Hits and Misses: How Successful Was GM Russ Brandon In The Draft?...REVISED

[BillsVet]

We haven't had a Brandon thread in a long time. And thank goodness because there was a time it seemed like one started every day.

 

That said, he had no business being a NFL GM and I remember reading that other team execs at the 2008 Combine were snickering at his presence there.

 

I can at least say that Buffalo finally has a GM who is suited and not wed to protecting his job or trying to obtain another promotion at OBD.  I have supreme confidence that the current leadership is suited to the modern game and won't be making picks to largely sell tickets. 

[SoTier]

50 minutes ago, Steptide said:

I have a gut feeling that jauron was picking the draft in those days. I mean, would any gm pick Aaron Maybin in the first round? I feel like the entire bills front office in those days had absolutely no idea what it was doing 

 

I think Jauron had significant input into whom the Bills drafted because most of the players drafted during his tenure tended to fit the mold that Jauron liked best: fast, smaller players or "lunchpail" players.  During this period (2006-2009), the only "star" or "difference maker" that the Bills drafted was Marshawn.

 

26 minutes ago, BillsVet said:

We haven't had a Brandon thread in a long time. And thank goodness because there was a time it seemed like one started every day.

 

That said, he had no business being a NFL GM and I remember reading that other team execs at the 2008 Combine were snickering at his presence there.

 

I can at least say that Buffalo finally has a GM who is suited and not wed to protecting his job or trying to obtain another promotion at OBD.  I have supreme confidence that the current leadership is suited to the modern game and won't be making picks to largely sell tickets. 

 

Brandon came to the Bills from MLB where his claim to fame was that he successfully deconstructed the Florida Marlins, ruthlessly selling off the team's personnel assets and plunging the Marlins from first to worst in a single season.   Since he became Wilson's surrogate with the Bills, he was undoubtedly good at seeing that the Bills improved their bottom line no matter how poorly organized/run the Bills were as a football team, and that's what counted with Wilson.

[NoSaint]

5 hours ago, BuffaloRush said:

 

 

Yea I agree 100%.  Plus the counter view is all based on speculation.  

 

People say say how bad Marv and Russ were as GM but then say “well they didn’t actually make the draft picks.”  I guess that doesnt make them so bad then?????  

 

All speculation though.  You have zero proof

 

there’s been people in this very thread that do know factually that you’ve written off. 

 

Do you expect a bills issued formal press release? 

[Fadingpain]

5 hours ago, JohnC said:

Brandon has received a lot of unwarranted criticism. He was never a functioning GM, and didn't pretend to be. When Marv left he did his best to hold things together. Responsibilities that he wasn't equipped for were thrust upon by the owner. He was a good soldier and did the best that he could to keep the operation functioning. Russ Brandon is one of the better sports manager in the business. He expanded the Bills market and made it more viable. He understandably got skewered on the Toronto episode but from a business perspective it made a lot of sense. He was tapping into the Canadian market and increasing the regionalization of the franchise. 

 

There are some people who criticize Brandon for influencing the hiring of Rex. That is a fair criticism while most of the blame should go directly to the owners. The Pegulas have struggled with their products in the sports scene. But they are astute and forward thinking business people. They were smart enough to recognize Brandon's business and marketing acumen to put him in charge of the business side of their sports operation that includes the Bills and Sabres. 

 

 

Russ is that you?  Only a marketing wonk would identify a pro sports franchise as a "product."

 

By the way, I have seen little evidence to suggest the Pegulas are astute business people, at least in terms of their ownership of the Bills and Sabres.  Most of it has been a train wreck to date that transcends a simple lack of experience for a first time owner.  

 

25 minutes ago, SoTier said:

 

I think Jauron had significant input into whom the Bills drafted because most of the players drafted during his tenure tended to fit the mold that Jauron liked best: fast, smaller players or "lunchpail" players.  During this period (2006-2009), the only "star" or "difference maker" that the Bills drafted was Marshawn.

