- 1 day ago
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00distracting me as we started. Good afternoon. I want to talk about whether or not Bills fans
00:10have enjoyed the last five seasons. I posted on Twitter a little while ago
00:19as sort of a point of entry, like, hey, oddsmakers, Vegas, FanDuel, DraftKings,
00:27whomever you want. It might vary slightly one sportsbook to another or whatever, but mostly
00:34the Bills are considered the AFC favorite, only very slightly. They had had the same odds
00:43as the Baltimore Ravens for a while, but I think in the last week or so that has changed. They're
00:49just slightly better odds than Baltimore. The Rams are in front of the pack, but the Bills are the
00:56leading, you know, depending on where you look. But if they're not alone as the top team in the
01:03AFC as far as making the Super Bowl or winning the Super Bowl goes, they're right there. The
01:10oddsmakers are very bullish still on Buffalo. And, you know, I've been wondering, Mike mentioned it
01:17a day or two ago, and it sort of strikes me that he said, he used the word malaise, I
01:23think. Like,
01:23he's the fan base in a little bit of a malaise, you know, because they've been, we know they've
01:28got the best, one of the best, an all-time great playing quarterback, and that is a meter
01:36mover like no other in pro sports. If you've got that position locked down with not just
01:43a guy that's, you know, we're not talking about Baker Mayfield here who can't get Tampa
01:46to give him a market contract, we're talking about unquestionably one of the two or three
01:52best guys in the league at the position. So that's an elevator, and that keeps you in
01:59the conversation. But there's more than just that. And so outside of Western New York, I
02:08think the Bills are viewed as they have been viewed since they broke through maybe midway
02:14through the 2020 season. They are a bona fide Super Bowl contender again. And it strikes
02:21me, like Mike has said that a couple of times, like the fan base, maybe there's a malaise
02:24and maybe this is indicative of that. But whether I've been in here with him or by myself, like
02:33this is the time of the year where we're kind of in and out because we've got to squeeze
02:35in vacation before football season starts. And so, you know, we haven't been saddled up
02:41in writing through lots of fan opinions about what this Bills season is going to be. Mostly,
02:51the interactions I've had with our audience in the last month or so about the Bills have
02:58been, well, just late last week and early this week, the uniform thing, the uniform change
03:05or the new uniform. It's not a uniform change. It's a supplement, compliment to their uniform
03:11closet. These gray Nickel City jerseys and pants and helmets that they introduced formally
03:18on Monday. We'd seen them for a while. Like a lot of opinions about that. Before that, it
03:24was the stadium and the haves and the have-nots. Like as far as who gets access to a practice,
03:32who doesn't get access to a practice, oh, the people who didn't have access to the first
03:36practice now have a practice for themselves and the people who had access to the first
03:39practice are mad about that. Like there's all of that. And that has nothing to do with
03:43what you think the Buffalo Bills are going to be in 2026, quite obviously, right? It's
03:47all just, it's all just, it's mostly just nonsense. You know, I think ultimately, and I
03:55don't even know, I didn't want to invest too heavily in the conversation about the
03:59practices as I just felt like it was even like, it was kind of a put on even the guy
04:06who called the morning show that my kid yelled at, um, I felt was like a stunt man. I don't
04:11believe that that was like a genuine opinion. Uh, I mean, it could be, but it just felt like,
04:16let me see if I can rile up the radio guys. And my kid took the bait, which, you know,
04:20no shame in that. I've happened to me plenty of times sitting in the room. Easy for me to
04:24say from, you know, far away, like, oh, you should have not done that or whatever.
04:28Anyway, that, that whole conversation was just tedious and boring to me. Um, you know,
04:34it's like, it's like a lot of yelling for yelling sake. I just thought it was asinine. Um, so
04:40well, you know, I'm, I'm talking and talking here. The point is I don't have, I think lots
04:47of evidence that there's a malaise. I don't know. I don't know. I don't feel like I'm hearing
04:51that unless what I'm hearing is you not calling me about it, which could be evidence of a malaise.
