Bill Polian

[zow2]

I mean the guy assembled a great Bills dynasty but he was fortunate to have a great confluence of talent and Marv worked out better than anyone could have imagined. Kelly as your QB is a "can't lose" situation.

 

He won a 3rd Executive Of The Year award in 1996 after a season in which the 2nd year Carolina Panthers came within one game of the Superbowl.

 

He did great in selecting Peyton Manning #1 (1998) instead of Leaf and Edgerrin James #4 (1999) instead of bonghead Ricky. Some other draft picks like Reggie Wayne and Dwight Freeney have panned out nicely.

 

I guess all in all, the guy is darn good...sprinkled with a little luck.

 

Too bad the Bills fired him,,,,not because he wasn't doing a good job, but because he didn't get along with Bills Treasurer Jeff Littmann. Only Ralph knows the real reason behind that feud.

[plenzmd1]

I mean the guy assembled a great Bills dynasty but he was fortunate to have a great confluence of talent and Marv worked out better than anyone could have imagined.  Kelly as your QB is a "can't lose" situation.

 

He won a 3rd Executive Of The Year award in 1996 after a season in which the 2nd year Carolina Panthers came within one game of the Superbowl.

 

He did great in selecting Peyton Manning #1 (1998) instead of Leaf and Edgerrin James #4 (1999) instead of bonghead Ricky.  Some other draft picks like Reggie Wayne and Dwight Freeney have panned out nicely.

 

I guess all in all, the guy is darn good...sprinkled with a little luck.

 

Too bad the Bills fired him,,,,not because he wasn't doing a good job, but because he didn't get along with Bills Treasurer Jeff Littmann.  Only Ralph knows the real reason behind that feud.

202679[/snapback]

 

Said in Marvs book( which God love Marv, IMO the book is awful) that Ralph and Bill were the ones who coudnt get along, and that Polian was actually fired in Septemebr but stayed on thru the year for continuity. Again, could be glossing over the reasons in the book, but that what it said.

 

Oh BTW, no way is Polian lucky. Man is flat out among the top three execs in the league over the last 15 years

[Like A Mofo]

I think Bill is one of the top GM's in the league NO question about it....but the 3 teams he has been with (Buffalo, Carolina and the Colts) ALL were at rock bottom when he started, there was nowhere to go but up....still though, Im not saying he isnt a fantastic GM, but dont lose sight of that fact either.

[Arkady Renko]

Said in Marvs book( which God love Marv, IMO the book is awful) that Ralph and Bill were the ones who coudnt get along, and that Polian was actually fired in Septemebr but stayed on thru the year for continuity. Again, could be glossing over the reasons in the book, but that what it said.

 

Oh BTW, no way is Polian lucky. Man is flat out among the top three execs in the league over the last 15 years

202714[/snapback]

 

Polian seems to understand that character and intelligence matters when choosing players for a football team.

[pm73]

I mean the guy assembled a great Bills dynasty but he was fortunate to have a great confluence of talent and Marv worked out better than anyone could have imagined.  Kelly as your QB is a "can't lose" situation.

 

He won a 3rd Executive Of The Year award in 1996 after a season in which the 2nd year Carolina Panthers came within one game of the Superbowl.

 

He did great in selecting Peyton Manning #1 (1998) instead of Leaf and Edgerrin James #4 (1999) instead of bonghead Ricky.  Some other draft picks like Reggie Wayne and Dwight Freeney have panned out nicely.

 

I guess all in all, the guy is darn good...sprinkled with a little luck.

 

Too bad the Bills fired him,,,,not because he wasn't doing a good job, but because he didn't get along with Bills Treasurer Jeff Littmann.  Only Ralph knows the real reason behind that feud.

202679[/snapback]

 

 

you just described it yourself. polian is an incredible evaluator of talent, both players AND coaches. the fact that he was faced with what many would consider difficult chopices at the time (manning v leaf, edge v ricky) and he hit it out of the park both times. I would have every single bit of confidence in him going into any draft.

 

he is the BEST in the league and has proven it time and time again. it;s not like he inherited teams with even some semblence of a foundation. the bills were junk when he got them, indy was a complete joke, and carolina didn't have even one player on their team. AMAZING!!!!

