ICYMI: Happy New Year: Doug Marrone Walks Away from Bills

Raise your hand if you thought the Buffalo Bills would be looking for a new coach after their 1st winning season since 2004?

Yeah, nobody else did either.

Now former Bills head coach Doug Marrone took advantage of a 4-day window to opt out of his contract with his team Wednesday night and walked away. He...or his agent had the clause put in his original contract in case the team was sold. Which happened this fall.

It surprised his players, observers and others. But don't expect Marrone, who has been very successful in rebuilding the Bills team in his two seasons as head coach. He'd been trying to negotiate a contract extension with new owner Terry Pegula, but apparently that discussion was not getting very far.

And, despite his choice to walk away, Marrone will still get his $4 million dollar payday from Buffalo whether he coaches or not. And most think that is exactly what will happen. Speculation has already begun he will interview in New York with the Jets, a team he spent time with as an offensive line coach.

As for the Bills, they have plenty of options as well. Already we'd say the leader in the clubhouse would be former Bills QB Frank Reich, currently a quarterbacks coach in San Diego.

But we could be wrong.

Here's coverage from our surprised friends at WIVB-TV

Pegulas Approved As New Bills Owners

((HT: WIVB-TV))

To the tune of $1.4-billion...

The Pegulas needed three-quarters majority approval from the other NFL 31 owners plus the Wilson Family Trust. Ralph Wilson Jr. died back in late March and bids were taken in July.

Bidders included Rogers Communications with Jon Bon Jovi as front man, Donald Trump, and the Pegulas.

On September 8, they submitted their final bid. It turned out to be the highest sale price for a team in league history.

The Pegulas also own the Buffalo Sabres and are looking to build a new lakefront development to incorporate a Bills arena, entertainment complex, and hopefully a new football stadium.

Here's part of the wait from New York City


The Pegulas will be using a wire transfer to take care of the sale price.

The funny part is that there is a $25 fee that goes with the money attachment and the Trust can't take checks...

Buffalo Bills Sold to Sabres Owner Pegula

((ht: buffalonews.com))

It's official and it's not likely you'll see the Buffalo Bills leaving upstate New York for anything other than a home game in the foreseeable future.

The estate of late team owner Ralph Wilson reached an agreement to sell the team to the Pegula family Tuesday afternoon reportedly for $1.1 billion.

Terry Pegula is the owner of the NHL Buffalo Sabres.

There had been much discussion and hand wringing among the Bills faithful that the team, which had been playing a game or two a year in Toronto, would be sold to a group that would move them permanently to Canada.

That won't happen now.

Pegula and his wife Kim released a statement through the team Tuesday afternoon saying in part:

“Kim and I are humbled and honored that the Wilson family has chosen us to be the second owner of the Buffalo Bills. Pending the NFL approval process, being the next owner of the Buffalo Bills would be a great privilege for our family. Ralph Wilson left an indelible mark on our community and we will strive every day to honor his legacy.

Our interest in owning the Bills has everything to do with the people of Western New York and our passion for football. We have knowledgeable, dedicated fans here and along with our ownership of the Buffalo Sabres, it is gratifying to reassure these great fans that two franchises so important to our region are both here to stay."

The couple added they wouldn't comment further until the sale, which is expected to go through, is approved by the NFL at their next meeting Oct. 8th.

The Bills also released a full statement:

"Subject to the approval of the NFL owners and the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, the definitive agreement calls for the Pegula family to acquire all of the interest in the Buffalo Bills franchise from the Wilson trust. The parties intend to submit the agreement for approval by the NFL owners at their meeting in New York City on October 8.

Buffalo Bills Controlling Owner Mary Wilson said, “This is a very important day in the history of the Buffalo Bills franchise. Ralph brought professional football to Buffalo in 1959 and it was his life’s passion. He loved his team and he cherished the fans and his legacy will remain for all-time. Ralph would have been pleased with the sale of the team to the Terry Pegula family, who has been so committed to Buffalo and the Western New York region.”

“I sincerely wish Terry and Kim Pegula all the best with the Buffalo Bills and I’m happy for all Bills fans. Our hope is that this great franchise brings them as much excitement and joy as it did for Ralph and that they bring home a Super Bowl championship for Bills fans everywhere. Go Bills!”

And there ya have it--

WGRZ-TV in Buffalo brings the early TV story:

Wilson Family Gets 3 Bids Under $900M

((HT: WGRZ-TV))

It looks like the Buffalo Bills might be Terry Pegula's to lose...

After the review of a few of the opposing bids for the franchise, all three of them were under a billion dollars- and the Bon Jovi bid is on, according to the Toronto Sun, "life support..."

Pegula's bid is listed, by Forbes Magazine, at $890-million. The Bon Jovi/Toronto bid is $820-million, and Donald Trump's is listed only at $809-million. Tom Golisano is thinking about submitting a bid, but it will be up to the Ralph Wilson Trust as to whether or not they will accept any bids.

Here's the latest on the sale

The final bids are set for the next two weeks...

Until the deadline is shifted again...

Donald Trump First Up For Bills Bid Discussions

((HT: WGRZ-TV))

The bidding process is now moving to the meet-and-greet phase for the groups that want to have the Buffalo Bills as a part of the corporate portfolio.

There are concerns that both the Trump and Bon Jovi groups may have violated the rules in negotiations by going public in disclosing the bid numbers publicly.

Trump's first bid was in the neighborhood of a billion dollars- and, according to Al Michaels, is all cash
The Bon Jovi/Toronto bid was a little north of that and they may not be able to go any higher
Terry Pegula is rumored to be in the neighborhood of $1.3-billion and he could go higher if he thinks he needs to

And, now, it appears Tom Golisano may add his name to the pile after all

Here's the latest out of Buffalo

We're just getting started and don't be surprised if another name is added to the mix for the purchase before we're done.

Three Bidders Meet First Bills Deadline

((HT: WGRZ-TV))

However, former Buffalo Sabres owner Tom Golisano didn't meet the first deadline. He still could throw his name into the hat if the trust overseeing the estate of Ralph Wilson extends the deadline.

The three are:

Donald Trump

Jon Bon Jovi in concert (pun unintentional) with Ed Rogers of Rogers Communications and Larry Tanenbaum of MLSE- they would keep the team in western New York, but obviously, would want games at SkyDome

Terry Pegula- current owner of the Sabres

Here's a look at the Pegula bid
John Kryk of the Toronto Sun has a look at those who came close, but didn't do anything by yesterday's deadline: "...bond investor Jeffrey Gundlach explored placing a bid, as had C. Dean Metropoulos, owner of the Pabst brewing company. And Western New York developer Scott Congel had mulled bidding either alone or with someone else, merely to aid his objective to build a new Bills stadium as part of an immense, multi-pronged redevelopment of a large property his family controls in West Seneca, just south of Buffalo."
Look for the trust overseers to start vetting the ownership groups over the next week or so.