I debated whether I wanted to go through with this post. Do fans really want to read about a work stoppage from 1987 after just getting through the current lockout? Probably not. And I’d much rather be writing about some of the games and players from the 1987 Bills’ season. But I do need to document the work stoppage for sake of thoroughness; it had an impactful effect on the season and some of the moments surrounding it were truly fascinating. The 90’s Bills’ journey cannot skip this step.
But let’s take a quick step back. I will detail the specifics in my season ending post, but the Bills started the ’87 campaign with a loss to the Jets before having a rousing comeback victory vs Houston. The future looked bright, and Buffalo fans were wondering if they could put a winning streak together and finally return to the playoffs. And then it all ended for a while. The next night, after the Jets beat New England 43-24 on Monday Night Football, the players went on strike. There would be no getting over the .500 mark for our team yet. And what did the fans have to look forward to now? Replacement players.
Looking back, I don’t recall any deep emotions from that time, no crying in my pillow when the players walked out. But I’m pretty sure I was ticked. As the Bills’ scab players took the field, I do have a flashback of listening to Van Miller on the radio announcing the games with all these no name working stiffs since the games didn’t sell out. As much as this series is about hero worship, it’s kind of fun to think about the “counterfeit” Bills. Here are athletes who weren’t good enough to make it to the pro’s, finally being given their chance. It wasn’t an ideal opportunity in any way, due to threats from the regular players and the knowledge that this would not last. But they got to live the dream and play pro football, even if it was just for a few weeks. It had to be quite the ride.
As I write this, I think about the fans of today. Many are disgruntled due to the big business reality of the NFL that seeped in this year. Quite a few were freaking out even early in the lockout when the only thing canceled were OTA’s and mini-camps. I now bring myself back in my 16 year old self in ’87. And also in my 33 year old self during the NHL lockout of 04-05. When actual games are lost, and in the case of the NHL the whole season, that’s when the real pain comes to fans. Sports are entertainment but for many fans, especially Buffalonians, it’s a way of life. In a blue collar town, where many struggle to get by, those three hours on Sunday are an escape. Sure it sucks when the Bills lose, but when we’re watching the team and getting caught up in the excitement we forget about our sometimes difficult lives during that time no matter the result. We become part of a community collective, a group of people from many walks of life that band together for the team and our way of life. As the years go by, I know I wouldn’t give that up for anything.
But in 1987 all people could do was watch players we had nothing invested in. With all due respect to the replacement players, it didn’t really feel like our Bills. It was hard to care, to put ourselves out there. It only lasted three weeks, but I’m sure it felt like an eternity.
To show that it was a turbulent, wild time, here’s some moments from those days:
– The key issue was unfettered free agency for players. It seems crazy to me that they didn’t always have this, and the freedom they have now would have seemed like paradise to a lot of them.
– Two days after striking, Bills’ players formed a picket line outside Rich Stadium to face off with the replacement players and give them a little wisdom, but the scabs didn’t show up. So around 20 players, the likes of Fred Smerlas and Joe Devlin (hard liners) went to Mckinley Park Inn, the headquarters of the new Bills. They cornered CB John Armstrong in a video game room. Devlin had his Labrador Retriever on a leash and Greg Bell kept saying, “Sic him. Sic him!” Smerlas proceeded to tell Armstrong that he and other scabs better watch out if they attended Bills’ training camp the next year. Fred and his crew were asked to leave the hotel and bolted before Hamburg police arrived. It seems surreal just typing this. What a crazy scene.
– The NFL called off that weekend’s games and prepared to return for week 3 with the replacement players.
– That same day, the real Bills held a voluntary practice and then headed off to harass the new guys again. They went to “greet” the replacements at their first practice and screamed obscenities at them.
– Right from the outset of the strike, some players, the biggest name was Mark Gastineau of the Jets, bucked the strike and played. Future Bill safety Leonard Smith was one of them.
– Ralph Wilson commented on free agency that all players would go to warm weather cities and Buffalo wouldn’t have a team. Ah, Ralph never did like that crazy free agency thing.
– On September 28, three days after the harassment at the first practice, things got uglier at Rich Stadium as players gathered to form another welcoming party. They approached the bus bringing in their substitutes, forced the bus to halt, then began throwing eggs at it while swearing again. Seriously, eggs, guys? Big tough pro football players choosing such a weapon of choice makes me chuckle.
– Ex-Bill Jim Haslett actually joined the Jets replacement team. Smerlas, probably his best friend, called him a scab.
– In the first replacement player game, the Colts crushed the Bills 47-6. NFL veteran Gary Hogeboom, another player that bypassed the strike, lit it up for Indy. Interesting note – Colts’ head coach Ron Meyer took Hogeboom out early in the third quarter to preserve Johnny Unitas’ 401 yard passing record as he already had 259 to that point along with 5 touchdowns. 20 of the real Bills, including Jim Kelly, came to protest the game and then went to Delaware Park to hang out with fans and sign autographs.
– Fullback Carl Byrum and CB Durwood Roquemore became the first Bills to cross the picket line and join the team. As you could guess, the striking players were not thrilled, Smerlas and DE Sean McNanie two of the more vocal. McNanie said two scab lockers would exist when the players came back. Ouch.
– On October 11, game 2 of the replacement players, the Patriots beat the Bills 14-7 after 5 turnovers ruined a decent defensive effort.
– Three days later, several more Bills: Robb Riddick, Mike Hamby, and rookies Leon Seals & Keith McKeller, broke the picket line along with scores around the league, including New York star Lawrence Taylor. The Bills were scheduled to play the Giants next.
– On Thursday, October 15, the strike ended but not in time of a league 1:00 P.M. Wednesday deadline to allow the regular players to suit up. Three days later, in what Sal Maiorana called one the most memorable games in Bills history, the substitute players went out and beat Taylor’s Giants 6-3 in O.T. The game was an error filled affair with 9 total fumbles (4 lost, all by Buffalo), 5 interceptions, 26 penalties, 5 missed field goals and 48 incomplete passes. Seriously, that’s worse than a preseason game; no wonder it was memorable. Bills kicker, Orchard Park’s Todd Schlopy, won the game with 19 seconds left in the extra period.
– On October 19th, the real Bills returned to work.
One of the things that sticks with me about this strike is the “what if” question. Before this whole thing hit, the Bills had left off on a high after bringing their record back up to .500. And even though the replacement players managed to win a game out of the three, Jim Kelly and co. were faced with a 2-3 record instead of what could have been a best case scenario of 4-1. Maybe more realistically it would have been 3-2 but we just will never know. Now granted, the team’s record after returning to work was 5-6, which isn’t great, but when you stop playing two weeks into the season and then start back up almost a month later, conditioning has to be a factor. While all teams were faced with this situation, I imagine the youth of the Bills played a role in not dealing with it quite as well. But then again, perhaps they weren’t ready to be winners as of yet. But I like to wonder.
Luckily the Bills had one other “off the field” situation that turned out a lot better for them than the strike. The biggest trade in team history less than two weeks later. Stay tuned, folks.
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Follow Mark on Twitter, @MarkBerm
Previous Rebirth Articles:
Part 1: 1986 – Jim Kelly Signs
Part 2: 1986 – Jim Kelly’s First Game
Part 3: 1986 – What Came Before
Part 4: 1986 – Tasker & Levy
Part 5: 1986 – Season in Review
Part 6: 1987 – The Offseason
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