26CornerBlitz Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Whaley has made strong case to stay on as GM The city is buzzing. People are sharing stories from the old days and practically hugging in the streets. A man who moved to Buffalo from the Dominican Republic called WGR choking back tears talking about raising his daughter to love the Buffalo Bills. Terry and Kim Pegula’s purchase of the Bills drew fan celebrations all over town and in every part of the country. But in the front office, the bottle popping was probably pretty tempered. Pegula’s handling of the Buffalo Sabres’ front office offered things to be desired and feared. He amped up their scouting, analytics and technology 10 fold – he also fired two coaches and a general manager. At 1 Bills Drive, the question on everyone’s mind has to be: How will Terry and Kim evaluate the performance of those who are currently in place? We know the coaching staff will be graded on the same merit as all other coaching staffs in the NFL: Wins and losses. What about the general manager? His decision making abilities cannot simply be judged on whether the team came out victorious. The GM needs to be looked at through a sharper lens. The Pegulas need to look at Doug Whaley’s moves based on the logic and intelligence behind them, not on the result. How things turned out can be – and often is - skewed by luck. But did he do the right thing? Through two offseasons and two drafts, Whaley’s decisions have not only bought him enough time for further evaluation, but have proven he can vastly improve a roster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 I think Whaley is a no brainer to stay for at least another year and probably much, much longer. My real worry about him was the seemingly criminal negligence of the backup QB position which he solved before the season. He is building a strong team with depth most everywhere. The new punter, too, looked great, but of course that was only one game and we have a long, long way to go to see if he is a keeper. Corey, Graham, Boobie and MWilliams already paid dividends. Of course there are going to be some decisions to quibble with. I don't think they should have let Byrd go the way they did. He put all his eggs in one basket in EJ which is still an unknown although there weren't a lot of good options. Cujo, while two years too early to call a bust was made up for by the shrewd Seantrell pick. The Watkins trade is arguable although personally I think it was terrific. He's building a team to last though. Which Pegula, if anyone, should appreciate. IMO his job is completely safe unless there is a total collapse to 3-13 or something, which is highly unlikely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Whaley fired a GM??? Anyway, ultimately GMs, like everyone else in a front office or on the coachign staff, will be judged by the results of the team he assembled, not by "thelogic and intelligence" of his decisions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augie Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 I think Whaley is a no brainer to stay for at least another year and probably much, much longer. My real worry about him was the seemingly criminal negligence of the backup QB position which he solved before the season. He is building a strong team with depth most everywhere. The new punter, too, looked great, but of course that was only one game and we have a long, long way to go to see if he is a keeper. Corey, Graham, Boobie and MWilliams already paid dividends. Of course there are going to be some decisions to quibble with. I don't think they should have let Byrd go the way they did. He put all his eggs in one basket in EJ which is still an unknown although there weren't a lot of good options. Cujo, while two years too early to call a bust was made up for by the shrewd Seantrell pick. The Watkins trade is arguable although personally I think it was terrific. He's building a team to last though. Which Pegula, if anyone, should appreciate. IMO his job is completely safe unless there is a total collapse to 3-13 or something, which is highly unlikely. Thanks for saving me a lot of typing - and yours probably turned out better than mine would have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Unless they win, house will be cleaned. If they lose, I would expect another year and then they are all out-- like what haslem did in Cleveland, if I recall correctly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffOrange Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 We know the coaching staff will be graded on the same merit as all other coaching staffs in the NFL: Wins and losses. What about the general manager? His decision making abilities cannot simply be judged on whether the team came out victorious. The GM needs to be looked at through a sharper lens. The Pegulas need to look at Doug Whaley’s moves based on the logic and intelligence behind them, not on the result. How things turned out can be – and often is - skewed by luck. But did he do the right thing? "With the coach we all need to have a shortsighted, mob mentality. But with the GM? Lets try and be analytical and smart!". Umm, sure Mathew. The QB has the single greatest impact on W/L and that's on the GM more than it is the coach. I think Whaley is a no brainer to stay for at least another year and probably much, much longer. My real worry about him was the seemingly criminal negligence of the backup QB position which he solved before the season. He is building a strong team with depth most everywhere. The new punter, too, looked great, but of course that was only one game and we have a long, long way to go to see if he is a keeper. Corey, Graham, Boobie and MWilliams already paid dividends. Of course there are going to be some decisions to quibble with. I don't think they should have let Byrd go the way they did. He put all his eggs in one basket in EJ which is still an unknown although there weren't a lot of good options. Cujo, while two years too early to call a bust was made up for by the shrewd Seantrell pick. The Watkins trade is arguable although personally I think it was terrific. He's building a team to last though. Which Pegula, if anyone, should appreciate. IMO his job is completely safe unless there is a total collapse to 3-13 or something, which is highly unlikely. You can quibble about the QB in football like you quibble about the foundation of a house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 "With the coach we all need to have a shortsighted, mob mentality. But with the GM? Lets try and be analytical and smart!". Umm, sure Mathew. The QB has the single greatest impact on W/L and that's on the GM more than it is the coach. You can quibble about the QB in football like you quibble about the foundation of a house. Tell me which franchise QB would you have drafted two years ago or signed in FA since he took on the job? