rivalry tournament! Check out your team and vote on who will win to advance to the next round! Good luck and ENJOY!
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/215829-tournament-bracket-round-1-afc-east-vs-nfc-east
142 days ago
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/212636-terrell-owens-buffalo-has-a-tumor-in-town
Why TO shouldn't be understimated
146 days ago
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/211209-the-madden-curse-the-players-and-their-downfalls
Madden Curse, take a look. Best article you'll see all year haha
149 days ago
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/210460-the-nfl-where-neglecting-ex-players-happens
150 days ago
My articles of is this quarterback elite does continue, this time Drew Brees. Why the NFL's most underrated quarterback will solidify his spot to those who don't think he is elite. appreciate any feedback given. Take care!
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/207893-drew-breeswhy-nfls-most-underrated-qb-will-solidify-elite-status-in-09
155 days ago
What are Alter Ego's and why are they here on Bleacher Report?
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/173563-br-alter-egos-what-are-they-and-why-are-they-here
- GHD
aka "Skillet"
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JW Nix said...
DeleteAn old series of mine that is now a new series to b/r
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/231831-past-news-present-stain-future-shame
114 days ago