Tyler Dunne story on McDermott - 3 parts, 25 interviews, one damning conclusion

[Low Positive]

1 minute ago, Gregg said:

 

If Terry wants to sellout the new stadium with raised ticket prices and PSL fees, then he will do what is in the best interest of the Bills. If that means moving on from McDermott, then he will do it. I don't think he cares what some writer thinks.

I don't know about that. You mentioned in another thread that you're an Isles fan so you may not be aware of this, but I remember back when he first bought the Sabres, Pegula got into it with Bucky Gleason. It got personal, with Gleason having his media access removed because he wrote stories critical of the way that the team was being run. At that time, Gleason was the main beat writer for the only local newspaper. Pegula doesn't like the press putting him under a microscope. He's too used to being surrounded by yes men. BTW, Pegula used all of his local influence to get Gleason blackballed from Buffalo sports media. Bucky is now a real estate agent.

[BananaB]

2 hours ago, billsfan89 said:

Every head coach has “enemies” players who feel they were unfairly cut or not given a chance or coaches in a similar position. Dorsey’s offense was outright awful in design and he deserved to be fired. 
 

I know everyone is going to ***** on the defense (which unlike the offense lost 3 key starters for the season and had other players banged up) but the defense is not the reason this team lost most of the 6 games it has lost. You can only pin 2 maybe 3 losses on a bad defensive effort.

 

The Jets game was lost due to Josh and the turnovers and a ST return in OT.

The Jaguars game was lost because the offense didn’t get it going the only reason the Bills had a chance was because the defense kept a lot of points off the board.
 

The Pats loss was on the defense although had the offense got it going sooner I think they would have been fine. 
 

The Bengals loss was on both sides of the ball. The defense had a bad first half but only let up 3 points in the second half giving the offense a chance to make a comeback. 50/50 as to which side of the ball shouldered the loss.

 

The Broncos loss was completely on the offensive side of the ball as the only reason the game was close was because of turnovers the defense held their end of the bargain.

And the Eagles loss was more so on the defensive side of the ball. Although the defense did force a 59 yard field goal attempt in bad weather. Had that nearly miracle kick not happened the defense would have come up in the clutch. You can blame the defense on that loss somewhat fairly.

 

I just don’t see the defense being the primary reason this team has lost many of its games.

None of them had anything to do with McDermott and he’s the HC.🙄

 

No game is gonna be perfect, finding ways to win at the end is what’s great about the game of football. McD is the teams biggest problem in these close games. Doesn’t matter if it’s a low scoring game or high scoring, McDs decisions during these games are costing the team. 

Edited December 7, 2023 by BananaB

[Warcodered]

19 minutes ago, folz said:

I have not read the entire article, so there may be some damning quotes to back up the opinions, but from the excerpts that have been shared here, this is exactly why I have problems with articles like these (regardless of if you want McD fired or not). Let's face it, this is not a news story, it is an opinion piece. And all too often these days, writers blur the lines between what are their opinions and what are the actual words of the people they quote. For instance, here is one excerpted segment. Actual quotes are in red, Dunne's opinion/or conclusions are in green.

 

Those who’ve worked with the head coach on a day-to-day basis predicted all of this — months in advance — because they’ve seen how McDermott operates on a day-to-day basis. How tangibly nervous he gets in close games. How he has never truly appreciated his gift from the football gods: Josh Allen. How he’s quick to blame everyone but himself in defeat. That’s why one coach — in June — began by asking a simple question: “If they fail again this year? What does ownership do with Sean?”

 

Three seconds later, he answered his own hypothetical.

 

“Next year if they fail, you know who’ll be the first person he serves up? Ken Dorsey.”

 

The coach wasn’t quite sure how McDermott would manage to put Dorsey’s head on a stick. After all, it’s the head coach’s beloved defense that has melted in four straight postseason losses. The honeymoon period with fans ended a long time ago — pointing a finger at his breadwinning quarterback, again, surely wouldn’t work. Yet even back in June, this assistant knew his old boss would find a way to deflect blame.

 

“Watch,” he said, “if they sputter at all during this year, the narrative’s going to be the offense.”

 

So, one coach (that may have worked under Sean---Dunne intimates it but doesn't confirm it) back in June said that if the team fails, Sean will create a narrative that it's the offenses fault and "serve up" Dorsey. But Dunne led into the quote with "Those who've worked with the head coach on a day-to-day basis predicted all of this.." You have one person quoted, who are "those", is it all 25 people you talked to or is it just this one unnamed coach. He leads you to believe that all of his sources thought this, predicted it. But we don't know if it's more than just this one or not, or how many.