 

 

Brandon came to the Bills from MLB where his claim to fame was that he successfully deconstructed the Florida Marlins, ruthlessly selling off the team's personnel assets and plunging the Marlins from first to worst in a single season.   Since he became Wilson's surrogate with the Bills, he was undoubtedly good at seeing that the Bills improved their bottom line no matter how poorly organized/run the Bills were as a football team, and that's what counted with Wilson.

It's straight up weird how many Bills fans don't understand that Ralph Wilson was a horrible owner and by far the biggest cause of decades of failure.

 

 

Edited February 22, 2018 by Fadingpain

[Freddie's Dead]

LEODIS, MY MAN!!!!   GONNA BEAT THAT ASS!!!!

[Paulus]

I don't think Reggie Corner was that much of a miss, if any. Even then, I can agree with the above synopsis.

[Freddie's Dead]

1 hour ago, Paulus said:

I don't think Reggie Corner was that much of a miss, if any. Even then, I can agree with the above synopsis.

I thought so too, but Reggie only played 4 years with the Bills, then blew out his knee with the Jags.  He was a serviceable corner before that, so a borderline miss, I guess.

[Paulus]

4 minutes ago, Freddie's Dead said:

I thought so too, but Reggie only played 4 years with the Bills, then blew out his knee with the Jags.  He was a serviceable corner before that, so a borderline miss, I guess.

Honestly, the more I think about it the more OP is wrong.

 

Ask yourself this: "Would you pick a player in the 4th round that you knew would give your team the same production Corner gave the Bills or an unknown fourth rounder(someone the scouts pick, unknown NFL quality)?"

 

I think I'd pick Corner more often than I'd take a scout pick/unknown NFL quality. At least 4 of every 5 times I picked in the fourth. 

 

Booo!!! Change yo Corner hate, OP!!!

[Nihilarian]

11 hours ago, BuffaloRush said:

Right I don’t disagree.  But the record shows that technically it was Russ Brandon who served as GM.  As Russ would say frequently say “I own it.”

Show me a link to this horse hockey as this couldn't be further from the truth.

 

Russ Brandon never publicly owned up to anything, ever! He was a master of unaccountability otherwise known as the king of the eels, slippery and elusive.

 

As a matter of fact, every time someone would post in this forum and blame the guy for even the slightest thing one of his shills would jump to his defense and state he never was involved in the football side of operations. Which of course, was a lie! 

 

I firmly believe Kirby when he states that Brandon never made any of the drafts picks himself. From what I understand usually it was a consensus with both the HC and chief scout (Tom Modrak) involved in the final choice. After Modrak was fired it was either Nix or Whaley and the HC. Still, Brandon had great influence over the football side of operations and with Rex Ryan, as HC it was let known that Brandon was in the Bills cut room meeting and on the phone to players.

 

The simple fact is that although Brandon didn't make the final call on who to sign as a free agent or who to draft. His presence in his position kept the team from hiring an actual NFL GM who could attempt to right this ship in turbulent seas. 

 

Time to stop living in the past with a thoroughly dysfunctional mess that was the old Buffalo Bills pre 2017. Think of it, the 2014 Buffalo Bills field one of the very best defenses in their history (#4 ranked) with Jim Schwartz as DC and what do they do? Let Schwartz leave and hire a head coach that hadn't had a winning season for five years. That same Jim Schwartz was the DC for the 2017 super bowl champs defense (#4 ranked). 

 

Who hired Rex Ryan you ask? Why the Pegula's of course! Let's also not forget that Russ Brandon told the first time NFL owners "that they would know who to hire" after the interview process. Brandon also told the Pegula's to "not let Ryan leave the building".

 

Be grateful that these new owners hired a good head coach and give him absolute power over the football side. That new HC hired a GM to help him. When the team fired Whaley they also fired all the scouts and hired new scouts. This NFL franchise should now be run like a real NFL franchise for the first time in over a decade and no longer a dysfunctional mess. We can't go back in time to change anything so let this stuff go and look to the future.  

