Thoughts on Big Ben

Dude, I swear, I’ve gone through way too many Christmas Day mornings to find out that Santa Clause doesn’t exist this year. What am I talking about? I’m talking about the Bills. First, it was the coaching search that brought us Chan Gailey. Now, it’s Ben Roethlisberger. I woke up today and read that Adam Schefter tweeted that the Steelers were contacting teams with top 10 picks. I thought, “Wait. We have a top 10 pick. We need a franchise quarterback. Big Ben is under 30. We have a great nightlife. Sign me up!”

Of course, Schefter tweeted about 20 minutes later that the Bills said no. Awesome! Look, if you are new to my blog, there are a couple of things you need to know about me and some thoughts about Ben coming here:

A) I don’t give a rats ass what a player does off the field! If they want to get wasted and act like they are on Spring Break and a member of the Alpha Betas, go for it. I don’t need to live vicariously through an NFL player to make me feel good about my city. In other words, a player represents a football team, not the way of life in Buffalo. You want to know what embarrasses me? Not making the playoffs 10 years in a row! As long as you are busting your ass on Sundays, you can tap that ass whenever you want. If you have kids and they are asking about Big Ben’s off the field activities. You just tell them he made mistakes and you should respect women. Simple as that. It’s not going to traumatize the kid for life. God forbid a parent has to tell their kid what is right and what is wrong in the world.

B) Big Ben has never been charged with a crime. Yes, he’s a scum bag and I wouldn’t want my kid sister going to the same bars he goes to, but the law is the law.

C) I assure you, if this isn’t a wake-up call for Roethlisberger, then nothing is going to work. I’m sure he’s going to be sitting in his apartment for the next five years and just order a Russian made bride to fit his needs.

D) Roethlisberger has done a ton for a football team with an average offensive line and an average running attack. He’s won two Super Bowl rings. That’s all I need to know about the guy.

E) The Bills need a franchise quarterback. Ben has another 5-7 years left in his tank. It’s going to take the Bills at least 2-3 years to become a legit playoff contender. By that time, Roethlisberger will turn 30. That’s a good age to be the quarterback of your team.

Here’s the bottom line: I don’t buy the notion of the Bills not being interested in Roethlisberger because of his off the field activities. Hell, they still had Marshawn Lynch starting when he broke the law twice in less than than a year. They didn’t try shopping Donte Whitner when he was tasered outside of a Cleveland night club for disturbing the peace. For goodness sakes, OJ Simpson’s name is still on the dam Wall of Fame. I don’t even want to get into the rumors I heard about the 90’s Bills. I assure you, the Bills don’t give a rats ass about the moral integrity of their players.

The reason they said no is the same reason they decided not to pull the trigger on the McNabb deal (Yes, McNabb didn’t want to come here, but it was reported the Bills didn’t want to give him an extension). They didn’t want to pay 100 million dollars for a quarterback. Plain and simple. The most Wilson has ever given a player for a contract is 50 million dollars. That’s a tad lower then what Roethlisberger is making.

In the end, you can have Buddy Nix, John Butler, Bill Polian and Vince Lombardi picking your players, but if you don’t want to pay for those guys, then what is the point?

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Thoughts on Big Ben

Alan Draper

Alan Draper

Alan Draper