FILE - In this Aug. 8, 2009, file photo, founder and owner of the Buffalo Bills, Ralph Wilson Jr., stands with his bronze bust during the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009, in Canton, Ohio. Bills owner Wilson Jr. has died at his home in Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich., Tuesday, March 25, 2014. He was 95. Bills president Russ Brandon made the announcement at the NFL winter meetings in Orlando, Fla. Wilson Jr. was one of the original founders of the American Football League and owned the Bills for the last 54 years. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak, File) (The Associated Press)
BUFFALO, N.Y. – Ralph Wilson fulfilled his vow in keeping the Bills in Buffalo during his lifetime. And they won't be leaving any time soon following the 95-year-old Pro Football Hall of Fame owner's death.
In what is being referred to as Wilson's parting gift to his adopted community, the Bills are locked in to playing at Ralph Wilson Stadium through the next six years. That's because of a non-relocation provision included in the team's most-recent lease agreement. The clause requires the Bills to pay a $400 million penalty if they leave before the 2019 season.
SportsCorp President Marc Ganis doesn't see a way the Bills could relocate under terms of what he calls an "ironclad agreement."
Ganis heads a Chicago-based consulting firm and is a close observer of the NFL.
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