Jerry Sullivan on our podcast: Anecdote about McDermott

[Hapless Bills Fan]

11 minutes ago, JGMcD2 said:

I don’t know guys... I understand reporters are supposed to report but there are unwritten rules for how you’re supposed to handle things when interacting with players and in a locker room. 
 

I work in professional sports and spend a lot of time in the locker room. Reporters come in all the time... that’s ok. The good ones are pleasant and ask a lot of questions... and typically ask permission or for an ok to discuss certain topics. There is a veil over these areas for a reason... what goes on in there tends to be important. You have to build up respect and earn the trust of the staff and players. Just like anything in life... but we live in a  society today that doesn’t place value on those things. 
 

It seems to me Fairburn messed up twice. The bulletin board material should not have been discussed... I know journalists who come into the locker room and there are notices and information posted everywhere... THEY ASK before they say anything about it. Otherwise you’re going to get singled out real quick. I’ve seen players and staff change their mood very quickly when someone oversteps their boundaries. 
 

This is the Bills place of work... the media has the PRIVILEGE of being able to observe. You don’t see reporters walking around an office complex and sitting in on shareholders meetings reporting on a Fortune 500 companies upcoming plans, financials, hires/fires.    

 

I think the problem with unwritten rules is that you can't assume that everyone will play by them.

 

If a rule is important to you or your organization, put it in writing.

 

But I did have a similar thought occur to me "what are the expectations about confidentiality for the press, in exchange for locker room and practice access?"

 

When media is permitted in to a Fortune 500 company facilities, they are 1) required to sign a confidentiality agreement and 2) the company instructs the employees to cover or remove from view various things considered confidential or sensitive

[BillsShredder83]

15 minutes ago, vincec said:

If he did it to you or your family, I'll bet you would care. The Bills winning doesn't justify treating people like sh*t. If it does for you then you need to seriously reexamine your morals.

 

Plus this is besides the actually point of the anecdote, which is that he portrays himself as a god fearing, family oriented, team building individual but then berates people like a school yard bully behind the scenes while the organization suppresses the reporting to protect his image. If this is all OK then why not report it on BB.com or OBD? Obviously it shows what a good leader he is.

You're mistaking his intensity for job preservation, you dont get to this level on that. The intensity level comes from him wanting the most out of his team and to meet goals set. Anyone doing shenanigans like this JUST to keep their job, has been weeded out waaaaaayyyyy before professional sports coaching.

If the team goals intersect with reporting, I always want the team to come out on top... and if the media doesn't like it stay off the playground. He didn't aim a gun or beat anyone up, if it's a "man up" competition I'd rather the coach wins everytime. You do not get to the level without being more intense than 99% of your peers. Show me a coach that backs down to the media and I'll show you someone that's not In that 99%

Edited November 23, 2019 by BillsShredder83

[Hapless Bills Fan]

10 minutes ago, Don Otreply said:

Good, sounds like Coach will not tolerate the press leaking his plans on any level, and for the team that is a very good thing.

 

Think about it, how the hell else is this organization in real life going to turn around the culture of losing to a culture of winning? The first thing you do is control the message 100%, then and only then can the narrative be changed, along with attitudes. When that is under control, you change out players, management, and coaches that won’t buy in.

 

I think the problem here is that, taking the account at face value, McDermott was focused in on something he could not control (the independent press) vs things he could control.

 

1) if you don't want press to report on a play, don't practice it during open practice.  control your practice schedule

2) if you don't want press to report on something they see in your facility, make it clear in writing what the expectations are in return for access, or don't have it there to be seen.  Turn the screens dark while the reporters are in the building.

[Don Otreply]

6 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

I think the problem with unwritten rules is that you can't assume that everyone will play by them.

 

If a rule is important to you or your organization, put it in writing.

 

But I did have a similar thought occur to me "what are the expectations about confidentiality for the press, in exchange for locker room and practice access?"