 

And look at the terminology that he, Dunne, (not his sources) uses:

"tangibly nervous" "Never truly appreciated his gift from the football gods: Josh Allen" "He's quick to blame" "put Dorsey's head on a stick" "head coach's beloved defense that has melted" "honeymoon is over" "pointing a finger at his breadwinning quarterback" "find a way to deflect blame"

 

None of those are quotes from his sources, that is Dunne painting the picture he wants you to see, and leading us to believe that his opinions are actually those of all of the people he quoted. And well if 25 people are saying this, that's a lot, so it must be true and everyone across the organization feels this way.

 

 

Here's the other excerpt that was posted:

 

He’s a coaching relic routinely paralyzed by fear late in games. He never imagines what could go right with 20 seconds left in regulation, instead forever horrified of what could go wrong. Oblivious to the reality that he employs one of the sport’s most talented quarterbacks. The word you’ll hear constantly from those who’ve been around McDermott is “tight.” He’s so incomprehensibly tight, they say, players cannot help but stiffen up themselves. As if the head coach uses the 2-minute warning to administer mass lobotomies on his team.

 

Again, the entire actual quote that he is using from his source is "tight." 

 

The rest is all Dunne again, and honestly, look at the words and phrases he is using to emotionally sway us to his opinion. No doubt this writer has some sort of axe to grind: "a coaching relic routinely paralyzed by fear" "forever horrified of what could go wrong" "Oblivious to reality" "the head coach...administers mass lobotomies on his team."

 

I mean, come on, those are not quotes or even opinions from his sources, that is all Dunne's opinion, but when you read the article the two things get blurred together that you start thinking that Dunne's opinion is how everyone in the building feels, because I mean he interviewed 25 people. Yeah, but what did these people actually say (compared to Dunne's opinion and creative writer's license) and who are these people, what's their perspective, their level of objectivity. If he quotes one person, am I to assume the other 24 people all feel the same way, etc.

 

This post has nothing to do with whether McDermott should be fired or not, just pointing out that we need to read articles like these with our critical hats on and take them with a grain of salt.

There's definitely plenty of that, the description of what he said post "13 seconds" telling players to reflect and think about what can be done so we're not in this situation again, while yes McDermott the DC and the defense have a ton of responsibility for that, but it's still a perfectly normal thing to say to players when you didn't make it as far as you wanted to going into the offseason.

Edited December 7, 2023 by Warcodered

[Gregg]

2 minutes ago, Low Positive said:

I don't know about that. You mentioned in another thread that you're an Isles fan so you may not be aware of this, but I remember back when he first bought the Sabres, Pegula got into it with Bucky Gleason. It got personal, with Gleason having his media access removed because he wrote stories critical of the way that the team was being run. At that time, Gleason was the main beat writer for the only local newspaper. Pegula doesn't like the press putting him under a microscope. He's too used to being surrounded by yes men. BTW, Pegula used all of his local influence to get Gleason blackballed from Buffalo sports media. Bucky is now a real estate agent.

 

I live in NJ about 20 minutes from MetLife so I can't comment on Buffalo at all as far as the lifestyle and what goes on in WNY. I have been to Buffalo many times for Bills games but that is it.

[TheFunPolice]

McDermott is already getting obliterated in the sports media and this just came out.

 

Just google his name and you'll see what I mean. Tomorrow a good portion of sports talk will be ridiculing and roasting Sean McDermott. 

 

I ALWAYS hope we win, but man, if we don't everyone with a story is going to emerge from the shadows to take their shot. 

 

You have to ask yourself why, if he's such a stand up guy. Coaches and players can respect (but not like or be happy about) being let go for not getting the job done.

 

This is downright family laundry, scorched earth type stuff. 

Edited December 7, 2023 by TheFunPolice

[dave mcbride]

2 minutes ago, Low Positive said:

I don't know about that. You mentioned in another thread that you're an Isles fan so you may not be aware of this, but I remember back when he first bought the Sabres, Pegula got into it with Bucky Gleason. It got personal, with Gleason having his media access removed because he wrote stories critical of the way that the team was being run. At that time, Gleason was the main beat writer for the only local newspaper. Pegula doesn't like the press putting him under a microscope. He's too used to being surrounded by yes men. BTW, Pegula used all of his local influence to get Gleason blackballed from Buffalo sports media. Bucky is now a real estate agent.

Interestingly, I just checked the twitter/X feeds of all the Bills reporters who have access: Buscaglia, Sal C, Mark Gaughan, Tim Graham, Matt Bove, etc. etc. None have even mentioned this explosive piece except one -- John Wawrow, who said nothing of substance. National writers who don't depend on access, on the other hand, seem happy to talk about it. 

