The Bills' Future

Ever since the death of Ralph Wilson last month, the future of the Buffalo Bills has been in question.  Mr. Wilson, who had owned the team since its inception in 1959, had always made it clear that he didn't intend to keep the team in the family after his death.  In keeping with his wishes, the Bills are in the process of being sold.

I have no idea who's going to buy the Bills.  Or what's going to happen when they're sold.  It's no secret the NFL wants a team in LA, and with expansion currently off the table, relocation seems to be the only option to get a team there.  And I'm sure there's got to be a potential buyer or two who sees the money that can be made in the country's second-largest media market, especially compared to Buffalo.  Well, I can speak for Bills fans everywhere when I say moving to LA (or anywhere else) would be a mistake. 

The Bills ARE Buffalo.  I know this from experience.  I lived in Buffalo for six years and have plenty of friends who still live there.  Even if they aren't football fans, they love their Bills.  The Bills are as much a part of Buffalo as chicken wings.  Moving the team would take away a big part of the Buffalonian identity.  Especially if you move them to LA, where the people flat out do not care. 

Buffalo might be a small market with a small stadium that they have trouble selling out, but there are no fans in the NFL that are more passionate than Buffalo Bills fans.  (And that stadium can get rockin', especially when there's lake-effect snow in October or that wind gets going.  Why do you think the Bills always want to play their home game against the Dolphins late in the season?)

Fortunately, there are plenty of people who understand the importance of the BUFFALO Bills.  Not least of which are the members of the Wilson family.  Mary Wilson (a lovely woman) inherited her husband's controlling interest, so she'll ultimately make the final decision on who to sell to.  And I'd be shocked if she decided to sell the team to someone who wasn't committed to keeping the team where it belongs.  In Western New York.

All the names that have already been mentioned as potential buyers have guaranteed that they won't move the team.  And that list has some star-studded names.  Bruins owner Jim Jacobs.  Hall of Fame Bills quarterback Jim Kelly.  A group headlined by Jon Bon Jovi.  Donald Trump.

If it were up to me, The Donald would be the Bills' new owner.  He's committed to the market and has already reached out to both the NFL and the Wilson family.  And we all know he's got plenty of money, which he'd be more than willing to spend.  For the Bills to get back to relevance in the AFC East (they're the only team in the NFL that hasn't made the playoffs this century), Donald Trump might be exactly what they need.  He wouldn't be getting into this just for the prestige of being an NFL owner.  That would be part of it certainly, but The Donald would also do everything within his power to put a winning team on the field.  Including spending a butt-load of his own money to lure free agents.

Of course, there are plenty of potential pitfalls to his ownership, the biggest of which is the USFL lawsuit.  He was the owner of the USFL's New Jersey Generals 28 years ago when that league sued the NFL (and won that famous $3 settlement).  There are 17 NFL teams that are still owned by the same person or family.  Trump would need 24 votes for the sale to be approved, and NFL owners are like elephants.  They don't forget anything.  Would that block Trump's path to buying the Bills?

Trump's got plenty of friends in the NFL, too.  It's well-known that Trump and Patriots owner Robert Kraft are very good friends.  Kraft is very influential within NFL circles.  Would his advocacy work in Trump's favor?  There's also a possibility that the NFL owners respect Trump as a businessman.  After all, the lawsuit against the NFL proved his dedication to the USFL, which was not going to survive.

Whether it's Donald Trump or Bon Jovi or Jim Kelly, I don't really care.  What I do care about is the Buffalo Bills remaining in Buffalo.  Bills fans have already had to endure one devastating loss--the death of their beloved owner.  The only loss that could be any more devastating would be losing the team entirely.  This is a team that lost the Super Bowl four straight times, but for Bills fans, those losses would pale in comparison to the though of their not being the Bills at all.  Or, even worse, seeing their beloved Bills become the Los Angeles Bills.

For the sake of the Bills and their fans, please find a buyer who'll keep the team in Buffalo.  Because that loss would be impossible for anyone who loves or cares about this team to bear.