04:57That also could be evidence that, you know, you think I suck or the show sucks, uh, which,
05:02you know, would be problematic for my employers. Um, and you know, probably eventually me. Uh,
05:07but I'm hoping that that's not it. Um, but, but I just, I feel, I don't feel like I have
05:12a good
05:13read on the fan base right now is what I'm saying. I'm admitting that I don't know, you know, not
05:19that
05:19I'm, I always sort of balk at anytime we go on shows in other towns and like, I try not
05:27to ask
05:28our guests from Kansas city or Houston, like, Hey, what are the fans saying? Cause I don't know.
05:35Like we talk to, if it's a busy day, we talk to 10 people, maybe 12 in a day when
05:41it's busy.
05:42Uh, and a lot of days we don't talk to anybody. Um, so I don't ever want to represent that.
05:47I know
05:48what the fan base is feeling at large. And of course, you know, there's going to be a variety
05:52of opinions. I guess what I'm telling you is I haven't heard many of them. I haven't heard,
05:58I'm lacking for variety. I'm, I'm lacking for any, I just feel like there's not been a,
06:03just pick them up and put them down. Yeah. I think the bills are going to win 12 games. I
06:08think
06:08they're going to go to the super bowl. I I'm, I'm with Vegas. Um, you know, what, whatever it is,
06:13I don't feel like I've got a good handle on that. And so I wanted today to sort of see
06:20if you wanted to
06:22help me, I don't want to say, figure it out because again, there's not going to be anything
06:26scientific about what we do here. Um, but I'm just kind of curious, like vibe check, I guess,
06:33for lack of a better way to put it. And the reason I mentioned had the last five years been
06:38fun
06:38is because I know what challenges the team being as excellent as they have been for as many years in
06:48a row without delivering on the promise of a championship does to a fan base. It can wear you
06:58out eventually and sort of get you to a place where you're just waiting until January. I often think
07:06of, um, I think it was a friend of Mike's or at least an acquaintance of Mike's, uh, who maybe
07:13three
07:13seasons ago going into a Kansas city game, a regular season, Kansas city game, uh, said something.
07:21I don't know if it was like to Mike personally or on Twitter or what, like, I can't wait for
07:25the
07:26bills to beat the chiefs and me to feel nothing. And that is always sort of sat with me because
07:32I try
07:33to avoid feeling nothing. Um, the one time, the reason I understand why it happens is it's happened.
07:39It's happened to me. Um, I don't think it's happening now with the bills is all of this
07:45new has got me. I'm not taking anything for granted going into this year because we've got
07:50a new head coach and we've got a new defense and it's not the same old, same old. And I'm
07:56very
07:56curious to see if they can maintain the level of excellence they've had for most of the last five
08:05years with all of that new stuff. So that in of itself keeps me from taking it for granted.
08:11The one time in my life, I remember not really paying attention to a regular season was one of
08:17the best regular seasons the Sabres have ever had. And it was on the heels of losing to Carolina
08:23in the 06 conference finals, the 06 07 season that followed the Sabres won the president's trophy.
08:30They won 10 games in a row to start the season. And I mean, they had a roaring, excellent season.
08:36And I have admitted numerous times, if this is too repetitive, I apologize if you've heard this
08:42story, but I did not enjoy that season at all. I watched the games, but all I was thinking about
08:48was, you know, by up maybe halfway through the season was, man, how are they going to match up
08:54with Anaheim in the final? Like that was literally by, by Christmas time. That was what I was spending
09:01my time thinking about. I even would watch the ducks just to sort of get a, you know, feel for
09:06them. I want to, you know, want to be ready for this. And Hey, dumb ass, they never made the
09:12final.
