BillsfaninSixburgh Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Like most Bills fans, I'm not crazy about about this hire, but was anybody really thrilled when Marv was hired in '86? He was an almost 60-year old retread from KC and the CFL best known for running the Wing-T. The big difference between 1986 and 2010 is that Marv came on board and had Kelly, Reed, Smith, Talley, Tasker, etc. (not to mention that the O-line had Hull, Ritcher and Wolford) just as they were all about to hit their prime. Right now, the Bills have no QB, the O-line is in shambles. Until player evaluation, acquisition (and retention) gets better, the Bills head coach position will continue to be a 3-year revolving door. It's sort of like President Obama - love him or hate him, his success is our success. His failure is our failure. Let's hope the blind squirrels at OBD have found another nut like Marv in the hiring of Gailey.
timbuk3 Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/Diner-...route-5686.html I agree completely. Unfortunately he is stating the obvious.
Coach Tuesday Posted January 19, 2010 Author Posted January 19, 2010 Dude, this was perhaps the worst marketing decision that the Bills have made in a long time. Could Gailey turn out okay? Maybe. Has he won in certain situations? Sure. Does he have the support of certain NFL elites? Yep. And so did Dick Jauron, but that is besides the point. The point is, the Bills sold to their fanbase the idea of a complete shift, a complete restructuring of the team. "No job is safe" (unless of course you work in the FO). They made it clear to their fans that Shanahan and Cower were courted. It was also made clear that Leslie Frazier, one of the most highly touted coordinators in the game, was "extremely impressive" in his interview. It was also public knowledge that Brian Schottenheimer, Jim Harbaugh, and Russ Grimm were courted. Now, the last three names mentioned were probably the result of an unplanned leak, since all 3 embarrassed the team in turning down interviews or showing no interest. Regardless, there was a high level of anticipation among the fans about who would be hired. Then, out of nowhere, the Bills hire Gailey. This was done so covertly that EVERYONE was taken by surprise, the media and fanbase included. This, historically (in a marketing sense), never works out well. Sometimes there is an initial thrill over a choice, but soon enough reality sets in. In this case, the Bills literally SURPRISED their fanbase in what is hugely considered an underwhelming hire. It certainly does not carry with the themes of change that Wilson and other's discussed. Gailey has been around the block and while his success is evident, so are his failures. I just don't know how you can say this was a good marketing move. Excellent, excellent post.
3rdnlng Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Seems to me that more and more often a spell checker is substitued for another person proofreading articles. Guess it's just the way things are going... Yes, I know.
GrudginglyPessimistic Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 The first three words of Lombardi's article are actually the part that is spot on He says, "I don’t understand" The rest of the article is fairly ignorable after the total truth he states initially.
papazoid Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Gailey gets very positive endorsements from Bill Cowher, Scott Pioli & Jerry Jones...... Lombardi seems to criticize the choice because it doesn't sell tickets ???......you mean, the football side won over the marketing side ??......sounds like they made the right LONG TERM decision.
Mike in Syracuse Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 "Gailey was almost hired last year by Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli to be the head coach, but because Pioli didn’t think he could sell Gailey to the media or the Kansas City fan base as the man to rebuild the team’s fortunes, he passed, opting to keep him as offensive coordinator." So rather than worry about actually winning he was worries about selling tickets? I'm betting if Pioli hires Gailey as HC it would be a "genius" move by the guy that built the Patriots. How'd KC do this year? I must have missed their appearance in the playoffs?
Fastback Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Lombardi is 100% correct. Except that the bills have been the Raiders "East" for some time. I have been a lifelong Bills fan, my Dad having taken me to games at the Rockpile when I was a young kid. But for all the times in the past when I wanted to jump ship and my gut wouldn't let me, this time is different. Although I no longer live in the area, my family continues to be season ticket holders. If they re-up again this year, I'm going to buy them sessions with a mental health provider for Christmas. The bottom line is that for all the good Ralph has done by keeping the team in the city, he now needs to pass in order for this team to even have a shot. I don't wish for the man to die, but the reality is that this team will continue to be a joke until he's gone and the issue of ownership and location is resolved. Until that time, I'm off the ship. Although I'll continue to watch the train wreck, much like a person passing a crash scene, I'm no longer on the bandwagon. For those of you who continue to 'Billeve', good luck and please, stay away from the booze, drugs and prescription medication, because it will own you. It's a sad day for me...
leh-nerd skin-erd Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Good point. I'm thinking about the upcoming year more than 2-3 years down the road. For 2010, I don't see much light: a weak receiving corps, no LT, a RB about to run out of town, and no credible QB. They may draft some good players, but I don't think they'll do much this year. we agree there. 2010 seems to be a rebuilding year. No one rebuilds like the Buffalo Bills.
jonramz Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Lombardi is terrible now... when the site first started and they needed visitors, they really put forth an effort to make it an interesting must read. Now it is the same boring stuff you can get anywhere. Here is the comment I left for him Mike, You say the Scott Pioli, who is a highly respected personnel man, almost hired Chan Gailey for the Chiefs, and the only reason they didn't was for non-football reasons (fan base and media). Yet when the Bills hire Gailey, you trash it for not looking outside. If they wanted to stay in house they could have kept the highly respected Perry Fewell. As far as Gailey's college credentials, the guy did go to a bowl game every year and recruiting is almost as important as coaching in the college game. Would I have preferred Shanahan, Cowher or Martz? Of course, but Gailey isn't terrible. And Frazier's success has as much to do w/ the plethora of defensive talent given to him as it does his tampa-2 scheme which the Bills also ran (with far less talent) Does Wilson meddle? Of course he does, he's 90+ years old and has nothing else to do. He tried hiring an outside total football guy in Donahoe and that didn't work. So now he went back to a guy that was very successful w/ the Bills in Buddy Nix, who was on the Polian/Butler staffs and later went to SD with them. I don't see that as being a bad thing at all. All I am saying is that over the past 10 years, the Bills did try different approaches, Donahoe, Levy, Brandon (a marvelous business guy, who if he could have somehow translated to football, the Bills would have been great) and now Nix. If anything they are thinking too far outside the box by not going w/ the same tried and true safe approach that every other team uses. So please don't compare the Bills to the Raiders, who are fighting with each other literally and drafting guys in the 1st 2 rounds that could have been available in the 5th and 6th. Just because something hasn't been successful, doesn't mean it isn't for lack of change. Change does not equal better results.
