hondo in seattle Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 Ike Hilliard was fired on Black Monday. At the time, Marrone said, “The evaluation starts with me. We’ve already made one change. Ike Hilliard is no longer with us." He seemed to be hinting that more changes would follow. But so far, nothing. So what do you guys think? Will Marrone make any more changes to his staff? Will he hire a dedicated QB coach? Will he release his buddy, Danny Crossman? Will any other coaches be replaced?
Mr. WEO Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 He will replace thousands of "ya know"s with "mmmkay?"s.
Optometric Insight Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 Drawing from the press conference, I feel that Marrone is a methodical guy and is gonna watch game film and see what needs to be fixed. Of course it seems obvious that some coaches need to be replaced/added (Crossman, QB coach), but he may feel that he can fix problems he sees without lopping any heads off (whether that's the right choice or not). If he's gonna fire any coaches, its going to be after he reviews game film and talks to his staff.
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 I am going to say no one else gets the ax at the upper levels. You never know about lower level assistants, quality control guys, etc. I would predict that crossman stays.
San Jose Bills Fan Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 Ike Hilliard was fired on Black Monday. At the time, Marrone said, “The evaluation starts with me. We’ve already made one change. Ike Hilliard is no longer with us." He seemed to be hinting that more changes would follow. But so far, nothing. So what do you guys think? Will Marrone make any more changes to his staff? Will he hire a dedicated QB coach? Will he release his buddy, Danny Crossman? Will any other coaches be replaced? I wondered if part of the Hilliard dismissal was to placate the bloodlust of an unhappy fan base. It could be argued that HIlliard was sacrificed to make others more safe. I certainly hope this isn't the case but I keep thinking about the release of Tashard Choice after the Atlanta game. Anyways, I don't know if any more change is afoot but I'd still like to see a full time QB Coach. I'm skeptical of Hackett's age to begin with and the fact that he has two titles makes me even more doubtful.
Mr. WEO Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 Drawing from the press conference, I feel that Marrone is a methodical guy and is gonna watch game film and see what needs to be fixed. Of course it seems obvious that some coaches need to be replaced/added (Crossman, QB coach), but he may feel that he can fix problems he sees without lopping any heads off (whether that's the right choice or not). If he's gonna fire any coaches, its going to be after he reviews game film and talks to his staff. He needs game film to know which staff to fire??
Green Lightning Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 (edited) Agree with SHBF and Crossman needs to be counseled to a new profession. Edited January 2, 2014 by Green Lightning
White Linen Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 (edited) I wondered if part of the Hilliard dismissal was to placate the bloodlust of an unhappy fan base. It could be argued that HIlliard was sacrificed to make others more safe. I certainly hope this isn't the case but I keep thinking about the release of Tashard Choice after the Atlanta game. Anyways, I don't know if any more change is afoot but I'd still like to see a full time QB Coach. I'm skeptical of Hackett's age to begin with and the fact that he has two titles makes me even more doubtful. I understand there are times when you have to fire a coach if the mob is shouting for it. History proves there are several examples of leaders having no choice but to lean towards the will of the people. I don't know what would scare me more, that the current leaders would fold to the fans after year one of their plan, or if they did and thought Hilliard would be an acceptable sacrifice. I am personally behind this current group of leaders because they've given me very very little to complain about. Edited January 2, 2014 by Triple Threat
San Jose Bills Fan Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 I understand there are times when you have to fire a coach if the mob is shouting for it. History proves there are several examples of leaders having no choice but to lean towards the will of the people. I don't know what would scare me more, that the current leaders would fold to the fans after year one of their plan, or if they did and thought Hilliard would be an acceptable sacrifice. I am personally behind this current group of leaders because they've given me very very little to complain about. Hopefully Hilliard's dismissal was based on poor job performance. Of course if that's true, the downside is that Hilliard was a bad hire.
Hapless Bills Fan Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 I wondered if part of the Hilliard dismissal was to placate the bloodlust of an unhappy fan base. I think it's reasonable to take the explanation of "philosophical differences" at face value. It's quite possible that the differences came to light when putting together the assessments and offseason programs for the WR. I would assume the position coaches put these together and a good, hands-on head coach will review them, at least for the starters and most highly regarded backups.
The Big Cat Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 Hopefully Hilliard's dismissal was based on poor job performance. Of course if that's true, the downside is that Hilliard was a bad hire. I think the receiving corps provided ample evidence that their position coach didn't demand the kind of buttoned-up professionalism Marrone expects. In fact, Marrone's own curt explanation of the matter supports this interpretation: it was a difference of philosophy. There was Internet goofiness during training camp (that I found refreshing at the time), there were critical drops and mistakes starting in week 1 and continuing through week 17, there was a game ejection, and there were instances cited throughout the season wherein the receivers just didn't know wtf was going on. Methinks Ike's philosophy isn't as demanding as Marrone's and methinks Marrone, regardless of whether he's the head coach, is right.
