The Process - Why it's Important and Sustainable

[SageAgainstTheMachine]

I stumbled upon this article from 2017, written between McDermott's hiring and the start of the season.  https://www.espn.com/blog/buffalo-bills/post/_/id/28795/not-just-the-76ers-sean-mcdermott-has-bills-focused-on-the-process

 

In it Mike Rodak (ew) draws comparisons to McDermott and the Philadelphia 76ers who, at the time, had just finished tanking more brazenly than any other team in the history of the 4 major sports.  They also loved the word process.  Rodak assumed, understandably but incorrectly, that McDermott's use of the word is pretty much the same deal - which is to say "We're going to suck for now but just wait til you see us with a 1st overall pick or two."  We all know what happened a few months later, as the Bills would go on to a surprising 9-7 record and a streak-busting playoff berth courtesy of our BFFs Andy Dalton and Tyler Boyd.  

 

Turns out we didn't need the 1st overall pick because the next year McDermott and Beane had the vision to trade up and draft Josh Allen who would likely be the 1st overall pick if there was a redraft at this point.  The rest is history being written as we speak.  Talk about having your cake and eating it too.  

 

So what is Process as it relates to this Bills team, the coaching staff and front office?  It's something that we tend to joke about a little because of how ubiquitously McDermott uses the term but I believe it's a real, tangible philosophy that has made this team great and will continue to do so down the road.

 

I would describe the Bills Process as a philosophy that tacks on concepts like Love, Brotherhood and Respect to the traditional NFL values of Grit, Persistence and Courage.  Those latter things are present too but it replaces the typical "Don't do it for yourself, do it for the team" with "Don't do it for yourself, do it for your teammates and your community."  Go and watch literally any postgame interview video on buffalobills.com and notice how much the players talk about their brothers on the team and refuse to talk about themselves.  Then go watch postgame interviews from a bad team and see how much they talk about themselves when they're not just spouting inane platitudes.  Then go watch Brian Daboll have to choke back a tear describing the leader that Josh Allen is.  

 

This attitude of love is crucial because the NFL is a mercenary sport where 30-40% roster turnover is the norm and the vague notion of laying it all out there for The Buffalo Bills franchise is abstract.  Doing it for the money is concrete but only motivational in a pragmatic way.  Doing it for your brothers, your loved ones, is concrete, motivational and self-affirming in a way that improves the soul and makes you chase the carrot of dopamine and oxytocin again and again.  Watch the reaction when Levi Wallace made the pick on Sunday Night.  Nobody on the Bills felt like an individual had done that.  They felt like they had all done it. 

 

As far as coaching in the year 2020, The Process is ahead of the curve.  The bullying, yelling "I'm gonna kick your ass, *****" coach is about to be a dinosaur.  Maybe you think that's a bad thing but it's a reality.  Players would look at Tom Coughlin or Bill Cowher like he had two heads if he coached today and probably snigger after they left the room after one of their epic tantrums.  Speaking of the Steelers, let's take a look at an anecdote that highlights the difference between McDermott and Mike Tomlin, one of the older school guys.  

 

Tomlin

 

In week 13, second year WR Diontae Johnson drops two passes in a losing effort to Washington and Tomlin comments after the game that if his receivers don't start catching balls the team will find receivers who do.  The message is clear.  You are gone if this continues.  In week 14, Johnson proceeds to drop two more passes.  One wonders if he psyched himself out wondering if he'd need a new job.  Johnson then got benched.  To both men's credit Tomlin said that Johnson handled the benching well.

 

McDermott

 

In week 13, rookie RB Zack Moss commits a bad fumble against the 49ers that leads to an easy score.  He rides the bench for most of the game and McDermott subtly confirms after the game that this was due to the fumble, expressing confidence in the young man moving forward.  In week 14, McDermott trusts Moss to tote the ball 6 times in a final drive that lasted 7:11.  Moss holds on with both hands and ends the game.

 

These are nuanced differences and I'm not saying Tomlin is a bad coach.  He's been and is fantastic.  But I think he's slightly behind the cultural zeitgeist and McDermott is slightly ahead of it.

 

Now here's where it gets REALLY important - the aforementioned roster turnover.  Contracts and the salary cap being the way they are, there's literally nothing that HCs and GMs can do about this turnover if they wish to succeed.  Players who excel get paid more and those who don't get replaced by cheaper ones. 17 players from the 2019 Bills are no longer here and many 2020 Bills won't be 2021 Bills.  NFL GMs never "arrive" at a solid roster, rather they pursue it constantly.  That means if you want to sustain a cogent philosophy you must constantly pursue players who fit that philosophy.  And why is our Process so great for that?  Because players who fit the mold, either in FA or in the draft, are already paying attention and talking to their agents and families about the Bills.  Those who aren't attracted to this atmosphere are inherently ones that we probably wouldn't sign anyway. 