reddogblitz Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Jerry Jones says the biggest mistake he ever made was letting Chan Gailey go. http://audio.wgr550.com/m/audio/28424737/r...-simon-show.htm Anything Jerry Jones sez I right off consider total BS. This isn't helping.
bananathumb Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Lombardi sees the team from a national perspective, a view that many posters cannot appreciate. The Bills truly are a trainwreck right now.
PastaJoe Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Jerry Jones says the biggest mistake he ever made was letting Chan Gailey go. http://audio.wgr550.com/m/audio/28424737/r...-simon-show.htm He forgot about the facelift that made him look Asian. I heard that Ralph wants to save money by hiring Dick Jauron as DC.
timbuk3 Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 If he wins football games, you don't need "buzz". The guy comes highly recommended from the majority of this board's savior (Bill Cowher), and Scott Pioli thinks he is a HC material as well. The last thing this franchise needs is a move to create "buzz". If Pioli really thought he was HC material, we would have hired him as HC.
RuntheDamnBall Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Has no one paused to consider that Lombardi -- or any former GM looking to get back into the league for that matter -- is going to have a skewed perspective on the Bills' front-office moves? I'm sure he thinks he was the right guy for the job, and that he didn't get the chance to prove it. I'm on the fence on Gailey, but I'll see what he does first, particularly with regard to assembling a staff.
Adam Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/Diner-...route-5686.html I agree completely. Hurry up and finish Jerry Sullivan's column, so you don't miss whatever is on WGR 55. MIke Lombardi....never heard of him..... Please......Chan Gailey is a very disciplined an structured coach- and by the way, he has been brought in from the outside. With good players, he had a 10-6 season and went 8-8 with the big three in decline in Dallas- the plug was pulled on him prematurely. When Levy resigned, this is the guy I wanted to bring in- he took Cowher to the Superbowl in a year that the team had to reverse its offensive direction and put the offense in the hands of a guy the caliber of Mike Tomczak. I have a feeling we will try to get Okung and LeFevour. If Lynch is back next year, look for him to get quite a few more carries than Jackson, as he is more suited to the power style that Gailey likes in his running game.
BillsVet Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Smithers has the easiest job in the world. Buffalo is city that supports it's teams no matter what and TBD is just an example of that unconditional love. It may be loyal to a fault but it can't be denied. Do you really think that OBD will have trouble selling this team? I sure as hell don't. How many stupid "Dear John" letters do we have to see on this site? Always posted by a fan that returns that following day and then the next. Very few Bills fans are going anywhere. So what happened in 06 and 07 when there were multiple games blacked out? The NFL remains wildly popular, but Buffalo wasn't selling games out even after Marv was inexplicably named GM (of football I might add). The Dear John letters are more plentiful because the organization stopped caring about winning after TD failed. And no amount of PR can make up for the trainwreck they've become. I suppose ignorance is bliss. Except fewer people are ignorant with hirings like this that serve to remove that they've become Raiderish.
SuperKillerRobots Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Huh? Is Lombardi high? This is a bad hire because the Bills can't sell it?? Never mindthat Pioli and Cowher think he was HC material. It's not good marketing? What a load of crap! PTR I didn't get that part of the article either. He writes about the whole thing like people here are going to be pissed off even if he wins 10 games next year (which he won't and the fans wouldn't if he did).
cale Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 Hurry up and finish Jerry Sullivan's column, so you don't miss whatever is on WGR 55. MIke Lombardi....never heard of him..... Please......Chan Gailey is a very disciplined an structured coach- and by the way, he has been brought in from the outside. With good players, he had a 10-6 season and went 8-8 with the big three in decline in Dallas- the plug was pulled on him prematurely. When Levy resigned, this is the guy I wanted to bring in- he took Cowher to the Superbowl in a year that the team had to reverse its offensive direction and put the offense in the hands of a guy the caliber of Mike Tomczak. I have a feeling we will try to get Okung and LeFevour. If Lynch is back next year, look for him to get quite a few more carries than Jackson, as he is more suited to the power style that Gailey likes in his running game. Are you serious, take carries from our most productive RB and give them to a kid who has issues? The fact is this whole organization after 10 years of dysfunction needed was a whole body enema and what we got instead is the same binging and choking of/in their own poop. I agree with Lombardi. C
bigskyfan Posted January 19, 2010 Posted January 19, 2010 If he wins football games, you don't need "buzz". The guy comes highly recommended from the majority of this board's savior (Bill Cowher), and Scott Pioli thinks he is a HC material as well. The last thing this franchise needs is a move to create "buzz". agreed Hiring solid assistant coaches and bringing in new front office personal (firing modrak, overdorf and guy) would be all the buzz i need and would be happy with chan gailly. Nothing happens in this franichise until we bring in more talented football players year after year, and that is the repsonsibility of the front office.
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