:MERGED: Willis McGahee of the Toronto Bills? (1 Viewer)

[Drew RosenhausFan]

Willis McGahee is an elite talent. Put some better O-linemen in front of him and all of this negative talk will be forgotten. As far as a new contract, it will get done. the kid has earned it.

is it true that other teams have been calling you & are prepared to pay the big money for willis if BUF doesn't?

Do you even have to ask that question? You would think a staff member would know better

 

[aaronr28]

Most people who are big football fans know better than to cheer for the Bills.

so all these reported "millions" of Bills fans in Toronto are morons who don't know any better?I think your attitude is typical of Toronto fans. There is a lot of dislike for the Bills up there.How about them Leafs though?

 

[aaronr28]

Willis responds about article

1/18/2007

Interviewed for January's issue of Penthouse Magazine, Buffalo Bills running back Willis McGahee was quoted as saying it would be a "good situation" if the NFL had a team in Toronto and rather than put a team in Toronto, the NFL should move the Bills there. "Case closed," he said.

McGahee's agent released this response from his client on the article:

"It has been brought to my attention that through an article I did with Penthouse magazine, fans and readers may have misinterpreted my response when asked about the possibility of the NFL one day coming to Toronto.

"I want to make it clear today as I have been committed to the Bills for the last four years that my heart is with the Bills and the city of Buffalo. If the league decided to expand my intent was that Toronto is a beautiful place to do so. I never would suggest the Buffalo Bills move to Toronto. My words were taken out of context and I suggested they get a team with a loyal fan base and organization such as the Buffalo Bills. My family and I have made our home here and enjoy the hospitality of the city. I am a proud member of the Buffalo Bills, we have the most loyal, supportive and dedicated fans in the world, and I cannot think of a better organization to be a part of."

this is taken from today's Buffalo News

 

[HoTnickZ]

Toronto has what, 4 million people? I'm pretty sure Blue Jays and Raptors tickets haven't been too tough to get in years past.

Actually the Greater Toronto Area is 6 million people. Buffalo has a population of 292 thousand. I used to live in Toronto, and there are lots of Bills fans there.

Think about that Aaron. This means if 100% of Buffalo are Bills fans and .05% of Toronto are Bills fans Toronto has the larger fan base. You are out of your mind if you think Toronto is not a good sports town. I would argue that Toronto is one of the best sports towns in North America. I don't see it happening but I think the NFL would thrive in Toronto.

They would need a new stadium of course.

think about what?you don't think the suburbs of Buffalo count as well? the metropolitan area of Buffalo is about 1 million people. If you expand Buffalo to mean Western New York, you can probably throw another 500,000+ or so in from the Rochester area that is within about an hour of the stadium. There's no way that 1 out of every 5 or 6 people in the Toronto area is a Bills fan. Most of those people aren't even from the area. Heck, most Toronto people on this message board don't even like the Bills and these are pretty big football fans.

Toronto is a great city. One of my favorites. But, any sport besides hockey isn't that big of a deal there from what I've seen. I've spent lots of time there but I don't live there, so I could be wrong.

I have to disagree here. The Raptors have a huge fanbase in Toronto. The Jays during the World Series years avg'd 50k per game before the strike / dominance of the $ox and Yank$ took over. I doubt their down years in attendance were any worse, relatively speaking, to other non contenders in the US. Maybe they both pale in comparison to the Leafs (whose fanbase extends all over North America), but then again how many teams in any sport are ?

There's no question that Toronto = Leafs town and everything else is secondary, but that doesn't mean it isn't a great sports town. In fact, I'd argue that is top 10 in North America, and it would have no problem supporting an NFL team.