Just less than a couple weeks away, the Buffalo Bills will travel across the pond to Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ to take on their long time division rivals, the New York Jets, with their brand new hall of fame quarterback addition, Aaron Rodgers, and a newly revamped New York Jet offense. Should be a tougher task than usual against the new regime, but as always, Bills Mafia is always ready for the challenge as their push to a Super Bowl championship starts NOW!
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The Instigator Podcast 12.1 – PSE Dissolved and what Comes Next
Monday was a big news day as it was announced that Pegula Sports and Entertainment has been dissolved and, most notably, the Bills and Sabres will be operating as separate entities moving forward. Pegula will also now serve as president of the Sabres, a title he also holds for the Bills and at PSE prior to its dissolution. We talk about the news, what it means for the Bills and Sabres and how it has helped to fuel rumors surrounding the future ownership of the Sabres.
RJ Night Episode: https://www.spreaker.com/episode/49323198
Reel In The New Season Bills Mafia with FOCO’s Josh Allen Spinner Bighead Bobblehead
As expected, it has been nothing short of an excellent camp for Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills. Very excited to see our guys get after it as they prepare for what seems to be another very competitive battle all year in the AFC Conference. With the ecstatic return of Bills safety, Damar Hamlin, and the crazy route running from Stefon Diggs, along with some new additions in this year’s NFL draft and the offseason moves that were made by this front office, it is safe to say Bills Mafia is ready for what’s in store week 1 versus the Jets at Metlife Stadium!
Continue readingBe The Bills Fan of all Bills Fans with FOCO’s Josh Allen Buffalo Bills 2023 NFL Training Camp Bobblehead
The month of August is here, training camp is in full swing, and the NFL preseason is right around the corner which means we are so close to week 1 of the 2023 NFL campaign. After a tough end to the 2022 NFL season for the Buffalo Bills, with some new additions to the 2023 sqaud with free agent signings, trades, and draft picks, the Buffalo Bills are looking to make some noise in their quest to finally reach the Super Bowl and conquer a tough AFC conference in the Josh Allen era.
Continue readingThe Instigator Podcast 11.44 – Listener Questions for the Dog Days of Summer
As we are in the dullest point of the hockey offseason, it felt like a good time to reset and take listener questions once again. This week’s episode includes questions on the Bills and red helmets, prospect trade options, goal tending targets and analytics projections. Thanks to everyone who submitted questions for this week’s show.
Score A Bruce Smith FOCO Bobblehead
Tracking down cool, unique memorabilia for your collection isn’t always easy. Often it seems like the stuff you’ll find at local stores or national chains are either too hokey or generally low quality.
Having low faith that a high quality collectible is out of reach can be extremely frustrating. Especially if you’re like me and you find yourself wanting to expand your collection but are unsure where to turn.
If you find yourself in that sort of situation, the place to turn to is FOCO. They have an impressive collection of Bills memorabilia that includes bobbleheads, apparel and other assorted items. They have everything from LED bar signs to flip flops. I think their best items are the bobbleheads. They have really good detail and accuracy and come in different colorways as well. So you can snag a Stefon Diggs bobblehead in a blue jersey, a white jersey or color rush. It’s a nice touch.
Continue readingMock Stadium – What Features Can Be Pulled for New Bills Stadium
Soon enough we will get our first look at the renderings for the new Bills stadium. We’ve gotten some hints of what to expect already. Open air with a partially covered seating bowl, natural grass surface. How the rest of the stadium comes together remains to be seen.
While we wait, I thought it would be fun to cobble together some examples of cool or unique features from around the world of sports that might be fun to see incorporated into Buffalo’s new digs.
What will follow is a combination of pipe dreams and more realistic suggestions from football, soccer and other stadiums throughout North America and the rest of the world. Think of this as stadium a la carte.
Covered Stand
We know the new stadium will have a covered stand of some sort. A wise choice with a full roof ruled out. Covered seats will make for a more comfortable fan experience if the weather turns nasty while still allowing the game to be played in the elements. Covering the seats will add a prominent visual feature to the stadium. So the design of the partial roof will have a lot to do with the overall look of Buffalo’s new digs.