09:12They never played the ducks. It didn't, it didn't happen. Right. And they lost in the conference final,
09:18just like they did the year before. And I let a whole season, a president's trophy winning season
09:24go by without really enjoying the wins. I mean, hockey's different. There's 82 this year,
09:31there'll be 84 games, um, as opposed to just 16 or now 17 with the NFL. So the rhythm of
09:37it's a
09:38little different and the urgency is a little different behind each game, but you get the point.
09:42I did not, I did not see the trees. I did not smell the flowers. I mostly was just worried
09:49about
09:50what was going to happen when summer came and summer never came. They were home the same time
09:56they were the previous year. And like, Oh, okay. Note to self, don't do that again. Right. So I've
10:02mostly avoided that. And, but, but I understand like it can be somewhat frustrating to see the bills
10:11and hear the bills talked about the way they're being talked about again, this year, super bowl
10:18favorite in the AFC, even with a first time new head coach and a new first time in the NFL
10:23defensive
10:24coordinator and lots of personnel changes. It's still full speed ahead. Mostly because Josh Allen's
10:29still here and the offense, other than a left guard is completely intact and has added DJ more. So
10:38I wonder if Bill's fans are as excited as that, or does that still excite you? And that's what got
10:44me to asking, like, have you enjoyed the last five years or are you frustrated? Are you, are you mad?
10:51Are you still mad about 13 seconds? Like I, I, it's a frustrating thing to think about. I don't ever
10:57like when any highlight from that game comes across my face occasionally on social media. It's like,
11:04ah, I don't, I do. I don't need to think about that. But in the end you think about the
11:102021 season.
11:11Yes. Bitter disappointment at the end. It was a great season the week before they annihilated the
11:18Patriots. It was amazing. I mean, it felt so good at the time. So I still think like there's a
11:25lot to
11:26be said for enjoying that ride, but of course we all want the payoff at the end. So I don't
11:34know,
11:34I'm, I'm, I'm wondering if, if we can maybe have both conversations at once, because I think
11:39they're, they're obviously running somewhat concurrently here. Um, how bullish on the bills
11:45are you? Are you like Vegas Superbowl favorite in the AFC excited expectation wise for them? And
11:52how would you look back on the seasons since the 2020 season? Would you, I mean, opportunity missed,
12:00of course, with Josh Allen squarely in his prime and at the top of his game, peak of his powers,
12:06all that, but they've been great seasons. They're 12 and five, 13 and four. I know there's an 11 and
12:13six in there and I know that they win the division last year, but it's year over year, man, September
12:18to January is awesome. Yes. Peaks and valleys and especially that 11 and six year where, you know,
12:26there's the Philadelphia game and a lot, there's a lot right. Every year is a ride, but overall they
12:34have been the highlights of my professional career to be on the air talking about this team. I swear
12:41to God, that's true. Um, before they broke the drought, I was contemplating getting out of the
12:47business. I just, I can't keep doing this. It's just too much groundhog day for me. Now, this is
12:56also kind of a groundhog day. That that's why I think the question might be a little tricky. If
13:02you want to sit with it, you want to call in and give me your opinion about it. I'd love
13:06to hear you
13:06on it. Do you look back at five seasons here or it's six, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24. Anyway, um,
13:15is that
13:18fondly you enjoyed that or are you just mad that they let opportunity slip away? Maybe it's a, you
13:26know, a little of both. I mean, it's fair, I think to have, um, I don't know, regrets like you
13:32had,
13:32we had anything to do with it, but like, especially like the close calls, the near misses are hard to
13:40live with and they're heartbreaking, but all in all, it's still been the best ride short of winning
13:50it all. So at least that's how I look at it. I'm just, uh, curious where, uh, where everybody's at
13:56here. 803-0550 is the number we'll get fired up right now. Rick is first up this segment. Hi,
14:01Rick. Thanks for calling. You're on the air here on WGR.