.  

[CincyBillsFan]

12 minutes ago, eball said:

 

I'm no McD apologist but this still doesn't make sense.  If McD is the control freak Dunne makes him out to be there is no way he was allowing Dorsey to handle all of the "tactical details" regarding the offense.  McD has openly said he wants Josh to play loose and have fun; I don't think for one moment he was trying to stifle him.  If you listen to what McD said about the offense it is that it needs to be complementary and everything can't rest on Josh's shoulders.

 

Oh I agree that McD may have been more complicit in the O's struggles and didn't leave all the tactical decisions to Dorsey.  But check this out from Dunn and tell me it doesn't clash with how you're thinking McD wants Allen to be:

 

There are two distinct versions of Josh Allen this 2023 season. One is fun. One takes off on the run — “The crowd loves it!” Al Michaels professes — and holds the football over the goal line while staring down a Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback.

 

This version gets a Cincinnati Bengals safety to leave his feet with a pump fake, points, laughs and runs in for a TD. Flag ‘n fine, be damned. Meanwhile, Sean McDermott, spits on the turf and purses his lips. Fifteen yards lost on a kickoff likely means more to the Buffalo Bills head coach than any momentum gained by his backyard quarterback rediscovering himself.

 

This version, at rain-slopped Philadelphia, rams through Reed Blankenship at the goal line, chucks the ball against the backstop and — flanked by teammates — swaggers right into the teeth of those trash-talking Eagles fans as if welcoming a dark-alley fight. The TD launched a tour de force for the quarterback: 420 total yards, four touchdowns. 

 

If Buffalonians could create the quarterback they’ve always desired in a lab, it’s exactly this.

 

But then, there’s the other Allen. The pale, stupefied, knockoff version who trudges to the sideline after an interception vs. Denver with McDermott screaming in his ear. Unlike his boss, Allen does not come remotely close to assigning blame. Doesn’t embarrass receivers on national TV. Doesn’t snipe into earholes on the sidelines. Doesn’t kindly remind the public what McDermott said back in March when, in truth, it’s fully within his rights to alert your attention to these trainwreck comments.

 

A smart coach does everything in his power to accentuate the first version of Allen. Realize you’ve been gifted a Marvel character at the most important position in sports and let him fly.

 

Then, there’s McDermott sitting down with NFL Network last March. He made it abundantly clear that Allen needed to siphon these sorts of plays out of his game. 

“I don’t think that that’s a healthy way to play quarterback in this league,” said McDermott, in a video posted by the team. “It’s really undefeated that things are going to happen when you play that style, that brand of football. So, we’ve got to get that adjusted. It’s never going to go completely away but it has to get to where it’s workable. I don’t want to take his personality away from him as far as that goes. His signature. But there needs to be an adjustment in that style of play.”

Manually warping the “style” of your most valuable commodity should’ve slotted in as the 2,789th item on the Bills’ offseason agenda. But this was no surprise.

 

This is a head coach with a low Quarterback IQ.

 

Start with the player who helped him become a head coach: Cam Newton. When the former No. 1 overall pick shapeshifted into molten lava on NFL defenses throughout the 2015 season — an MVP season, a 15-1 season — McDermott was the Carolina Panthers’ defensive coordinator. One of many individuals to directly benefit from Newton throwing for 3,837 yards, rushing for 636 and scoring 45 touchdowns in leading Carolina to the Super Bowl. In 2016, the Panthers went 6-10. In 2017, McDermott was named the 20th coach in Bills history.

 

This did not stop McDermott from bashing Newton in staff meetings.

 

One of the Bills assistants Go Long spoke to for this series said that McDermott’s “frame of reference” as a coach was watching Newton — in his mind — “ruin” the Panthers. “He used to come into offensive staff meetings,” this source said, “and just motherf--k Cam Newton.” Aside from the objective lunacy, this created… awkwardness.

Edited December 7, 2023 by CincyBillsFan

[Ralonzo]

3 hours ago, Mango said:

if Pegula botches this thing with the Bills, this town won't hesitate to light their torches for the absolute, hands down, worst owner in NHL history. 

 

Harold Ballard? Bill Wirtz? Hell, he's not even the worst owner of the Sabres seeing as he hasn't gone to prison (John Rigas)

[PromoTheRobot]

3 hours ago, Mango said:

My point is that I think Terry is on thin ice in this town. He has a lot of goodwill because of the last 6 years with the Bills. But as this team struggles and the Sabres org becomes more inept by the day, if Pegula botches this thing with the Bills, this town won't hesitate to light their torches for the absolute, hands down, worst owner in NHL history. 

