Last Guy on the Bench Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 No.... he isn't. He is Managing Partner and President. Football Operations are these folks: David Wheat Chief Administrative Officer Scott Berchtold Sr. VP of Communications Marc Honan Sr. VP of Media & Content Jim Overdorf Sr. VP of Football Administration Gregg Brandon General Counsel Dan Evans VP of Information Technology Gretchen Geitter VP of Community Relations Andy Major VP Operations and Guest Experience Erica Muhleman VP Corporate Partnerships Bill Munson VP of Government Relations and External Affairs Tying it all together, M&T called and b*tched at one of them for not giving them a heads up and the Ops dept feel Whaley made them look bad. Now that actually makes sense, Yolo. Thanks.
dave mcbride Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 (edited) I would hope not since the entire notion of 'Whaley going rogue' is laughably idiotic. He's the GENERAL MANAGER! His job is to CUT PLAYERS. As far as anyone here knows, he doesn't need to ask permission or seek counsel or inform the owner about what players get signed or cut. As someone pointed out above, we should be very happy we don't have a Dan Snyder like owner sticking his nose into football decisions. The Pegulas know how to operate large businesses from the top -- that is their skill set. They likely don't know **** about evaluating football talent and that's why like any good business owner, they empower their management team to make such decisions on their own. Leaving the semantics of the rogue issue aside (which is a minor point anyway), the issue seems to me to be that he didn't consilt the coaches. If a "football czar" with maximumum juice (like Donohoe) did it, it wouldn't be as big of an issue. But in this regime, Whaley doesn't appear to have that juice, judging from his near-death experience at the end of 2014 and the fact that the coach makes FAR more than him and is much more famous. That's at the root of this, I suspect. The fact that some in the organization on the other side of Whaley are going to the News to tell reporters about this is ... interesting. Remember that he did NOT get along with Marrone (who I still think was a decent coach who made a really bad decision on December 31), which also has me wondering. Everyone here hates Marrone, so that gets brushed off, but there's probably something there. The fact that Bucky Gleason (yes, I know ....) wrote two days ago that Whaley was lobbying for EJ also had me wondering. Edited September 2, 2015 by dave mcbride
YoloinOhio Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 I think a larger part of the story is being missed here. Fred actually says that Whaley was dishonest the entire time he knew him and that he believes it was Whaley's decision. I am kind of wondering why Tim is not exploring that instead of the specific player move. Probably in that Whaley has always told him he wants him there. My boss tells me that all the time too but if I was informed otherwise one day I wouldn't blame my boss, I would blame myself.
HereComesTheReignAgain Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 For those of you that keep calling Brown a "fumble machine", guess who was tied for most fumbles by a RB in 2014... http://www.sportingcharts.com/nfl/stats/most-fumbles-and-fumbles-lost/2014/
YoloinOhio Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Now that actually makes sense, Yolo. Thanks. It is just a theory but that's what I think happened after reading all of TG's tweets
Kelly the Dog Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Leaving the semantics of the rogue issue aside (which is a minor point anyway), the issue seems to me to be that he didn't consilt the coaches. If a "football czar" with maximumum juice (like Donohoe) did it, it wouldn't be as big of an issue. But in this regime, Whaley doesn't appear to have that juice, judging from his near-death experience at the end of 2014 and the fact that the coach makes FAR more than him and is much more famous. That's at the root of this, I suspect. The fact that some in the organization on the other side of Whaley are going to the News to tell reporters about this is ... interesting. Remember that he did NOT get along with Marrone (who I still think was a decent coach who made a really bad decision on December 31), which also has me wondering. Everyone here hates Marrone, so that gets brushed off, but there's probably something there. The fact that Bucky Gleason (yes, I know ....) wrote two days ago that Whaley was lobbying for EJ also had me wondering. "Some coaches" were not in favor of the move was the term.
Last Guy on the Bench Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Leaving the semantics of the rogue issue aside (which is a minor point anyway), the issue seems to me to be that he didn't consilt the coaches. If a "football czar" with maximumum juice (like Donohoe) did it, it wouldn't be as big of an issue. But in this regime, Whaley doesn't appear to have that juice, judging from his near-death experience at the end of 2014 and the fact that the coach makes FAR more than him and is much more famous. That's at the root of this, I suspect. The fact that some in the organization on the other side of Whaley are going to the News to tell reporters about this is ... interesting. Remember that he did NOT get along with Marrone (who I still think was a decent coach who made a really bad decision on December 31), which also has me wondering. Everyone here hates Marrone, so that gets brushed off, but there's probably something there. The fact that Bucky Gleason (yes, I know ....) wrote two days ago that Whaley was lobbying for EJ also had me wondering. I can't see any way Whaley is making any cuts (let alone Fred) without consulting the coaches. That would be career suicide, even for a Tsar, which he is not, as you point out. I think the theory about the other departments like marketing makes a lot more sense.
dave mcbride Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 (edited) For those of you that keep calling Brown a "fumble machine", guess who was tied for most fumbles by a RB in 2014... http://www.sportingcharts.com/nfl/stats/most-fumbles-and-fumbles-lost/2014/ I do think that there are fumbles and "fumbles." Fumbling out of bounds or as you hit the ground and bobble it a bit before recovering are different from Brown, who going back to his Eagles days suffered from the glaring open field strip. Jackson lost none of his fumbles last year, and he's never been a guy who has a rep for the running strip fumble. Edited September 2, 2015 by dave mcbride
A Dog Named Kelso Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Probably in that Whaley has always told him he wants him there. My boss tells me that all the time too but if I was informed otherwise one day I wouldn't blame my boss, I would blame myself. I guess if I was a reporter I would probably be questioning other former Bills to see if they had the same perception of Whaley not focused on a player move, while unpopular, is not going to be reversed. I think that would be a bigger story.