[May Day 10]

13 hours ago, BuffaloRush said:

Again  that’s speculation.  That’s all rumor and innuendo.  Find me documentation that shows Marv and Russ did not make draft picks.  Then we’ll talk.  All that has been published is rumor and innuendo...no facts

all a byproduct of the bills' shell game of accountibility that alliwed them to maintain the status quo for so many years.  

[GunnerBill]

1 hour ago, Nihilarian said:

Show me a link to this horse hockey as this couldn't be further from the truth.

 

 

He said it in the famous 1 Jan 2013 presser.  I can't find the exact transcript, looks like the Bills have removed it from the website but from memory it was something like "I own it, we all do." 

 

It was words not actions.  

[Nihilarian]

24 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

He said it in the famous 1 Jan 2013 presser.  I can't find the exact transcript, looks like the Bills have removed it from the website but from memory it was something like "I own it, we all do." 

 

It was words not actions.  

What I was referring to was Brandon owning up to anything that happened on the football operations side of things.

 

In 2013 Brandon did take full control of the football operations and stated that Buddy Nix will still be in charge of the draft and football operations. However, Brandon stated he will have final say on decisions. It's that final say that we fans will never know about! 

 

He also stated, "This brand has been tarnished and it's unacceptable," Brandon said of a team that has had one winning season since its last playoff appearance in 1999 and went 16-32 under Gailey.

"I will leave no stone unturned in taking this organization to a world-class level."

 

Now, that never happened! 

 

Don't get me wrong here as I never wanted Brandon fired. I just wanted him to have no part in the football operations. He is a master at filling the stadium seats and was instrumental in moving the training camp to St John Fisher. Plus, he did some other good things for the team. Being the Buffalo Bills GM wasn't one of them and him having complete autonomy over the football side wasn't either. 

Edited February 22, 2018 by Nihilarian

[May Day 10]

13 hours ago, JohnC said:

Brandon has received a lot of unwarranted criticism. He was never a functioning GM, and didn't pretend to be. When Marv left he did his best to hold things together. Responsibilities that he wasn't equipped for were thrust upon by the owner. He was a good soldier and did the best that he could to keep the operation functioning. Russ Brandon is one of the better sports manager in the business. He expanded the Bills market and made it more viable. He understandably got skewered on the Toronto episode but from a business perspective it made a lot of sense. He was tapping into the Canadian market and increasing the regionalization of the franchise. 

 

There are some people who criticize Brandon for influencing the hiring of Rex. That is a fair criticism while most of the blame should go directly to the owners. The Pegulas have struggled with their products in the sports scene. But they are astute and forward thinking business people. They were smart enough to recognize Brandon's business and marketing acumen to put him in charge of the business side of their sports operation that includes the Bills and Sabres. 

 

 

 

russ brandon got imto the sports field to be a gm.  that was his dream.  he came onto the bills scene and was a key figure for business backs the bills, and monetizing training camp into an event at his alma mater.  wilson took to him.  he was able to learn the ropes a but under john butler and would study the cba.  donahoe wasnt a fan of his and there was a bit of division.  one of levy's main objectives was to get brandon up to speed.  brandon began getting involved and learning much deeper into player evaluations and x's and o's.  ralph and russ wanted him to get a shot to make a name for himself before mr wilson wad no longer the owner (and the team likely to move) and he was given the gm title.  he wasnt ready, but that was his shot.   

 

fans were ready to revolt, so they installed nix as a front man to appease the masses, brandon was still very intimately involved, and that continued through whaley.  i honestly think he is walled off now as guys like beane, mcdermott (and marrone) dont want to stake their careers and reputation) in the hands of bad devision makers.

 

i find the idea that russ brandon was thrust into the gm role kicking and screaming to be funny.

