Staff Blog
Philly is Going Easy on Andy Reid
At least compared to their opponent this weekend. Check out this billboard:
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Who Dey Revolition, a Cincinnati Bengals blog has started what they’re called “Project Mayhem” in an attempt to remove Mike Brown, the Bengals owner, from his self-appointed position as team GM has bought four billboards requesting that the team hire a real GM.
First of all, wow. Ballsy move, Cincinnati. I thought Philly was crazy, and we’ve never banded together like this. Earlier in the year they convinced hundreds of Bengals fans to call “the Jerk Line,” a phone number you call during games to report drunk fans, and complain that Mike Brown was emotionally and mentally abusing them from his owners box; and now they have raised over $2,000 for the billboards (they cost $4,500 for the season)
via donation in less than two days.
I emailed back and forth with Andrew Simon, whose running point on this whole operation. A Short Q&A after the jump:
CityPaper: Was there a breaking point that started this?
Andrew Simon: I have been alive for 26 years. I have
been a Bengals fan for 26 years. In 18 of those 26 years, Mike Brown has
owned the team. The results? A record of 98-183, the worst winning
percentage of all professional sports teams over that stretch. It
is time for a change, and with tightening of the economy, Mike Brown needs fans
more than ever. And if he would put a winning team on the field (which
will require him to let football minds make football decisions) Bengals fans
would fork over money to him, regardless of the economy. But he is more
concerned with maintaining control, to the teams detriment.
This is just our way of showing that we, as fans,
have had enough.
CP: What is the support like, and did last week’s win put a damper on it?
AS: Support has been overwhelming. We have
raised $2,242.51 in less than 2 days from fans.
CP: You’ve been a lifelong Bengals fan, are you rooting against the team now? If
so, will the only way to change that be a new GM? A new owner?
AS: I am on no way rooting against the team. I
am doing this because I support the team. It would be much easier to just stop
caring about the Bengals, I am going this because I want to get fans to take
back OUR team. Right now these are Mike Brown’s Bengals and I want them
to once again become the Cincinnati Bengals.
CP: One last thing: you think this will work?
AS: I really do think that this year is different than past years. I think that unless Brown makes some SERIOUS changes, he is really info for a tough offseason/ So yes, I do think this will help persuade Brown to make changes because financially, he needs fans more this year than in the past. Lots of companies are cutting back on luxury boxes ($ that goes right to his pocket), and many fans will decide that the price of tickets are too much in this economy. Couple that with the possibility of an uncapped year in 2010 (which would be really bad for Brown) and this is a unique time to see some real change.
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Best of luck to WDR on the project, if not their team’s game this week.
