FACeD

Fans Against Closed Domes


Mr. Ralph C. Wilson, JR and esteemed members of the Rogers Group

We here in the city of Buffalo, NY and the surrounding Western New York area are full of pride: pride in our area, pride in our families, pride in our heritage, and of course pride in our Buffalo Bills. For years we have grown up in the shadows of such great players as Jack Kemp, Joe DeLamielleure, Jim Kelly, Bruce Smith, Thurman Thomas, and so many other great players that we cant possibly mention them all. In that same shadow we have all been raised to believe one thing, we do not like the Miami Dolphins.
Who could forget such great moments in the rivalry between these two great franchises such as back on October 29th, 1989? At then Rich Stadium, the Miami Dolphins Quarterback, Dan Marinos streak of nineteen consecutive games without getting sacked came to an end in a loss handed to them by the Buffalo Bills 31-17 before a crowd of 80,208 screaming fans. Or even back in 2003 when Ricky Williams and the Dolphins came into Buffalo and took an early lead only to end up losing late in the game as the snow began to fall and the Bills made an amazing comeback to the chorus of the sell out crowd singing Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. How about the infamous moments of Bryan Cox making obscene gestures to the Bills fans, creating a spark, which kept the rivalry alive and well during the memorable Super Bowl runs of the 1990s. These are the moments and the games that ring true in each Bills fans mind that leave us hungry to see which day they will play Miami in Buffalo each season, hoping that it will be during the midst of our cold native December weather.
When the schedule came out this past year we were all prepared for the new relationship that was budding between Mr. Wilson and the Rogers group. We expected to have one less home game, but imagine our shock when we saw that it would be against our most heated rival during the time of year that gave us the most advantage; thats right, the Miami Dolphins during the long, cold month of December. As Bills fans became both outraged and confused the local TV and radio airwaves buzzed with people voicing their opinion for a few weeks but slowly died down once people came to the realization that this is how it is going to be, and acknowledged the potential for vast opportunities that may arise in the future.



This leads us to the point of this petition, as Bills fans we understand that in such a small market we have to give and take what we can to keep this football team, while also understanding how much this endeavor to Toronto could actually help us in the long run. Luckily the Rogers Center has a neat little trick up its sleeve that could give the Bills the HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE for the cold December weather, and that trick is the opening dome! This will not only give the Toronto crowd the authentic game day feeling of being in Buffalo but also remind Miami exactly where they are. BILLS COUNTRY!!
So Mr. Wilson and esteemed members of the Rogers Group, we, Western New York Buffalo Bills fans know that we are losing a home game but it would be even worse if we lost the advantage.

Sincerely,
The members of FACeD* and the signers below

*(Fans Against Closed Domes)