 

All that anxiety that we fans feel about players who don't want to travel here and deal with the snow and the small market?  That's a self-solving problem now.  It's a convenient filter.  Anyone who doesn't want in on this?  THAT's who isn't part of the process.

 

I don't know what will happen this year.  It's a crowded AFC and we could beat or lose to any of the playoff teams.  What really matters is that, because of the top-down culture from owner to GM to HC to QB and further, we know we'll be back either way. 

 

Edited December 16, 2020 by SageAgainstTheMachine

[Thurman#1]

IMO you're slightly overthinking this.

 

Process isn't something the Bills or the Sixers invented. It's a common term in leadership studies, in religion, in self-improvement, in business, as well as sports and it has been for decades.

 

It's generally used to point out that people need to focus on the process of getting better rather than the rewards that come when you improve, because the rewards will come intermittently and inconsistently whereas the process will be there every day. Focusing on the process makes your training reliable, it focuses you correctly and focuses you on the things that will make better more consistently and dependably. 

 

If you're a salesman you shouldn't focus on how many sales you make because to a large extent that's luck-dependent. Instead you focus on making a large number of calls, on improving your tactics for finding better customers, on making better pitches, on becoming more trustworthy, on improving your customer service, on re-contacting old customers, on getting more referrals.

 

You don't focus on outcome. You focus on the improvement process itself. In sports this goes back to John Wooden and even further.

 

You don't focus on the Super Bowl or even on winning one game. Some days you will meet better opposition and the ball won't bounce your way. You focus on maxizing improvement. One of the byproducts will be winning more but that's not where your focus goes.

 

I do love the values and the culture McDermott and Beane have brought here.

Edited December 16, 2020 by Thurman#1

[BuffaninSarasota]

On 12/15/2020 at 7:59 PM, Thurman#1 said:

IMO you're slightly overthinking this.

 

IMO props to the OP. It may sound sappy to those outside of Buffalo but we know it's real. Players and agents DO talk. The Pegulas DO pay for the right people (....just not w/ the Sabres.....😅) 

Edited December 18, 2020 by BuffaninSarasota
additional comment

[NoSaint]

16 minutes ago, Thurman#1 said:

IMO you're slightly overthinking this.

We have a qb on a rookie deal and have $30m in extra talent on the roster compared to a team with a vet qb 

 

sure there’s a lot of nice feel good stuff around that but at it’s core that’s the major factor at play. 

[BobbyC81]

The word “process” is somewhat being misused by McDermott. A process is a sequence of events.  For the Bills it is more of a philosophy and culture.

 

For the 76ers, the Process was to get rid of high priced players, tank to get high draft picks, draft top players with those draft picks, develop those players and add supporting players to the roster.  That process is over. You don’t hear people associated with the Sixers still using that term.

[Jobot]

34 minutes ago, ColeB said:

The word “process” is somewhat being misused by McDermott. A process is a sequence of events.  For the Bills it is more of a philosophy and culture.

 

For the 76ers, the Process was to get rid of high priced players, tank to get high draft picks, draft top players with those draft picks, develop those players and add supporting players to the roster.  That process is over. You don’t hear people associated with the Sixers still using that term.

 

It's the process of building a sustainable culture into the Bills organization. It doesn't happen overnight, and every aspect of the team has trended in the right direction since McDermott became the head coach.

[SageAgainstTheMachine]

1 minute ago, Jobot said:

 

It's the process of building a sustainable culture into the Bills organization. It doesn't happen overnight, and every aspect of the team has trended in the right direction since McDermott became the head coach.

 

You could also argue that we were amongst the teams in worst shape with culture after the Rex years.

[Jobot]

It would be an easy argument!

[billsfan89]

The Bills window of contention will be the remainder of Josh's rookie deal and 5th year option. Just enjoy the ride. 

[Ethan in Cleveland]

It's Lean Management or Toyota Production System. McD calls it process. Others call it continuous improvement. Lexus calls it the Pursuit of Perfection. 

[SageAgainstTheMachine]

23 minutes ago, billsfan89 said:

The Bills window of contention will be the remainder of Josh's rookie deal and 5th year option. Just enjoy the ride. 

 

If he's just a good QB, maybe.  If he's elite the contention window will be the length of his career.

[BobbyC81]

52 minutes ago, SageAgainstTheMachine said:

 

You could also argue that we were amongst the teams in worst shape with culture after the Rex years.

C’mon, how can you say there wasn’t a good culture in the Rex years?   He named players as captains for games against their former teams.  Despite a new CBA, limiting the number of practices, he blew off a training camp practice to take the team bowling in support of team building.  He was a good players-coach.  It was the other aspects of his coaching that led to his downfall, like failing to challenge a call in KC because they didn’t show the replay on the video board.