14:04Hey, Bulldog. Thanks for the time. You know, it was a transition. It went from optimism when we
14:11drafted Josh Allen to high expectations for almost five years. And now it's nothing but frustration
14:20and apathy. And I think the thing that probably drives fans nuts the most is hope is a strategy
14:27being, you know, it's like, we hope that the wide receivers last year were good enough,
14:34but they weren't. And he says the top priority is to protect Josh Allen. Well, when your receivers
14:40can't get open, Josh Allen is back there just getting annihilated and running for his life.
14:46And then, you know, this year we don't know who the off ball linebacker is. Bernard's already out.
14:52You know, we're not sure if the defensive ends are going to get pressure on the quarterback.
14:56We don't know if the run game is going to gouge us like it did last year. The receiving core
15:02is
15:03okay. You know, I don't know. We kind of hope that it's going to be good. And, you know, it's
15:09just,
15:10I'm just kind of burnt out on it. I mean, and then on top of that, it's costing us a
15:15house payment
15:16to go to a game. I'm going to the Detroit game. I live in Colorado and I spent $900 on
15:22two tickets.
15:23It's, I mean, you know, each, not for both. And I just think all of the, you know, shine
15:30as far as a new season and a new stadium, people are just like, I'm tired. I'm emotionally
15:36drank. And that's where I'm at.
15:40All right, Rick, you're breaking up there at the end, but those are some strong opinions
15:44about this. I'm curious how much company you've got. But that is indicative of the word I mentioned,
15:50Mike using malaise, I think, and a variety of factors contributing there. Zach is next up.
15:57Hi, Zach. Thanks for calling. You're on WGR.
15:59Hey, Bulldog. Nice talking to you here. I think on the last five years, is it safe to say,
16:06hell yeah, I've enjoyed it. I certainly, there's been heartbreak plenty of times, but, you know,
16:12in my adult life so far, I think some of my favorite moments of my adult life have happened
16:19at Bill's game. So it feels, you know, despite the losses and whatnot, it feels disingenuine
16:24to even consider any answer. But hell yeah, here. I mean, it's been so fun, you know, and going
16:29forward, I'm optimistic. I think this team needed a significant change a while ago. And while I didn't
16:35necessarily agree with the McDermott firing this year, something needed to change. And I think change
16:41can be exciting. I think it's, I'm starting to get excited about it personally.
16:45Zach, thank you. Appreciate it. Yeah. Um, I think that's, uh, that's very well put. I, cause I,
16:50I also was not like, look, I was stunned that they made the move they made, but at the same
16:55time,
16:56I can absolutely understand why they felt the need to do it. I'm not entirely in love with the,
17:03the process or how the owner sounds about all of it, but you just put that over there,
17:08like singularly, can I support a coaching change? Yeah. Um, you know, you tried nine years in these
17:15last six, you've been a contender level status team and you haven't gotten there. So try something
17:20else. Uh, you know, and I, I can totally get behind that. Um, and it also does, you know,
17:28this is what camp, this is the one area where I think it, it, it might be really important that
17:34they did make a change because camp gets going and it's different people talking or a different
17:40person talking, a few different people talking. I mean, Joe Brady is now in charge. He's the head
17:46coach. Jim Leonard's new. There's a couple of new players and just the idea, like two practices in
17:53rain soaked as they were. It's like maybe DJ Moore's pretty good, right? It just, this sort of
18:00starts to, as a fan that starts to percolate, uh, on you a little bit. Um, all right, good job.
18:07First two callers, 803, 0550, uh, lines are wide open for you. You want to get in here? How bullish
18:14on the bills? How high are your expectations? Vegas says AFC Superbowl favorite. And I,
18:21I don't know where the fan base is at. I got two guys so far. One is sorta, uh, wake
18:30me up when they
18:30do something they haven't done already. And the other one's like, this ride has been awesome.
18:35And I'm more, this ride has been awesome guy, but I understand the, the other one, uh, where are you
18:40at? And have you enjoyed this contention window, even though it is ended in bitter disappointment,
18:47each of the last six seasons, 803, 0550 is the number sale will join me at four for a rundown
18:55of
18:55what went down.
Comments