[gantrules]

And what have we done since he's been gone. Meanwhile look at Indy. We miss you Bill.

[Alaska Darin]

I think Bill is one of the top GM's in the league NO question about it....but the 3 teams he has been with (Buffalo, Carolina and the Colts) ALL were at rock bottom when he started, there was nowhere to go but up....still though, Im not saying he isnt a fantastic GM, but dont lose sight of that fact either.

202719[/snapback]

Having "nowhere to go but up" describes virtually every team in the NFL over the last 15 years. Yet this man has gotten all three of them to the top of their class in very short time frames using virtually the same strategy.

[Like A Mofo]

Having "nowhere to go but up" describes virtually every team in the NFL over the last 15 years.  Yet this man has gotten all three of them to the top of their class in very short time frames using virtually the same strategy.

202814[/snapback]

 

 

Oh absolutely...I not trying to say Polian isnt a great GM....but all 3 situations were similar...lets be honest, IMO it is easier to take over a team that has nowhere to go but up then a team that has been at the top for a few years and maintain the high level of play.

[tornado681]

Said in Marvs book( which God love Marv, IMO the book is awful) that Ralph and Bill were the ones who coudnt get along, and that Polian was actually fired in Septemebr but stayed on thru the year for continuity. Again, could be glossing over the reasons in the book, but that what it said.

202714[/snapback]

 

Why is the book awful? I heard from some people that it was good....should I not buy it?

[Rico]

Anybody remember Polian's classic press conference in 1989?

"Jim Kelly is the QB of the Bills,

and Marv Levy is the coach,

and if you don't like it,

YOU CAN GET OUT OF TOWN!"

[Fake-Fat Sunny]

The point the question raised for me was how it certainly is true that good talent creates good luck.

 

I think this is true because virtually all success stories have key elements in them where things broke the right way when they could easily have broken the wrong way. What often makes a difference is that being talented allows you to maximize good luck and minimize the bad effects of nbad breaks.

 

I think a judgement of Polian is one where you recognze he has been very lucky but he clearly has had the skills to use that luck well.

[Carmel Corn]

Polian can flat out build a winner and has made great draft choices here over the years. Some examples:

 

1. Peyton Manning vs. Ryan Leaf - people were split nearly 50-50 on which player to take #1. Many thought Leaf was the answer because he supposedly had more upside potential.

 

2. The "Edge" vs. Ricky Williams - people were shocked that he selected James as the first RB that draft. With the exception of the 2002/2003 knee injury, he has been one of the premier backs in the league who is often overlooked for his pass protection ability.

 

3. Dwight Freeney - I remember many comments on this board where people felt that Bryant McKinney was the stud we should take at #4 and that he manhandled Freeney during a major bowl game. Others said that Polian took Freeney way too early in the first round. Freeney is still soft against the run, however I think he has shown exceptional pass rushing abilities since day 1 in the league.

 

4. Drafting Reggie Wayne - not a bad compliment to Marvin Harrison, ask Denver!

 

5. Hiring Jim Mora (OK, not a good decision), but then hiring Tony Dungy! Hopefully we will have similar success with Tom Donahue's second coach.

 

These are just some of the higher profile picks he's made. It doesn't even speak to some of the other picks including OL made in lower rounds.

[Fake-Fat Sunny]

And what have we done since he's been gone. Meanwhile look at Indy. We miss you Bill.

202755[/snapback]

 

I think the last SB appearance of the Bills was more Butler's doing than Polian's doing. In addition. the Polian SB's occured in some part because Polian was smart enough to recognize Butler's talents as an evaluator.

 

We do miss the things Polian did for Buffalo, but I think it would be incorrect to describe the squad as a failure since he left or to give him all the credit for the good things which occured on his watch.

[1billsfan]

Said in Marvs book( which God love Marv, IMO the book is awful) that Ralph and Bill were the ones who coudnt get along, and that Polian was actually fired in Septemebr but stayed on thru the year for continuity. Again, could be glossing over the reasons in the book, but that what it said.

 

Oh BTW, no way is Polian lucky. Man is flat out among the top three execs in the league over the last 15 years

202714[/snapback]

 

 

I read this article in the Indystar today and it's obvious the columnist can't stand Polian. I don't understand why a Colt columnist would have such distain for a man who helped drag his team from the NFL bottom dwellers. Does anyone know why the hatred of Polian here?