[BobbyC81]

6 minutes ago, SageAgainstTheMachine said:

 

If he's just a good QB, maybe.  If he's elite the contention window will be the length of his career.

I agree.  Unless there is some unforeseen situation, I can’t see Josh not spending the bulk of his career with the Bills.  It may be too early to say, but I also could not imagine a Wentz/Trubisky type regression for Josh.  They seem to have developed him the right way.  
 

Comments from teammates yesterday about Jalen Hurts impressive leadership skills are a telling sign about Wentz losing his job.  You can clearly see that Josh Allen is a strong leader of this Buffalo Bills team.

[SageAgainstTheMachine]

20 minutes ago, ColeB said:

C’mon, how can you say there wasn’t a good culture in the Rex years?   He named players as captains for games against their former teams.  Despite a new CBA, limiting the number of practices, he blew off a training camp practice to take the team bowling in support of team building.  He was a good players-coach.  It was the other aspects of his coaching that led to his downfall, like failing to challenge a call in KC because they didn’t show the replay on the video board.

 

I think Rex has the opposite problem of the hard-ass coaches in that he pretends to have all this bluster but is insecure deep down and wants everyone to be his buddy.  I got the sense that people weren't held to high standards.  Different type of culture problem but a bad one nonetheless. I could be wrong.

[QLBillsFan]

57 minutes ago, billsfan89 said:

The Bills window of contention will be the remainder of Josh's rookie deal and 5th year option. Just enjoy the ride. 

Agree it’s the most optimal timeframe. But I think McBean have given out smart FA contracts that are team friendly to escape. While much more challenging ( see Seattle), it is still possible to stay relevant. But this year and the next two would be most likely for a serious SB run. 

[Shaw66]

2 hours ago, Thurman#1 said:

IMO you're slightly overthinking this.

 

Process isn't something the Bills or the Sixers invented. It's a common term in leadership studies, in religion, in self-improvement, in business, as well as sports and it has been for decades.

 

It's generally used to point out that people need to focus on the process of getting better rather than the rewards that come when you improve, because the rewards will come intermittently and inconsistently whereas the process will be there every day. Focusing on the process makes your training reliable, it focuses you correctly and focuses you on the things that will make better more consistently and dependably. 

 

If you're a salesman you shouldn't focus on how many sales you make because to a large extent that's luck-dependent. Instead you focus on making a large number of calls, on improving your tactics for finding better customers, on making better pitches, on becoming more trustworthy, on improving your customer service, on re-contacting old customers, on getting more referrals.

 

You don't focus on outcome. You focus on the improvement process itself. In sports this goes back to John Wooden and even further.

 

You don't focus on the Super Bowl or even on winning one game. Some days you will meet better opposition and the ball won't bounce your way. You focus on maxizing improvement. One of the byproducts will be winning more but that's not where your focus goes.

 

I do love the values and the culture McDermott and Beane have brought here.

Thurman, you're right about what you say, but he isn't overthinking this.  

 

You're right that McDermott didn't invent the notion of process.  What is unique about McDermott is that this is HIS process.   He has learned that process is essential to success in an organization like a football team.   He studied process, both within the teams he worked for and outside of those teams, outside of football, and even outside sports altogether, and he built HIS process.  A couple of years ago he went to Penn State to watch wrestling practice, because he wanted to see their practice process.  

 

As the OP says, a portion of his process is old school - grit, persistence, and courage.  A part of his process, at the core of his culture, is love, brotherhood, and respect.  But there's another part that you touched on but didn't lay out completely: continuous improvement and elimination of mistakes.   Those aspects of culture are relatively new to the NFL, except that I think they are at the core of what Belichick does.  My understanding, however, is that the more recent coaches who are into continuous improvement and elimination of mistakes study the manufacturing management techniques found in Sygma Six and Kaizen. Those techniques rely on having every member of the organization committed to those two principles, and probably some others.   The process is something like teach, practice, evaluate, correct, practice, evaluate, correct, practice until the behavior is learned, then move on to the next behavior.  Everyone is committed to getting better 24/7/365 and to eliminating mistakes.  One reason the love and brotherhood is so important is that the process is intended to be supportive of everyone - that is, everyone who is committed to the process deserves the love and support of his teammates.  That keeps the team together, and it also helps build the confidence and performance of everyone.  The OP uses Zach Moss as an example.  Levi Wallace is another.  

 

That kind of process results in increased attention to detail.  Everything is examined, corrected, and improved.   Everything has a purpose.  I remember when McDermott arrived, he got rid of the pool table in the locker room.  Someone asked why.  He said something like, "because pool doesn't have anything to do with what we're trying to accomplish.  We don't want any distractions."  So, then he was asked why he kept the ping pong table.  "Eye-hand coordination, footwork."   It's that kind of attention to detail that McDermott models and he teaches to his coaches and players.   

