Bills jets

[spankingman]

Sorry guys to me the GREY CUP was FAR more exciting than last nights NFL game. As far as " sold out" I heard that Corporations were asked to buy tix and
donate them to various groups ie: high school teams etc.so it wasnt a "true" sellout.

 

[Sexy_Dave]

What was the reported attendance? From my view on the couch it seemed that there were less thean half the upperlevel seats filled and lots of empty spaces in the lower sections as well.

 

[Malibook]

I totally agree.
Last night's game was a snooze fest and difficult to watch.
I thought TO looked horrible. He can't even adjust to the pass and go up for a ball.
The Bill's QB was pathetic though.

Of course the NFL has far superior players as any CFL player good enough to make the NFL would do so but they often don't show it and the NFL games are often very boring.

 

[Sexy_Dave]

Some outlets (Fox sports, USA Today) are announcing the "paid attendance" was 51,000....others are saying it wasnt released....the Hamilton Spectator notes that attendance was far short of the 54000 capacity.

 

[Safdar]

I was at the game and the Dome was pretty full. Once everyone was in their seats you could only see a smattering of empty seats. I'm sure there were many tickets that were given away.

IMO the Rogers Centre does not work for the NFL. In the sidelines you are so far away from the action because the CFL field is bigger

 

[spankingman]

Makes ya wonder what the crowd will be NEXT year. They have to bring in a name team NE NO etc to make this thing work I feel. Can you imagine if Detroit Cleveland came in You couldnt sell out Varsity for that game!!!!!!!

 

[nad_smith]

I would guess the actual attendance was in the 45 to 48 thousand range.

I sat in section 204 right beside the windows restaurant, and it had more empty seats than other 200 sections, but it was a great view as the curve brought that section close to the east sideline - I would not have traded it for any other section - although it did mean no "jumbo yawn". Geez, I sound like a shill for that section. There was a Tv to check out replays.

The second half was awful, the first half was full of good action, and the atmosphere gets an 8.5 for the night. There were a lot of Jets fans in that corner, and they had a good time.

Next year, lets get Christina of SRM to be an honorary Buffalo Jill.. They need a boost.

Best player on the field was Revis, the cornerback on Owens all night.

I am glad I went.

 

[JohnC]

I was at the game and the Dome was pretty full. Once everyone was in their seats you could only see a smattering of empty seats. I'm sure there were many tickets that were given away.

IMO the Rogers Centre does not work for the NFL. In the sidelines you are so far away from the action because the CFL field is bigger

near us a whole raft of guys turned up in the second quarter having got freebies outside!!

Then in the 4th quarter a fight broke out and Toronto's finest threw a good few of them out. Beer was flowing freely, even if it was Bud!!

 

[harvey16]

I was at the game in a box seat and it was definatively not sold out. By midway through the 1st quarter it was pretty full, but there were still quite a few empty seats. I would guess there were somewhere between 47000-50000people. When the game started it was only about half full. It took a while for everyone to file in. I must say, I was not impressed in the least. Boring game with very little atmosphere. CFL football is so much more entertaining. Too many handoffs and not enough passing in the NFL. Toronto could never support both an NFL and CFL teams. If Toronto were to ever get an NFL franchise it would kill the CFL. You could say bye bye to both the Argo's and the Ti-Cats. I prefer CFL football anyday. Keep the NFL where it belongs, in the states.

 

[OnTheWayOut]

No future for NFL in TO

The fact that this game did not sell out almost assures the NFL will not be awarding any team to TO. In NFL cities there are waiting lists to buy season tickets. When the teams are having off years the games are still sold out in most cities. Given this was a once a year event and it did not sell out does not bode well.

 

[mmmburritos]

The fact that this game did not sell out almost assures the NFL will not be awarding any team to TO. In NFL cities there are waiting lists to buy season tickets. When the teams are having off years the games are still sold out in most cities. Given this was a once a year event and it did not sell out does not bode well.

I'd have to disagree with you on this. I think the NFL will work in Toronto if Buffalo moves (because as long as there's a team in Buffalo, this will never happen).

People stayed away from this event because:
1. Although the Bills are the "home" team, they really aren't. So the game had a exhibition quality to it.

2. The original ticket pricing scheme was, ridiculous.

3. You try hosting a game for two teams that nobody gives a rats a$$ about and try to sell that place out. It was a single game, and nothing more. Toronto has 3 major league sports franchises, therefore the novelty of seeing this type of sporting event doesn't hold the same cache.


If the team was Toronto's and it had a chance to develop a loyal fan base. Toronto would be just as good as any other city in the NFL.

 

[to-guy69]

The fact that this game did not sell out almost assures the NFL will not be awarding any team to TO. In NFL cities there are waiting lists to buy season tickets. When the teams are having off years the games are still sold out in most cities. Given this was a once a year event and it did not sell out does not bode well.

The real reason why Toronto won't get a franchise is because it will either be rewarded to Anaheim or New Mexico way before Toronto is even considered. The Skydome is also to small for NFL standards at 55K capacity.

 

[Scenicdrive]

Did old man Wilson thank Rogers and Toronto for the $78M of donation to the Bills with all these sub-par performances???

 

[HaywoodJabloemy]

...almost assures the NFL will not be awarding any team to TO...

Teams are bought by billionaires, not 'awarded' to cities.

...NEXT year. They have to bring in a name team NE NO etc to make this thing work I feel. Can you imagine if Detroit Cleveland came in...

There are only eight regular season home games a year, so it's doubtful that the Bills would move one against a high profile team like New England to Toronto.
And coincidentally, according to this, if the 16-game season and present schedule rotation remains, the Bills home games in 2010 will be:
Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago, Pittsburgh, NYJets, Miami, New England, and an AFC south team (probably Houston or Tennessee).

I think there's also a preseason game here again next year. It was the Steelers last time, and there was a Bills-Dallas Cowboys preseason game at SkyDome that sold out in 1995, and Bills-Packers in 1997 and Browns-Patriots in 1993 that had empty seats.