WORST EPISODE EVER
Season Over, Donahoe Must Be Destroyed
Ronnie Roscoe

Hello again my faithful followers, it is the amazing Roscoe here again to give you the best sports information in the free world. The Bills fell to 4-7 with their recent loss to Carolina. The playoffs are no longer in sight. More importantly, the future of this team is rapidly deteriorating. Only one man can be blamed for the miserable state of affairs at One Bills Drive: president and GM, “Teflon” Tom Donahoe.

The Bills have been under the Donahoe regime for 5 years, three with Gregg Williams as head coach and the past two with Mike Mularkey. Donahoe inherited a team that was 8-8. During his five-year tenure he has provided one 8-8 team, one 9-7 team and three god-awful football teams. His front office skills as president are undeniable. The stadium is packed for every game. The revenues are through the roof. For those of you who think Donahoe will be fired, forget it—he is going nowhere. He will be president of this organization for as long as Ralph Wilson is majority owner. You want him fired? Buy the team. If not, he is going to be the man in charge.

It is possible that Donahoe could drop the GM title and allow someone else to take over that portion of his responsibilities. He would have to put his huge ego aside, but it is possible. The problem with that is that Donahoe will be the one picking or promoting the new GM. If there is one thing we know about Tommy, it’s that the man can’t spot talent. Besides Mularkey and Williams, there was the Drew Bledsoe trade, Mike Williams, Josh Reed, Lawyer Malloy, Sam Adams, Ryan Denney and several other lousy signings and draft picks. Many feel that JP Losman is the savior the franchise needs. Not quite. At this point, the most important person in the organization is John Guy, the likely replacement for Donahoe as GM. Somehow we need Guy to be promoted to GM and more importantly, we need him to be talented.

What is going unnoticed is that as the team flounders and Ralph gets older, the likelihood of the Bills leaving Western New York increases. The fans in this area only have so much money to spend on entertainment. Donahoe’s pompous attitude is starting to piss people off. Fans have had enough and if changes aren’t made, the tickets won’t be purchased. If he doesn’t quit, the fans will split. Sabres owner Tom Golisano is a billionaire, but he comes across as an average Joe. Donahoe meanwhile acts as if we are all idiots and he is the only one who understands football. Guess what Tom; the fans are getting fed up. Every Bills fan would have loved Charlie Weiss as head coach. You took Mularkey. Despite this, they still buy tickets and they will show up for the pointless remainder of this year.

They will also get to watch the NHL sooner, now that the Bills season is basically over. The early returns are in and the new brand of hockey is a hit. Joe Buffalo may plunk his hard-earned cash on something entertaining like a Sabres game (I know it seems hard to believe; entertaining and Sabres in the same sentence). Most Bills fans don’t care about the Sabres until at least February. Well guess what? This year they are watching in November. The dedicated season ticket base may decide the Sabres’ value pricing is better than dropping $50 on a downright depressing product like the Bills. The

Bills have held this city hostage ever since Kelly retired. Each year the threats come out. Will the team be moving? Is there a buyout in the lease? What if Ralph dies? Are there enough luxury boxes? Etc, etc. The community has always provided, like the bunch of suckers we are.

Pay close attention to what happens after this year. The future of the team will hinge on this off-season. The Bills are a strong market for the NFL, but the reality is that Los Angeles is going to get a team. The Saints appear to be the proper candidate, but the NFL does not want to look like the bad guy, impeding the rebuilding of New Orleans. Bills season ticket sales will drop dramatically. Stories will emerge in March about the team moving, about a buyout if season tickets fall below a certain mark.

My prediction is it will be the single biggest drop in team history. Let’s hope it is enough for Donahoe to lose his job. If not, five years from now Losman may be winning Super Bowls back in his hometown.