 

When media is permitted in to a Fortune 500 company facilities, they are 1) required to sign a confidentiality agreement and 2) the company instructs the employees to cover or remove from view various things considered confidential or sensitive

Or you jerk a knot in The reporters azs publicly and the issue is fixed, and it is now well known how one should behave. Just sayin, 

[CLTbills]

14 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

I thought that too.  It took me back to Marv Levy's comments about his dislike for the "football is war" analogy, having served in WWII himself:  "This game isn't a must win.  WWII was a must-win.  This is a football game. "

 

People who actually lived in a totalitarian regime like East Germany or Romania or the Soviet Union would, I believe, find Sullivan and the Podcast presenter's remarks dismissive of the actual conditions they endured and uncalled for.

It's also just a pretty huge amount of hyperbole there. I think there are much more realistic comparisons you could make than that.

[Capco]

3 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

I think the problem here is that, taking the account at face value, McDermott was focused in on something he could not control (the independent press) vs things he could control.

 

1) if you don't want press to report on a play, don't practice it during open practice.  control your practice schedule

2) if you don't want press to report on something they see in your facility, make it clear in writing what the expectations are in return from access, or don't have it there to be seen.  Turn the screens dark while the reporters are in the building.

 

Right.  The way I see it, there are other outlets to rectify this situation outside of physical intimidation.  Access to what Fairburn saw is a privilege that can be revoked at any time afaik. 

 

If the Bills didn't like how/what was reported, take away his press credentials and/or inform him of where you draw the lines (assuming it's completely within their power to do so).  

[Ga boy]

12 minutes ago, vincec said:

If he did it to you or your family, I'll bet you would care. The Bills winning doesn't justify treating people like sh*t. If it does for you then you need to seriously reexamine your morals.

 

Plus this is besides the actually point of the anecdote, which is that he portrays himself as a god fearing, family oriented, team building individual but then berates people like a school yard bully behind the scenes while the organization suppresses the reporting to protect his image. If this is all OK then why not report it on BB.com or OBD? Obviously it shows what a good leader he is.

Not many Tom Landry's and John Wooden's anymore.  Too bad too sad.  Ends should never justify the means.  Like most leaders at the top, they are generally surrounded by yes men.  We all need people who are critical friends who correct us with our inconsistencies.  I believe our coach stands for the right things, but he can stumble like the rest of us.  Go Bills!!

[stony]

Really doesn't bother me.  McD seems the type of guy who's a cold hearted survivor.  He'll fight and scrap for every piece of control/edge he can get because that's what survivors do.    

 

With that said, not what you want to hear about your coach because it's simply a bad look.  Especially to a young reporter, who from my perspective, has been a pro's pro.  It does a disservice to him moving forward as the morons will be eager to question his objectivity if he writes a piece that appears critical.    

[4merper4mer]

4 minutes ago, Capco said:

 

Right.  The way I see it, there are other outlets to rectify this situation outside of physical intimidation*. Access to what Fairburn saw is a privilege that can be revoked at any time afaik. 

 

If the Bills didn't like how/what was reported, take away his press credentials and/or inform him of where you draw the lines (assuming it's completely within their power to do so).  

*Physical intimidation as reported by Jerry Sullivan, who didn't witness it and likened it to East Germany.

 

Note that Jerry Sullivan once screamed in horror when a monarch butterfly landed on his microphone.  Note that I did not witness this but believe it to be true.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

45 minutes ago, vincec said:

If he did it to you or your family, I'll bet you would care. The Bills winning doesn't justify treating people like sh*t. If it does for you then you need to seriously reexamine your morals.

 

This is a valid point.  Certainly if it were my family, I would be indignant.  My question remains, what is the other side of the story?  Most stories have one.  If the reporters are asked to keep certain things confidential in exchange for facility and practice access, and Fairburn did not comply, then maybe McDermott was more justified. 

 

My guess would be that truth is somewhere in the middle: that perhaps McDermott, accustomed to different team/press relationships, had certain unstated assumptions or beliefs that the press here does not share.  So that came out, and now a change needs to be made.  Either the press needs to accede to his assumptions in exchange for access, or he needs to have his staff restrict what is available in the facility or in the part of practice when press are admitted.