 

 

http://www.indystar.com/articles/0/208754-9580-196.html

"Second, understand part of the motivation. Vanderjagt dislikes Polian intensely, which gives us one thing in common. I can promise you, when Polian heard about this, his face turned a color somewhere between rose and magenta."

[Alaska Darin]

I read this article in the Indystar today and it's obvious the columnist can't stand Polian. I don't understand why a Colt columnist would have such distain for a man who helped drag his team from the NFL bottom dwellers. Does anyone know why the hatred of Polian here?

http://www.indystar.com/articles/0/208754-9580-196.html

"Second, understand part of the motivation. Vanderjagt dislikes Polian intensely, which gives us one thing in common. I can promise you, when Polian heard about this, his face turned a color somewhere between rose and magenta."

202867[/snapback]

Polian is very short with the media. VERY few media types like him - not unlike TD.

[gantrules]

Polian can flat out build a winner and has made great draft choices here over the years.  Some examples:

 

1. Peyton Manning vs. Ryan Leaf - people were split nearly 50-50 on which player to take #1.  Many thought Leaf was the answer because he supposedly had more upside potential.

 

2. The "Edge" vs. Ricky Williams - people were shocked that he selected James as the first RB that draft.  With the exception of the 2002/2003 knee injury, he has been one of the premier backs in the league who is often overlooked for his pass protection ability.

 

3. Dwight Freeney - I remember many comments on this board where people felt that Bryant McKinney was the stud we should take at #4 and that he manhandled Freeney during a major bowl game.  Others said that Polian took Freeney way too early in the first round. Freeney is still soft against the run, however I think he has shown exceptional pass rushing abilities since day 1 in the league.

 

4. Drafting Reggie Wayne - not a bad compliment to Marvin Harrison, ask Denver!

 

5. Hiring Jim Mora (OK, not a good decision), but then hiring Tony Dungy!  Hopefully we will have similar success with Tom Donahue's second coach.

 

These are just some of the higher profile picks he's made.  It doesn't even speak to some of the other picks including OL made in lower rounds.

202837[/snapback]

 

Excellent post. I wish I had something to add.

[1billsfan]

Polian is very short with the media.  VERY few media types like him - not unlike TD.

202869[/snapback]

 

That explains it.

[gantrules]

I think the last SB appearance of the Bills was more Butler's doing than Polian's doing.  In addition. the Polian SB's occured in some part because Polian was smart enough to recognize Butler's talents as an evaluator.

 

We do miss the things Polian did for Buffalo, but I think it would be incorrect to describe the squad as a failure since he left or to give him all the credit for the good things which occured on his watch.

202847[/snapback]

 

Yes, but since he's left things have continually gotten worse overall. Individual players have had wonderful seasons but as a team it seems as though we were on a constant downward spiral.

[Ralonzo]

but the 3 teams he has been with (Buffalo, Carolina and the Colts) ALL were at rock bottom when he started, there was nowhere to go but up....

202719[/snapback]

 

That doesn't explain the Cardinals...

[zow2]

I read this article in the Indystar today and it's obvious the columnist can't stand Polian. I don't understand why a Colt columnist would have such distain for a man who helped drag his team from the NFL bottom dwellers. Does anyone know why the hatred of Polian here?

http://www.indystar.com/articles/0/208754-9580-196.html

"Second, understand part of the motivation. Vanderjagt dislikes Polian intensely, which gives us one thing in common. I can promise you, when Polian heard about this, his face turned a color somewhere between rose and magenta."

202867[/snapback]

 

Actually, I posted this question to the board because I'm curious what you all think?, but I casually knew Polian when he was with the Bills. I had a low level job at OBD at the time and got to observe some of his antics. What you saw in public was just the tip of the iceberg. This man had an unbelievably bad temper and foul mouth. The slightest thing would set him off and you could hear him shouting and pounding the walls in his office. Pretty funny if you ask me. Unless you were Marv or Kelly, I imagine he'd rub almost anyone the wrong way. I'm sure this Indianapolis sportwriter has been on Polian's bad side and probably doesn't care for him too much. Although you can't argue that he's a great GM/President.