Kelly the Dog Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 I do think that there are fumbles and "fumbles." Fumbling out of bounds or as you the ground and bobble it a bit before recovering are different from Brown, who going back to his Eagles days suffered from the glaring open field strip. Jackson lost none of his fumbles last year, and he's never been a guy who has a rep for the running strip fumble. Brown has fumbled once in the last two years and there is no way he should have lost it. Scott Chandler had it in both of his hands, a simple recovery.
PromoTheRobot Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Apparently Mr. Graham has gone a step further, it wasn't even the coaches who disagreed: Tim Graham @ByTimGraham He deviated from the wishes of football ops and made the decision without any heads up. #GoingRogue Eventually Tim will reveal it was the mail room guy who was left out and he's pissed.
Wayne Cubed Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Probably in that Whaley has always told him he wants him there. My boss tells me that all the time too but if I was informed otherwise one day I wouldn't blame my boss, I would blame myself. Exactly. I said the same earlier in the thread. Your boss always wants you around, until he doesn't. And when he doesn't some people take that as he"lied".
Heels20X6 Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Eventually Tim will reveal it was the mail room guy who was left out and he's pissed. Wrong, it was the guy at the Bills Pro Shop who spent his lunch hour pressing extra number 22 jerseys only to find out Fred was released. Haven't read all 32 pages, but it's hilarious the lengths some posters go to so they can keep up the narrative that the Bills are a dysfunctional franchise... We have a great owner who doesn't meddle with roster decisions, a GM willing to make unpopular moves to try and get this team into the playoffs, and a coach who is willing to cast aside salaries and play the best man (starting Tyrod). But yah, let's keep pretending this is the Wilson-Levy-Jauron era.
PromoTheRobot Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 The logical guess is that football ops is Russ Brandon.Oh the irony,considering your recent Russ Brandon/football decisions tirade.
thebandit27 Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Apparently Mr. Graham has gone a step further, it wasn't even the coaches who disagreed: Tim Graham @ByTimGraham He deviated from the wishes of football ops and made the decision without any heads up. #GoingRogue Tim sure can backpedal after he completely makes up a story, can't he?
eball Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 It really does all come down to the marketing folks being upset they can no longer use their poster boy, doesn't it? #roguemyass
34-78-83 Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 "@ByTimGraham: He deviated from the wishes of football ops and made the decision without any heads up. https://t.co/QJSbbUMTev" Confirmation (as if it were still needed) that Whaley's unilateral decision to cut Fred was not a football decision, but a personal crusade. Very cowardly for a GM to cut players, especially such a prominent one, secretly against the wishes of the coach. Sleazy overstepping like this makes one wonder if Marrone's decision to walk wasn't as unwarrented as it seemed. You are truly a treat negativo! What a great schtik for this site.
GG Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 No.... he isn't. He is Managing Partner and President. Football Operations are these folks: David Wheat Chief Administrative Officer Scott Berchtold Sr. VP of Communications Marc Honan Sr. VP of Media & Content Jim Overdorf Sr. VP of Football Administration Gregg Brandon General Counsel Dan Evans VP of Information Technology Gretchen Geitter VP of Community Relations Andy Major VP Operations and Guest Experience Erica Muhleman VP Corporate Partnerships Bill Munson VP of Government Relations and External Affairs Tying it all together, M&T called and b*tched at one of them for not giving them a heads up and the Ops dept feel Whaley made them look bad. These people complaining wouldn't merit a Graham tweet.
Wayne Cubed Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Tim sure can backpedal after he completely makes up a story, can't he? Yup. He pissed someone off in the marketing department who went right to Tim Graham. These people complaining wouldn't merit a Graham tweet. And yet he tweeted it.
Jerry Jabber Posted September 2, 2015 Posted September 2, 2015 Don't get me wrong, I love Freddie just like the next Bills fan, but he's been declining and hasn't been able to stay healthy. With Freddie bonding with the community the way he did and always being a selfless player prolonged his career here in Buffalo. Otherwise, Freddie would have been out of here a few years ago. I hate to say it, but that's the harsh reality of professional sports, it's what have you done for me lately. Just look at Lee Evans, fans were pissed when the Bills traded him, but what happened, he played for the Ravens for one year, then was out of the league the next year. No player wants someone to tell them "your time is done," they would rather walk away on their own terms, but that can't always happen.
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