 

Quote

Plus this is besides the actually point of the anecdote, which is that he portrays himself as a god fearing, family oriented, team building individual but then berates people like a school yard bully behind the scenes while the organization suppresses the reporting to protect his image. If this is all OK then why not report it on BB.com or OBD? Obviously it shows what a good leader he is.

 

Most people are complicated, Vincec, including God-fearing, family oriented, team building individuals. 

 

When he was in St Louis coaching the Rams, Dick Vermeil had a reputation as a great gentleman who sincerely cared about his players and his team according to some folks I know who knew or worked with him (includes players and family members of coaches).  He knew the names of his coaches' and players' kids, he asked sincerely how they were doing in school and remembered what they said next time he saw them, he sent staff and coaches for training to better learn how to relate to people sincerely.  I don't think that would at all preclude him from ripping a new butthole for someone who crossed his lines.  Nope, not at all, can totes see that happening.

Mike Martz had a reputation as an jerk who treated some of his players like crap (just ask Kyle Turley), but that didn't preclude him from being a good family man and a person who sincerely cared about his players in other ways (source: family friend who was close enough to be invited to Martz' kids wedding)

 

[Capco]

2 minutes ago, 4merper4mer said:

as reported by Jerry Sullivan

 

Hmmmm....

 

26 minutes ago, Capco said:

"No one wants to make it about me [the reporter].  If you make it about the media, there's an element of people out there who are gonna jump all over you and go, 'you're the problem!'."

 

How prescient of Sullivan.  

[HappyDays]

1 hour ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

Apparently McD didn't like that and got all up in Fairburn's face, chest-to-chest in a physically intimidating way, screaming f-bombs and asking him "aren't you on the team?  shouldn't you be supporting us?" 

 

Am I just supposed to believe that this happened and wasn't reported by anyone? If an NFL head coach was physically confronting and screaming f-bombs at a beat reporter it would be major news. But all the reporters who witnessed it didn't say anything because the Pegulas asked them not to? And Jerry Sullivan goes and reports it on a fan podcast, but nowhere else? Does anyone else think that narrative adds up?

[4merper4mer]

5 minutes ago, Capco said:

 

Hmmmm....

 

 

How prescient of Sullivan.  

So that second statement in your post means everything that moron says has morphed from the usual overblown hyperbole to undoubtedly true?  Dude that guy has been a joke for decades.

[Capco]

5 minutes ago, 4merper4mer said:

So that second statement in your post means everything that moron says has morphed from the usual overblown hyperbole to undoubtedly true?  Dude that guy has been a joke for decades.

 

I never said anything about the story being undoubtedly true.  

[Hapless Bills Fan]

5 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

 

Am I just supposed to believe that this happened and wasn't reported by anyone? If an NFL head coach was physically confronting and screaming f-bombs at a beat reporter it would be major news. But all the reporters who witnessed it didn't say anything because the Pegulas asked them not to? And Jerry Sullivan goes and reports it on a fan podcast, but nowhere else? Does anyone else think that narrative adds up?

 

I think the narrative is that this did not happen at a press conference, but at a side-bar and was not seen by that many people.  Jerry mentions it being seen by one reporter, Pat Freeman who seems to have a show called "Pro Talk with the Mighty O'Ba" and might not be a big enough fish to want to cause waves in the sea.    He also mentions having Pat Freeman on his WGR show to report it there.  He didn't give a date or whether the recording is available.

 

It might also run along the "get a reputation as an early riser, and you can sleep until noon" kind of thing - I don't know, but if McDermott generally has a reputation for being a decent guy who treats people decently, people might hesitate to mix in if they see him PO'd thinking "there must really be something to this, I'll leave it between the two of them".

 

Or the Pegulas and McDermott might have the Buffalo, NY press cowed and intimidated because they're just like the East German Secret Police who could actually, you know, haul people and their families out of their beds in the middle of the night and torture or imprison them indefinitely and seize their property and stuff like that .  I would tend to give Sullivan and this podcaster more credibility if they kept off of over-the-top comparisons like that.

[stosh64]

13 hours ago, gomper said:

 

 

However, at the 26:00 mark, Jerry recounts a recent tale about what a control freak McDermott is. I have independently verified that this indeed happened. 

