The Decline of Professional Football in Buffalo…or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Manchester United

After yesterday’s 38–10 thumping at the hands of an average Miami Dolphin team (they were 0-3 going into the game), there can be no question that Buffalo’s management has no interest in fielding a playoff contender. When you can sell out virtually all your home games, and you get an additional 90 million in revenue from the Rogers group in Toronto, why blow it all on winning? Starting at the top, from the newly enshrined owner, Ralph Wilson, to General Manager Russ Brandon, to Head Coach Dick Jauron, the Bills braintrust continue to embrace mediocrity with no reasonable attempt to compete at a high level. When Wilson eventually got his ticket punched for the Hall of Fame, it was probably the final nail in the coffin of doom for Buffalo’s pro football fans, who least we forget, have supported their team whole-heartedly through it’s entire fifty year history.

With his election to Canton, Wilson must surely believe that he has handled his football team fairly and that no one could ever question his commitment to western New York and Bills fan’s everywhere. Well, I for one do, and I suspect there are plenty others just like me. At age ninety-one, Wilson is beyond senile, and his dependence on Brandon, a non-football guy is laughable. It had to be Brandon that extended Jauron’s contract in mid-season last year and who oversees the Bills draft. When was the last time you saw someone come off the bench or practice squad and actually make a difference in a game?

Clearly, Wilson has put his hands around the throat of Buffalo fans, and squeezed just hard enough to get their loyalty when history shows he clearly doesn’t deserve it. As far as Jauron goes, it is somewhat amazing that he still has a job, let alone is owed 8 million by a team that desperately needs good coaching. My 85 year old mother still doesn’t understand how Jauron mis-handles timeouts in every game win or lose. Needless to say, she is not exactly a student of the game. Need I say more?
Sadly, the answer is fairly simple. If Buffalo is ever to see a playoff team again, Wilson is just going to have to spend the money that it takes to win. He will have to relinquish his control to a general manager like Bill Polian, who knows the game and knows what qualities players need to play at the highest level. But now as a Hall of Famer, Wilson will never do this. His ego is just too big. What irks me the most is that Wilson, at ninety-one, will never get to spend the bulk of the hundreds of millions that the team is worth. But, he won’t sell the team before his death, because I suspect he thinks he won’t get a fair price.

This is precisely what is wrong with pro sports in general. With estimates over 500 million, how much does Ralph’s estate really need to survive in this volatile economy? Six hundred million, seven, eight, nine? Where does the greed and madness stop? Who really needs this much money to enjoy their relatively short existence? This can’t be what life is really all about, can it?