hondo in seattle Posted January 2, 2014 Author Posted January 2, 2014 It seems Marrone is blaming the poor performance of the WRs on Ike while blaming the poor performance of the Special Teams on the players. It seems to me Marrone watched enough game video, not to mention live action, to know which coaches need replacing. And I'd be surprised if the players expressed a lot of faith in Crossman. It's disappointing to me that Crossman still has a job. The ST players deserve better leadership. We fans deserve a better product on the field.
thewildrabbit Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 It seems Marrone is blaming the poor performance of the WRs on Ike while blaming the poor performance of the Special Teams on the players. It seems to me Marrone watched enough game video, not to mention live action, to know which coaches need replacing. And I'd be surprised if the players expressed a lot of faith in Crossman. It's disappointing to me that Crossman still has a job. The ST players deserve better leadership. We fans deserve a better product on the field. Exactly! I can only wonder If Ike got the blame for TJ Graham trying to catch the ball with his stomach. Then blaming Ike as the one who said to cut Da'Rick Rodgers. It will get very heated in this forum should Rodgers do well in the playoffs for Indy. What is very disconcerting to me is that Marrone is a supposed O line guru, and was out on the field "hands on" in pre season / practices. Then to have the starting LG perform so poorly in the first five games that they were forced to bench him and then outright cut him as he graded as the very worst OG in the NFL. Then his backup Sam Young turned out to be just as bad so he was also outright cut. The back ups at OG then were secured right off the waiver wire. This makes me wonder if this ex NFL lineman, ex NFL O line coach, ex NFL OC even knows wtf he is looking at in terms of player evaluation. Top coaches don't make these type of mistakes in their area of expertise. Crossman is by far the worst ST's coach this team has had in a while grading at 30th in the league http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/teamst How does a 250 lb RB gain 147 yards on 2 returns ....oh I forgot, the special teams needs better players. The countdown has already started on this HC / staff getting fired, its only a question of when.
PO'14 Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 He will replace thousands of "ya know"s with "mmmkay?"s. I just watched the Kyle Williams locker room interview. Had to stop mid way cuz the " You Knows " was very annoying. Marrone is teaching his players very well. At one point, Kyle said: " You Know, Um, You know I think...." http://www.buffalobills.com/video/videos/Kyle-Williams-on-Feeling-Good-About-the-Future/f7eada32-8a21-476f-9685-a407bfb9369c
BuffaloBill Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 I am going to say no one else gets the ax at the upper levels. You never know about lower level assistants, quality control guys, etc. I would predict that crossman stays. Sadly, this looks to be the case. There was excuse making for Crossman i.e. Not enough core players on ST's. So much for accountability and an understanding of the fan base. Bill's fans know what good to very good ST's play like and under Crossman we have seen the opposite.
Kirby Jackson Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 (edited) It seems Marrone is blaming the poor performance of the WRs on Ike while blaming the poor performance of the Special Teams on the players. It seems to me Marrone watched enough game video, not to mention live action, to know which coaches need replacing. And I'd be surprised if the players expressed a lot of faith in Crossman. It's disappointing to me that Crossman still has a job. The ST players deserve better leadership. We fans deserve a better product on the field. This x 1,000,000. The Crossman situation is not sitting well with me & I think that you hit the nail on the head. It's easy to preach accountability when it comes to an undrafted WR. What about someone who was granted the opportunity to prove his worth and was proven inept? I am not sure which is bothering me more, the hypocrisy of the situation or the fact that it looks like we will have to watch that ST unit for another season? Marrone will lose his credibility IMO if Crossman remains. Marrone's whole platform about accountability becomes a convenient answer to controversial decisions if Crossman stays. The next time he cites accountability as the reason that a particular decision was made I hope that the journalists keep digging. IMO Crossman being fired was the easiest decision that the team had to make this offseason. Instead of the obvious, we got excuses. Edited January 2, 2014 by Kirby Jackson
Gray Beard Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 I have a concern that without some signficant changes for next season, the players will realize pretty quickly that the losing will continue. A self fulfilling prophecy. I feel as though the need for upgrades at ST and QB coaching is legitimate, and it also sends a message to the players, not just the fans. If the players don't have faith in their coaches, bad stuff happens. it's easy to say that these players have been playing the game their whole lives, but if the coaches are not stressing/practicing the importance of staying in their lanes, wrapping up, hitting low rather than high, etc., then the bad habits creep in. (A personal gripe, you don't tackle by bumping or grabbing at the shoulders. Wrap up the legs!)
DOGNESS Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 Marrones credibility certainly comes into question when he hires his buddy to coach special teams despite his buddys poor track record as special teams coach for other NFL teams. It begins to crumble when his buddys poor performance continues on his own staff and he does nothing about it. This isnt pop warner Doug. Time to man up, fire this guy, and find someone who is competent. Special teams cost us at least one game this year. You cant afford to have that when any single game can make or break your season. One game can be the difference between winning the division or getting in as a wild card. Wake up.
G-Daddy Posted January 2, 2014 Posted January 2, 2014 What about the analytics guy? Seems like a waste.
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