 

if modrak was "really the gm" all those years, they would just name him gm

Edited February 22, 2018 by May Day 10

[GunnerBill]

1 minute ago, May Day 10 said:

if modrak was "really the gm" all those years, they would just name him gm

 

They needed a front man because Modrak came to the facility about three times per year.  It was totally and utterly dysfunctional. The original idea, I think, behind Levy was that he was a sound football man who would be able to advice from Modrak and Guy and be the trigger man.  Brandon was supposed to run the rest of the organisation as Director of "non football operations." It was doomed to failure from day 1.

 

 

[Kirby Jackson]

There is a lot to this time period between Donahoe & Nix. At this point Ralph Wilson was pretty much out of the picture. Jeff Littman was basically functioning as the owner. He ultimately (on Ralph’s behalf) made the final call on things. At the same time there was a bit of a power struggle between Brandon and Littman as Brandon wanted to the final say to come from the ground at OBD instead of Grosse Pointe. Ultimately that happened at some point (6 or 7 years after this time). That’s the whole “I have final say” comments. He no longer had to get approval from Littman and Company. It wasn’t a power struggle to make football decisions; it was a power struggle to make ownership decisions. 

 

Simultaneously, Ralph get burned by Donahoe. That is when he named himself president (despite being 90ish and never around). He hired Marv as sort of a caretaker, someone to watch the football department like Brandon was the business side. He wanted people that he could trust and that was the majority of the group. John Guy was running the pro side and Modrak the college side. They really had no one to answer to, complete autonomy to do things both good and bad because there was no final voice. 

 

This evolved in Brandon as the GM after Marv. He was not there to make football decisions either but to try to oversee the operation. He empowered the same people to do their jobs. He, like Marv, wasn’t really qualified to oversee the day-to-day of it. He was just a good executive that the owner trusted. Marv and Brandon were Littman (and Ralph’s eyes and ears). It would have been a simple fix if post Donahoe they would have just hired a football guy over Guy and Modrak (or promoted one) to be in charge of that department. At the time though Gross Pointe didn’t want to get burned again so they gave it to the people that he trusted.

 

Once decisions no longer had to go to Gross Pointe (when Russ had full autonomy) things sort of returned to a normal football operations department. That’s the Nix and Whaley era. 

Edited February 22, 2018 by Kirby Jackson

[2003Contenders]

Let's not forget that Russ also oversaw the 2009 draft as well, which gave us... A. Maybin ninth overall! 

[Call_Of_Ktulu]

Russ Brandon makes me sick every time I see a picture of him.

[Kirby Jackson]

2 minutes ago, Call_Of_Ktulu said:

Russ Brandon makes me sick every time I see a picture of him.

If you don’t like Russ you would have hated Littman!! He did everything in his power to pinch pennies (especially late) because i think he knew that he was getting a portion of the sale. He was the hatchet man. 

[ALF]

9 minutes ago, Call_Of_Ktulu said:

Russ Brandon makes me sick every time I see a picture of him.

 

He is only good at marketing , keep him far away from hiring , drafting or trades. I still think he had a say in hiring Rex over Whaley's choice.

[SoTier]

6 hours ago, Paulus said:

Honestly, the more I think about it the more OP is wrong.

 

Ask yourself this: "Would you pick a player in the 4th round that you knew would give your team the same production Corner gave the Bills or an unknown fourth rounder(someone the scouts pick, unknown NFL quality)?"

 

I think I'd pick Corner more often than I'd take a scout pick/unknown NFL quality. At least 4 of every 5 times I picked in the fourth. 

 

Booo!!! Change yo Corner hate, OP!!!

 

If a team gets a solid solid starter or a reliable sub or rotational player out of any guy drafted on Day 3 (Rounds 4-7) that's a bonus not "a miss" IMO.  It's virtually impossible for Day 3 guys to "bust" because the ceiling for Day 3 players is probably ST player.   Most Day 3 guys don't make it out of preseason unless they can play ST or win a slot on a practice squad.  Corner was a "hit".