How Did Beane and McDermott “Drain The Swamp” At One Bills Drive So Quickly?

[Rico]

1 hour ago, BuffaloRush said:

One of the most remarkable things about the hiring of McDermott and Beane (to a lesser extent) is how they have eesentiallu completely turned over the entire organization and the football roster as well.

 

if you recall in 2014, when Terry Pegula bought the team very little changed.  Russ was moved to President as PSE but the overall structure seemed very similar (one exception was Rex reporting to TP and not the GM).  Essentially the same decision makers who “tarnished the brand” for year were still employed and in power to make questionable decision.

 

Cut to 2017, when McDermott was hired he immediately made big changes by firing the following long-time employees

 

PR Scott Berchtold (still a “consultant” but powerless”)

GM Doug Whaley 

Jim Monos (Director of Pro Personnel

Buddy Nix (Still was working as a scout)

Whaley’s Entire Scouting Dept

James Trapp (Chaplan)

Paul Lancaster (Director of Engagement)

Michael Lyons (Director of Analytics)

Entire Analytics Staff

Bud Carpenter (Trainer)

Shone Gibson (Trainer)

 

This leaves Jim Overdorff as really the last connection to Ralph Wilson.

 

So here is my question - how did McDermott do it?  It just seems unprecedented that someone could come in an clean house within the span of year - nonetheless a coach and GM.

 

I remember hearing that Marrone was not happy with some of these people and yet he was not successful at getting any of them fired.  He had problems with Whaley but Terry elected to keep him.  I guess what I’m wondering is why was McDermott and Beane able to drain the swamp, whereas Marrone was not able.  

 

It seemed as though the Pegula’s were pretty happy with their staff and yet within a year everyone was fired.  

 

How do you think this went down behind the scenes?

 

 

 

Have to give some credit to Pegs, sooner or later he was going to wake up and dump Ralph’s trash. 

[corta765]

1 hour ago, May Day 10 said:

thats what happens when a franchise is on moth balls for 20 years and someone comes in, throws the curtains aside and opens a window to the outside world.

 

lack of "continuity", bad luck, Patriots, etc did not cause the drought.  Buffalo Bills "management" did.

 

This 10000%. Aaron Rodgers may be the best QB in football and the Packers have been successful but the Vikings have challenged them many of times despite this because the team is well run. If your managed well you will have a despite shot for success routinely.

 

I think if NFL teams were to show fans how some are truly managed you would be blown away at the ineptitude in some orgs.

[Buffalo Boy]

1 hour ago, Over 29 years of fanhood said:

Results give you credibility 

Marrone has results too

[oldmanfan]

One can only surmise that McD blew Terry and Kim away with his interview.  Seeing how he coaches, he probably came in with a lot of data on how successful franchises have been run, and exactly how he wanted to build accountability and structure.  And I imagine he was quite thorough and convincing.

[Ed_Formerly_of_Roch]

I think it may simply be due to Pegula realizing he made mistakes early on in not listening enough to his technical experts in the filed.  i.e. his football folks.  Before Pegula was here, may have been that Brandon had a bigger say in hiring Marrone than Whaley did and seemed like it was repeated again with Rex as was rumored neither time was Whaley's top choice. 

 

May have been partly Whaleys own un-doing by not standing up and saying strongly No I don't want this guy, but maybe he's of the mind set, well I'll figure out how to work with him.

 

But anyway think TP finally figured out to let his football people figure out things that are needed for the football business and he (and Kim) stays out of it.  I also think TP wants continuity so will give these guys time.  People are already saying if Allan is a bust, he'll be fired, if thta is the case, then there's no hope for TP as the success rate for QB's is 50% if you're lucky.   I think as long as overall the team improves, he'd get at least a 2nd shot at getting another QB.

[PromoTheRobot]

55 minutes ago, ngbills said:

People give McD too much credit. He is a football guy. He is somewhat young and never run the entire organization. I think he focuses on football and the front office stuff is not his area. 

Don't kid yourself.  His influence is felt everywhere at OBD.

[BadLandsMeanie]

39 minutes ago, ddaryl said:

Pegula's alone drained the swamp IMO.... It was their confidnece in Beane that allowed them to do it, and only after they had plenty of time to assess all thie issues and feel they had th eright parts in place ot move forward with

 

 

You dont seem to be reading. Many of the changes happened before Beane was even hired. So it can't be that their confidence in Beane lead them to it, because he wasn't even here. Like, they couldn't have fired Whaley because of being confident in Beane could they? Beane was hired to fill Whaleys job, after they had fired Whaley.

[Lurker]

25 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Don't kid yourself.  His influence is felt everywhere at OBD.

 

Yep.  As a protégé of Andy Reid, he's following the same script...

[ddaryl]

16 minutes ago, BadLandsMeanie said:

You dont seem to be reading. Many of the changes happened before Beane was even hired. So it can't be that their confidence in Beane lead them to it, because he wasn't even here. Like, they couldn't have fired Whaley because of being confident in Beane could they? Beane was hired to fill Whaleys job, after they had fired Whaley.