 

In McDermott land, the process applies to everyone.  It applies to the guys doing film review - they're getting better at film review every week, and their establishing the process of film review along the way.  The process applies to the locker room people - the towels are always there when needed, and there's always a better way to do it.  

 

The point is that it's a very specific process, and not one he got out of a book somewhere.  It's a process he's designed, and process that he is continually refining and improving.   That's why I speak up when people complain about things like McDermott's challenges.  I don't know if he's good or bad at challenges, but I know he'll better in a couple years than he is now.  Why?  Because every challenge situation gets evaluated after the game, and things are learned about how to challenge better.  The process that they goo through in decidind to challenge gets adjusted based on what they learn in their evaluation.   It's a continuous improvement process.   

 

What's so powerful about the process is whatever happens, the team is ready.  One of the Bills was interviewed in the field house last week, there were tables set up all across the floor.  You could tell that they were there for a team meeting.  The tables are all socially distanced, so the whole team is in there, each guy has a table, but they're all safe.  You cound see it, but undoubtedly there was a microphone and speakers so the coaches could be heard,  The player commented that it was just amazing how effieciently the staff configures and reconfigures that space each day, for meetings, for practice, for meals, for everything.  He said he didn't understand how they could do it.   It's the process.  It's everywhere.  

 

The process is why the Bills have had relatively little trouble with COVID.   The Bills were one of only four teams ready to practice on the first day that the NFL permitted practices this season.  The Bills have dealt with adjustments to the schedule without any significant glitches.  

 

McDermott's process is a system that applies to everything the Bills do.   It eliminates mistakes, it makes players better.  , and it makes the team better.

[Shaw66]

1 hour ago, billsfan89 said:

The Bills window of contention will be the remainder of Josh's rookie deal and 5th year option. Just enjoy the ride. 

This completely misperceives the process.  The whole point of the process is that the Bills can bring in good athletes with the right attitude and they will be effective.   The process isn't about getting star players, although you do need some.   It's about getting your other 40 starters playing at really high efficiency in a team concept.   

 

The whole point of what McBeane are trying to do is get a QB worth paying big bucks, pay him the big bucks, and get all the guys around him to play as a team.  That's exactly what we're seeing now, and it won't change when Allen gets his contract.   

 

And, by the way, the process is why I think Allen is going to give a hometown discount when the new contract comes around.  Allen understands the process, and he understands that his success depends on having the right kind of guys around him.   If he gives back $5 million a year on his next deal, Allen knows that the team will be better.  Allen is a big believer in the process.  

[billsfan89]

1 hour ago, SageAgainstTheMachine said:

 

If he's just a good QB, maybe.  If he's elite the contention window will be the length of his career.

 

If Josh is a stud Top 5 to 7 QB year in year out then you are right in a sense, but there usually is a pattern of regression in the talent around a QB when the big cap hit comes due. I for once don't want to worry about the future and I just want to enjoy the ride now. 

[Rk_Bills86]

"The Process" isn't something that can be so simply as building a family oriented culture. I alluded to it in a few other posts but its pretty broad. The family oriented aspect is there and 100% important but it is also:

 

- Practice the small things - practice makes perfect - practice makes reflex

- Accountability

- Next Man Up but also Best Man Up - you can and will be replaced if they think it's better for the team

- We are not building a contender.... we are building a champion. Our expectation is Superbowl an no less

 

There are so many little things that have been done in the McD/Beane tenure that are overlooked. Credit to the development, implementation, and showing of the team family and how it extends 100% into each players family. When players are traded or drafted to us wives of our players reach out. But there are other things. There is out sales pitch of "Come to Buffalo and be the best you that you can be" - I think this was on the Embedded series where Beane or McD said some players don't want to commit to long term contracts with Buffalo for one reason or another - but they would be happy to come here for 1 year and ball out to earn a better contract (with us or another team). It's a little late for me to get into all the details and little notes but "The Process" is not a small thing that can be trivialized into such few paragraphs. I think many fans haven't been able to step back and see everything from the drought years to our current years for comparison and it's hard to really appreciate all the changes. 

[GVINCENT]

I am 99% on board with the Beane-McDermott process... The 1% I am not on board with regards the Wyatt Teller trade. https://www.pff.com/nfl/players/wyatt-teller/46131... Teller is playing at an elite Pro-Bowl level and The Bills got a 5th rd. pick for him. And he makes under $700K for the next two years. Who is responsible for not recognizing his talent in the one year he played for The Bills... When you can get Pro-Bowl type players for $700K, that is how you get an edge up in this salary cap era... The Bills made The Browns a better team and made their offensive line weaker by trading Wyatt Teller... whenever The Bills face a dominant interior lineman they get mauled... Teller gets elite grades for run-blocking and pass-protection... I'm just sayin...