 

 

 

Edited November 23, 2019 by stosh64

[oldmanfan]

Anyone comparing a football team’s actions to East Germany and the Stasi is a complete and utter fool.

[gomper]

Just now, oldmanfan said:

Anyone comparing a football team’s actions to East Germany and the Stasi is a complete and utter fool.

It's sarcasm. C'mon in. 

[MJS]

1 hour ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

I'll try.  Jerry doesn't attend Bills practices, but he tells an anecdote about Matt Fairburn covering a Bills practice and writing about practicing a fake punt and also about "bulletin board material" in the Bills locker room before the Giants game.

 

Apparently McD didn't like that and got all up in Fairburn's face, chest-to-chest in a physically intimidating way, screaming f-bombs and asking him "aren't you on the team?  shouldn't you be supporting us?"  A more balanced view is if you don't want reporters to report stuff, don't put it out there during press access.

 

Sullivan makes a point of how he never "attends those things" (the practices) but had someone who witnessed the event on his radio show recount it, and the OP says he/she independently verified that the event occurred.

 

Someone please correct if I've got it mixed.

 

Unaddressed is whether/how reporters credentialed to attend practice are asked verbally or in writing to not disclose certain things.  I do not trust Sullivan to have the objectivity to research that and bring it up if relevant.

 

The conclusion Jerry wishes to be made is that the Pegulas and McDermott have systematically tried to suppress negative coverage of the team.   Elsewhere he reiterates his conclusions around his departure from TBN that have been debunked elsewhere.

 

The conclusion I reach is that for all his even-keeled demeanor with the press and in public, McDermott actually has the highly competitive nature, detail-obsession, and yuuuge ego of a typical guy who becomes a head football coach in the NFL.

 

He also says some stuff about Heath Farwell, the Bills ST coach.  It is certainly valid to criticize the Bills ST performance this year as significant ST failures have accounted for the score differential in 2 close games and have cost us points in others - there is blame to go around in these cases, obviously.  I don't care for the manner in which Sullivan critiques him, but critique is warranted.

Sound like an urban legend that has been retold and retold, each time getting more and more elaborate.

[Ga boy]

12 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

This is a valid point.  Certainly if it were my family, I would be indignant.  My question remains, what is the other side of the story?  Most stories have one.  If the reporters are asked to keep certain things confidential in exchange for facility and practice access, and Fairburn did not comply, then maybe McDermott was more justified. 

 

My guess would be that truth is somewhere in the middle: that perhaps McDermott, accustomed to different team/press relationships, had certain unstated assumptions or beliefs that the press here does not share.  So that came out, and now a change needs to be made.  Either the press needs to accede to his assumptions in exchange for access, or he needs to have his staff restrict what is available in the facility or in the part of practice when press are admitted.

 

 

Most people are complicated, Vincec, including God-fearing, family oriented, team building individuals. 

 

When he was in St Louis coaching the Rams, Dick Vermeil had a reputation as a great gentleman who sincerely cared about his players and his team according to some folks I know who knew or worked with him (includes players and family members of coaches).  He knew the names of his coaches' and players' kids, he asked sincerely how they were doing in school and remembered what they said next time he saw them, he sent staff and coaches for training to better learn how to relate to people sincerely.  I don't think that would at all preclude him from ripping a new butthole for someone who crossed his lines.  Nope, not at all, can totes see that happening.

Mike Martz had a reputation as an jerk who treated some of his players like crap (just ask Kyle Turley), but that didn't preclude him from being a good family man and a person who sincerely cared about his players in other ways.

 

Yes, I agree that we're all complicated.  I can see certain leaders acting this way without mentioning recent leadership at OBD.  However, I expect better from this guy based on the perception that he gives about his faith and beliefs.  I prefer the leadership frameworks of John Maxwell and Stephen Covey that emphasize a higher standard based on how we treat people.  I hope intimidation is not a usual strategy for our coach in any part of his job or life.  It is easy for many leaders at the top, due to pressures and ego, to lose sight that the janitor is just as important as they are.  Go Bills!!