 

 

There was not much going on before they let Whaley go. It was the much of the old FO and scouts they inherited. The recent moves are post Beane which only comes from the confidence the Pegula's had in the new GM / Coach.

 

I can not recall too many significant changes before last off-season. So I am not sure why your confused

 

 

 

[Over 29 years of fanhood]

42 minutes ago, Buffalo Boy said:

Marrone has results too

 

Sure does, and he has credibility, and he left buffalo on his terms and he edged out his predecessor in Jax after the overhaul. 

[BillsVet]

I've always wondered why TPegs didn't hire a consultant to advise him on the 1.4B purchase he made 3+ years ago. That said, he essentially hired a consultant, McDermott, as a HC.  McD came in and was given the authority to change what he didn't like and hire/advocate for people he wanted, i.e. Beane.  Prior to McD, the old guard OBD types frowned on any real changes (see the reports Marrone demanded a new training staff in February 2014 and was made to toe the line by Brandon).

 

There's a plan in place now, which is a lot more than can be said for previous GMs, HCs, and a certain team president that were all about the quick hits.

[BadLandsMeanie]

22 minutes ago, ddaryl said:

 

 

There was not much going on before they let Whaley go. It was the much of the old FO and scouts they inherited. The recent moves are post Beane which only comes from the confidence the Pegula's had in the new GM / Coach.

 

I can not recall too many significant changes before last off-season. So I am not sure why your confused

 

 

 

So, you don't recall that they fired half of the entire football operation before Beane ever got here. The General manager, the directors of the pro and college player personnel,  and the entire scouting department, plus more, all fired, even when it is written down for you to see in the Op's post.

 

You don't recall it. You don't recall it from then. You don;t recall it from the original post. And you still don't recall it after I said you should have read the post. 

 

Then you post and say, it wasn't unusual and still disagree.

 

Now you ask why I am confused.

 

That is why I am confused. 

 

 

Edited May 3, 2018 by BadLandsMeanie

[ddaryl]

Nope

1 minute ago, BadLandsMeanie said:

So, you don't recall that they fired half of the entire football operation, the General manager, the directors of the pro and college player personnel,  and the entire scouting department, plus more, even when it is written down for you to see in the Op's post.

 

You don't recall it.

 

Then you post and say, it wasn't unusual and disagree.

 

Now you ask why I am confused.

 

That is why I am confused. 

 

 

 

Yes Beane was not here yet when a lot of it went down, which is where I am not correct on

 

However i do not agree that somehow Sean was the driver of any of this, and this was just a long time coming and Sean was simply the 1st change.

 

 

[Elite Poster]

It's actually more surprising how through several coaching and GM changes, we didn't have more organizational turnover.

[Fadingpain]

2 hours ago, BuffaloRush said:

One of the most remarkable things about the hiring of McDermott and Beane (to a lesser extent) is how they have eesentiallu completely turned over the entire organization and the football roster as well.

 

if you recall in 2014, when Terry Pegula bought the team very little changed.  Russ was moved to President as PSE but the overall structure seemed very similar (one exception was Rex reporting to TP and not the GM).  Essentially the same decision makers who “tarnished the brand” for year were still employed and in power to make questionable decision.

 

Cut to 2017, when McDermott was hired he immediately made big changes by firing the following long-time employees

 

PR Scott Berchtold (still a “consultant” but powerless”)

GM Doug Whaley 

Jim Monos (Director of Pro Personnel

Buddy Nix (Still was working as a scout)

Whaley’s Entire Scouting Dept

James Trapp (Chaplan)

Paul Lancaster (Director of Engagement)

Michael Lyons (Director of Analytics)

Entire Analytics Staff

Bud Carpenter (Trainer)

Shone Gibson (Trainer)

 

This leaves Jim Overdorff as really the last connection to Ralph Wilson.

 

So here is my question - how did McDermott do it?  It just seems unprecedented that someone could come in an clean house within the span of year - nonetheless a coach and GM.

 

I remember hearing that Marrone was not happy with some of these people and yet he was not successful at getting any of them fired.  He had problems with Whaley but Terry elected to keep him.  I guess what I’m wondering is why was McDermott and Beane able to drain the swamp, whereas Marrone was not able.  

 

It seemed as though the Pegula’s were pretty happy with their staff and yet within a year everyone was fired.  

 

How do you think this went down behind the scenes?

 

 

 

Timing.  McBeane entered the organization at a time when Pegula, having learned from past mistakes, was ready to allow change to be made.

 

 

[Hapless Bills Fan]

2 hours ago, BuffaloRush said:

One of the most remarkable things about the hiring of McDermott and Beane (to a lesser extent) is how they have eesentiallu completely turned over the entire organization and the football roster as well.

 

if you recall in 2014, when Terry Pegula bought the team very little changed.  Russ was moved to President as PSE but the overall structure seemed very similar (one exception was Rex reporting to TP and not the GM).  Essentially the same decision makers who “tarnished the brand” for year were still employed and in power to make questionable decision.

