Mike is setting everyone up for heartache

[WeezyBengal]

(03-29-2017, 02:41 PM)ochocincos Wrote: Exactly. The entire purpose of professional sports is to make money showcasing elite talent. At the end of the day, these teams don't owe the cities anything. That's why people shouldn't get so attached to a particular sports team. If a team leaves your city, just pick a different team or stop watching altogether. It's just sports.

Its not just sports. Its comes down to dollars and cents. When people have to invest in something financially (sports stadium) it becomes more than sports and an actual social issue. 

[OrlandoBengal]

(03-29-2017, 04:03 PM)Wyche Wrote: I saw that yesterday myself.....might just become a Dolphins fan, even though I've only been to Miami once.

Go check out the website and the Dolphin cheerleaders.  Let's just say they are slightly better than the unit Cincinnati fields each year...

[Derrick]

(03-28-2017, 12:41 PM)Whatever Wrote: However, if the league and the owner's are going to pony up their own money for stadiums, then they should be free to move their teams whenever and wherever they please.

There's honestly a lot of hypocrisy from fans about the issue.  The owners should spend their money to build the stadium, but shouldn't be allowed to move their team out of loyalty to the fan base and the community, even if the community doesn't fill the stadium.

Congress is not passing legislation to prevent cities from using tax dollars to build stadiums for professional sports teams, and that's the only way a stop gets put to it.  If Cincinnati won't pony up the money for stadium renovations or a new stadium, another city will.  That's the reality of the situation.  In all honesty, the Brown family is the least able ownership group in the NFL to foot the bill for a stadium. Being honest, why would they foot the bill to build a new stadium in a town that they can't even sell out their current stadium with playoff teams?  If the owners should pay for their stadiums, the Bengals shouldn't be in Cincinnati. If Cincinnati won't pay up, someone else will, whether anybody thinks it's fair or not.

Please consider that IF the owner were to pony up the money for a stadium, they would be much less inclined to move. But when someone else (E.g. Taxpayer) pays for the stadium, there is very little, if any, hesitation to seek greener pastures.

[Derrick]

(03-29-2017, 12:48 PM)Wyche Wrote: Wow, you said mouthful there.  Agree 100%.  As a fan of both football and motorsports, I can tell you the parallels are beyond striking.....people will get fed up eventually. Replace owners with track owners, sanctioning body, CEO, and local hotels/restaurants/campgrounds.....and you have essentially the same scenario about 7 or 8 years ago.  We may have already seen the crest of the wave in the NFL.....

PROPHETIC! I bet you are right.

[Whatever]

(03-29-2017, 09:05 PM)Derrick Wrote: Please consider that IF the owner were to pony up the money for a stadium, they would be much less inclined to move. But when someone else (E.g. Taxpayer) pays for the stadium, there is very little, if any, hesitation to seek greener pastures.

It honestly depends on their current market and attendance.  No way the Cowboys would leave Dallas, for example.  However, if the Jaguars' owner is going to pay for a new stadium, it wouldn't be in Jacksonville.  When you look at the teams that have left recently, the common thread is that they've been in the bottom of the league in attendance for years.  The Raiders had a great year last year, but were 31st in attendance.  The Chargers were 32nd.  The Rams were bottom 4 in attendance for going on a decade, but were 2nd last year after moving to LA.