DON’T GET ME STARTED has a little mixed feelings on the Buffalo Bills draft. I’ve always maintained that getting Sammy Watkins would be a big positive. Yet, that first round pick in 2015 could have been a good pick for Buffalo to get a QB if EJ Manuel has another season like 2013 that dropped the Bills into yet another 6-10 season and 14 years out of the playoffs.
However, IF Manuel comes in and performs well and IF those huge offensive linemen picked in the draft open up holes for Jackson, Spiller, Brown and offer protection to Manuel’s passing, things might be looking up. All that comes in the future months.
So the next thoughts of Bills fans have to center on the ownership of the Buffalo Bills following the passing of friend Ralph Wilson. Naturally no one wants the Bills to leave Buffalo so whoever gets them will help provide fans with the realization whether the Bills stay or go.
My focus now will be on those people who definitely will keep the Bills in Buffalo. Depending on the hoped for positive progress of Jim Kelly who reportedly has assembled a group to buy the Bills, that possibility is still on the front burner. Besides Jim and his people, the following people are listed in the order of my preference:
1. BOB RICH, JR. If there is one person who really has his roots in Buffalo and Western New York, it’s Bob Rich. He knows sports; lives sports (especially fishing) and is owner of the Buffalo Bisons. He mused that he was ready to present a blank check to baseball when expansion was on the front burner of baseball. His company, Rich Products is housed in Buffalo and has plants around the glove. He has the financial background. He would keep the team in Buffalo. A good plus for him would be to return the name of Buffalo’s stadium – Rich Stadium.
2. TERRY PEGULA. Naturally, he has the wealth to purchase the Buffalo Bills and still never go hungry. He owns the Buffalo Sabres and could be in position to get approval from the NFL. Most everyone hopes that Pegula can begin to offer his backing of the Bills staying in Buffalo, which would be the case since his background came from Western New York.
3. DONALD TRUMP. He’s acquired some tremendous golf courses, pouring millions into those projects and still has a big stack of dough to be able to plunk down what Mrs. Wilson would be deemed to get for the Bills. Trump makes no bones about keeping the Bills in Buffalo and certainly his world-wide personality would be a plus for the Bills, Western New York and his inter4sts.
4. COMBINATION OF THE ABOVE. That would be an interesting situation. Jim Kelly is very close with Donald Trump and could be considered for association. Imagine Pegula and Rich getting together to buy the Bills. Boy, we’re talking BILLIONS owning the team. Ditto if it was a combination of Jim Kelly and Donald Trump; Pegula and Rich; Pegula and Trump; Rich and Trump. In any event this would have people knowing the team is backed by Billions.
5. TOM GOLISANO. The former owner of the Sabres helped save the franchise when Adelphia bowed out of the picture. But his ownership, together with Larry Quinn on board, didn’t register with fans who watched Golisano/Quinn hire Darcy Regier and dispatched Ted Nolan; Danny Brier; Bryan Campbell; Drury and others that put the Bills into a tailspin until Golisano sold the team to Terry Pegula……making a pretty good profit on his investment. While he had many ties in Rochester, he moved to Florida. Yet if numbers 1-4 don’t come through, then there would be no objection to Golisano moving back into sports (and back to good graces) with the purchase of the Bills.
Let’s not even consider Toronto, though the NFL might be interested to a team there. After all, London was mentioned as a stopping place for an NFL team. Los Angeles is mentioned not only for one team but possibly two. Remember, the big partner of the NFL is television and they would like to get into that vast market –even though the fans there never really supported the Rams and the Raiders when they were there.
And when everything is finally settled on an owner, the other NFL owners have to give its OK.
So while the NFL will continue to try to snare the headlines in the next couple of months, Bills fans will be watching – and waiting to see who is going to open up the wallet and sign a check with the upper end of 9 figures on Don’t Get Me Started.
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