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Formerly Allan in MD Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 If he can come up with something to even remotely make up for that number 1 next year, he's truly a keeper. This team needs to sign quality free agents. I don't think Pegula will zip the wallet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsVet Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 If decisions are based on the short term (as in 1 off-season) perhaps. But 1 victory isn't enough to save a job. It's my belief that a football consultant will be at OBD later this season to evaluate senior management. If the Bills are playoff bound with say a 10-6 record Whaley might stay. But if not, a fresh start with a new owner might be the on the table. I think Pegula has learned success in major professional sports means finding the right management and not trusting the previous regime to all of a sudden get it despite being supported with deep pockets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsFanM.D. Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Nothing long winded here...I just think Whaley has done a good job overall. He's young and seems to be well respected (hearing NFL types talk about him) which probably means more than my internet opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26CornerBlitz Posted September 10, 2014 Author Share Posted September 10, 2014 Unless they win, house will be cleaned. If they lose, I would expect another year and then they are all out-- like what haslem did in Cleveland, if I recall correctly. Haslam is not an example to cite for what new ownership should do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 (edited) Tell me which franchise QB would you have drafted two years ago or signed in FA since he took on the job? Exactly. You have to consider what Whaley's options were at the time. Everyone wants a franchise QB but no one can tell you who they should've gotten. Edited September 10, 2014 by PromoTheRobot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 (edited) They seem to be a smart family that make smart decisions. They are fans of the bills so they likely know much about where the team has been, where it is now and where it looks like it's going. If they like where it seems to be going and they establish good relationships with the in house front office, or if they don't want to manage in detail at the gm level themselves little will change... If they don't, or think they can do a better job, then some house cleaning will occur. The tricky part here is they are stepping in early amidst someone else's rebuild. In my fanhoods opinion, Whaley has yet to make a move I've disliked at the time and most of them even have looked pretty good in retrospect, which is all the more rare. Add to it the remarkable improvement the the talent recent drafts have delivered and I'll say this.... If he is canned for any reason he will have multiple offers in no time flat. Edited September 10, 2014 by over 20 years of fanhood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyd19 Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Tell me which franchise QB would you have drafted two years ago or signed in FA since he took on the job? Russell Wilson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TraumaGuy860 Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Russell Wilson I believe that was a Buddy Nix year when he was in control and Whaley was head of scouting or something to that effect Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26CornerBlitz Posted September 10, 2014 Author Share Posted September 10, 2014 Russell Wilson I believe that was a Buddy Nix year when he was in control and Whaley was head of scouting or something to that effect It was Buddy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsFanMike Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 They seem to be a smart family that make smart decisions. They are fans of the bills so they likely know much about where the team has been, where it is now and where it looks like it's going. If they like where it seems to be going and they establish good relationships with the in house front office, or if they want to manage the gm duties themselves little will change... If they don't, or think they can do a better job, then some house cleaning will occur. The tricky part here is they are stepping in early amidst someone else's rebuild. In my fanhoods opinion, Whaley has yet to make a move I've disliked at the time and most of them even have looked pretty good in retrospect, which is all the more rare. Add to it the remarkable improvement the the talent recent drafts have delivered and I'll say this.... If he is canned for any reason he will have multiple offers in no time flat. I agree Whaley has been good at evaluating free agents and draft picks. You can't always pick great players but he has more hits than misses. IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickelCity Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 If Whaley is fired I'm going to throw a fit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Hindsight Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Well he signed Jordan Palmer. I think he deserves to be tarred and feathered! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Well he signed Jordan Palmer. I think he deserves to be tarred and feathered! It must have been his keen insight that helped the bills create all of those turnovers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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