 

So here is my question - how did McDermott do it?  It just seems unprecedented that someone could come in an clean house within the span of year - nonetheless a coach and GM.

 

I remember hearing that Marrone was not happy with some of these people and yet he was not successful at getting any of them fired.  He had problems with Whaley but Terry elected to keep him.  I guess what I’m wondering is why was McDermott and Beane able to drain the swamp, whereas Marrone was not able.  

 

It seemed as though the Pegula’s were pretty happy with their staff and yet within a year everyone was fired.  

 

How do you think this went down behind the scenes?

 

This is total speculation, but I'll give what I see as evidence where available.

 

I think when the Pegulas were hired, and then Marrone quit, Russ Brandon and Whaley made a successful "sales pitch" to the Pegulas that a "football czar" was not needed, they had the horsepower and knowhow and connections to run a successful head coaching search, and impressed.  (I recall a media piece at the time quoting Brandon or perhaps the Pegulas about how impressive it was that they had the talent in house to put together a comprehensive search and line up all the interviews so quickly).

 

I think the Pegulas then ran into a number of things that made them go "hmmmm" and lose trust that in Whaley and Brandon they really had top-notch NFL execs in the room.  They may have consulted quietly with an external NFL advisor (maybe Polian, maybe the same help they rejected initially) and received recommendations for cleaning house and building a new culture.  (As I recall, the coaching search quickly turned in a different direction than Whaley seemed to be taking it)

 

For the trainers, team chaplain etc. I think they turned hiring or firing power over to McD as a condition of his coming in, and also gave him approval over the new GM.  Then I think for the scouts and pro personnel staff, Beane stipulated that he would be given total fate control.

 

However, they were still clearly satisfied with the work Brandon was doing.  I think the Pegulas saw something amiss and may have very quietly and under the radar, had some sort of further "football czar" consultation with people they trusted which may have spurred the internal investigation that resulted in Brandon's resignation.

 

 

[BuffaloRush]

1 minute ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

This is total speculation, but I'll give what I see as evidence where available.

 

I think when the Pegulas were hired, and then Marrone quit, Russ Brandon and Whaley made a successful "sales pitch" to the Pegulas that a "football czar" was not needed, they had the horsepower and knowhow and connections to run a successful head coaching search, and impressed.  (I recall a media piece at the time quoting Brandon or perhaps the Pegulas about how impressive it was that they had the talent in house to put together a comprehensive search and line up all the interviews so quickly).

 

I think the Pegulas then ran into a number of things that made them go "hmmmm" and lose faith that in Whaley and Brandon they really had top-notch NFL execs in the room.

 

I think the Pegulas may have very quietly and under the radar, had some sort of "football czar" consultation with people they trusted which 1) led the coaching search in a different direction than Whaley initially seemed to be taking it, and 2) which resulted in a list of recommendations for cleaning house

 

This is very plausible and makes a lot of sense.  I appreciate the response 

[NoSaint]

2 hours ago, BuffaloRush said:

One of the most remarkable things about the hiring of McDermott and Beane (to a lesser extent) is how they have eesentiallu completely turned over the entire organization and the football roster as well.

 

if you recall in 2014, when Terry Pegula bought the team very little changed.  Russ was moved to President as PSE but the overall structure seemed very similar (one exception was Rex reporting to TP and not the GM).  Essentially the same decision makers who “tarnished the brand” for year were still employed and in power to make questionable decision.

 

Cut to 2017, when McDermott was hired he immediately made big changes by firing the following long-time employees

 

PR Scott Berchtold (still a “consultant” but powerless”)

GM Doug Whaley 

Jim Monos (Director of Pro Personnel

Buddy Nix (Still was working as a scout)

Whaley’s Entire Scouting Dept

James Trapp (Chaplan)

Paul Lancaster (Director of Engagement)

Michael Lyons (Director of Analytics)

Entire Analytics Staff

Bud Carpenter (Trainer)

Shone Gibson (Trainer)

 

This leaves Jim Overdorff as really the last connection to Ralph Wilson.

 

So here is my question - how did McDermott do it?  It just seems unprecedented that someone could come in an clean house within the span of year - nonetheless a coach and GM.

 

I remember hearing that Marrone was not happy with some of these people and yet he was not successful at getting any of them fired.  He had problems with Whaley but Terry elected to keep him.  I guess what I’m wondering is why was McDermott and Beane able to drain the swamp, whereas Marrone was not able.  

 

It seemed as though the Pegula’s were pretty happy with their staff and yet within a year everyone was fired.  

 

How do you think this went down behind the scenes?

 

 

 

 

 

A lot of your list is pretty basic for when a new HC/GM come in 

[jr1]

you can change a team fast with a good defensive coordinator

[buffalobloodfloridahome]

I think it is funny how everyone on here is actually agreeing with each other and not able to use the proper construct to get their point across. It is different for this organization to purge even though that has been common place around the league for a long time.