Think about the roof on Hard Rock Stadium. It’s a recent addition and it’s painfully unattractive. It looks ridiculous. Full stop. Meanwhile, Seattle’s Lumen Field also features covered seats, but theirs was part of the original design of the building. Both are effective in their function but Seattle’s integrates into the building so much better. The 70% coverage in Seattle would be a good figure to aim for here in Buffalo and the sound amplifying design would be a nice fringe benefit.
Continue readingThe Instigator Podcast 10.30 – Sabres Heater Keeps the Good Vibes Rolling
The Sabres pushed their point streak to six games and improved to 8-3-2 in the month of March. We discuss how the continued success of the team could potentially cloud the longer term needs when it comes to making sure the Sabres take the next step in their rebuild. Namely, we discuss the discourse around Craig Anderson and where the team would be had he been healthy for the entire year.
Also on the show is a discussion over the new Buffalo Bills stadium deal and highlights from the NHL GM meetings.
Two in the Mailbox: Deadline Special
In honor of the NHL Trade Deadline, it’s time once again to take a few reader questions.
I’m looking forward to Monday’s deadline as I think the Sabres are poised to move at least two or three players off the roster. And there’s potential for even more moves both out and in. Unless Kevyn Adams makes zero moves on Moday, it will be hard to say it was an underwhelming deadline.
As we touched on this week’s podcast, I’m hopeful that Adams will bring in a player who will be in Buffalo not just for the final weeks of the season, but well into the future. A younger player, ideally with term, who could add to the growing confidence over what Adams and the Sabres are trying to build. That’s easier said than done, but it wouldn’t be the first time the organization brought in a notable piece for the future at the deadline. Here’s hoping the next one comes on Monday.
Before we get to the questions, we should celebrate the beauty of the Armchair GM submissions on CapFriendly. It’s been far too long since we shared any of these, so let’s make up for lost time with some Very Bad Trades.
A few thoughts here. First, Kaapo Kahkonen has had a decent season for the Wild but he hasn’t yet risen to the level of a number one goalie. Marcus Foligno has also carved out a very valuable role in Minnesota, so the idea that just Casey Mittelstadt (whose has been very underwhelming when not injured) could fetch you both of these players is silly. Yet, that deal is trumped by the following offer of the Arizona Coyotes offering a first and a third for Victor Olofsson and recent healthy scratch, Anders Bjork. I’m not sure how to arrive at that particular valuation, but it seems…inaccurate. Olofsson ought to have some value this summer (or at the deadline) but Bjork’s value will have cratered and while the Coyotes do need players on contracts, they also desperately need draft capital.
Sure, I guess. There are other players in the NHL though. We don’t always have to do Pat Kane.
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On to the questions.
Continue readingBills Stadium Saga Reaches Inevitable Conclusion
There really was never going to be much of a question over where the Bills new stadium was going to be built. While the conversation over a downtown or Orchard Park site was a valuable one to have, the die was cast when the Bills released their report indicating their preference to build in Orchard Park.
“Concerned” downtown developers can turn their attention to other causes now that Governor Hochul said the state will accept the Bills’ preferred site across Abbott Rd. in Orchard Park. The Pegulas held the hammer on this and barring extraordinary circumstances, the state and county were always going to play ball with regard to where they wanted to build (humorous as it may be considering they’re asking the public to pay for so much of this project).
Maintaining the status quo in Orchard Park is a fine conclusion to this process. The Bills can continue to play next door to their training facilities and offices, the fans get to keep tailgating and the price tag will be slightly more palatable for all parties involved. A more streamlined construction schedule and lower land acquisition costs all add up as positive factors for a new stadium in Orchard Park.
The limitations of a suburban stadium will remain as well. Below average access and limited offseason uses being chief among them.
We certainly don’t lose anything with the construction of a new stadium in Orchard Park. But we don’t really gain anything either, and I think that’s the one lasting question I’ll have once the new building is finished. What, if anything, will we have missed by not building in the city? There are many, many issues at play, but there are a few overarching topics which probably needed more attention than they got.
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Two in the Box 