 

 

When Terry saved the Bills from Bon Jovi and Rogers, and everyone loved him, I knew he'd be despised in a few years. Because no good deed goes unpunished.

[Low Positive]

I'm trying to come up with the 25 sources. Here's what i've got:

1. Daboll
2. Chad Hall
3. Heath Farwell
4. Jon Feliciano
5. Quinton Spain
6. Cole Beasley
7. Devin Singletary
8. Leslie Frasier
9. John Brown
10. Bobby Johnson
11. Lil' Dirty
12. Zach Moss
13. Ken Dorsey
14. Cody Ford
15. Bobby Hart
16. Levi Wallace

Edited December 7, 2023 by Low Positive

[KOKBILLS]

5 hours ago, Buddy Hix said:

13 secs exposed McD's inability to be accountable,

 

It exposed more than that. And none of it good. 

[TheFunPolice]

These quotes from Deadpsin make the 9/11 story sound even more legit, because they try to explain why McDermott might have tried to use that example. Not the type of thing you would include in a totally made-up hit piece: 

 

Players who spoke anonymously to Dunne were taken aback by the “horrible, horrible reference.” One coach added that McDermott “doesn’t have bad intentions. He’s just so clueless that he couldn’t believe that it was a big deal when the players were losing their minds.”

 

Other players tried to rationalize it from McDermott’s perspective. “In his brain it was, ‘If evil can accomplish this, then imagine what we can accomplish’ doing things the right way. The message was just f—ked up.”

 

 

To me, this sounds 100% believable. 

Edited December 7, 2023 by TheFunPolice

[JohnNord]

4 minutes ago, TheFunPolice said:

McDermott is already getting obliterated in the sports media and this just came out.

 

Just google his name and you'll see what I mean. Tomorrow a good portion of sports talk will be ridiculing and roasting Sean McDermott. 

 

I ALWAYS hope we win, but man, if we don't everyone with a story is going to emerge from the shadows to take their shot. 

 

You have to ask yourself why, if he's such a stand up guy. Coaches and players can respect (but not like or be happy about) being let go for not getting the job done.

 

This is downright family laundry, scorched earth type stuff. 

Except he’s not.  The article hasn’t picked up traction yet outside of the typical Bills Twitter.

 

There's some lower level blogs that picked up on it, but it’s not like McDermott is one of the talking points currently around the NFL. 

[SageAgainstTheMachine]

Some truly absurd stuff.  It doesn't really bother me that former colleagues think McD is arrogant or controlling or a weasel or whatever.  Spend enough time in an executive position and you'll have people who want their pound of flesh.

 

What bothers me is that McD is a stupid person. 

[Jauronimo]

Just now, davefan66 said:

I have tried to be a McD supporter for all he’s done.  Playoffs, changing the “culture”, many wins.  But clearly, he has not had what is needed to push us over the top.

 

I must say, if he truly is the guy portrayed in this article, send him packing right now.  Appreciate what he did to start our ascent, but we need someone who can truly lead this team.  Not waste one of the most physically gifted QB’s to ever play the game.

 

Quite possibly the players are exhausted with him.

Thats where I am with him.  Based on the change in tone and body language of the team and the results this year relative to last, I think the players have tuned him out.  I'm not saying mutiny or that hes lost the locker room but the guys look tight out there but also sloppy.  Some coaches have a shorter shelf life depending on their communication style.  

[dave mcbride]

Just now, JohnNord said:

Except he’s not.  The article hasn’t picked up traction yet outside of the typical Bills Twitter.

 

There's some lower level blogs that picked up on it, but it’s not like McDermott is one of the talking points currently around the NFL. 

LOL. Like Florio or hate him, but PFT is without question one of the most read NFL-oriented news outlets. It is HUGELY popular. 

[Ray Stonada]

I paid the 8 bucks. I think the picture of McDermott it draws explains a lot of what ails this team.

 

Stuff like this doesn't need any quotes from people who got fired to be on point:

 

"As pressure mounts this season — as fans correctly deduce that the head coach is the problem — it should come as no surprise that McDermott has tried to pin this disappointing season on the offense. After Mac Jones, one of the worst QBs in the NFL, drove 75 yards in 1:46 to win, plenty of shrapnel was reserved for the Bills offense. After losing in Cincinnati, he pointed to the line of scrimmage and the lack of run-pass balance. After the Bills squandered a lead with 1:56 left to Denver, McDermott ripped Allen for an interception and said he was “proud” of his defense all in the same answer."

[SectionC3]

7 minutes ago, TheFunPolice said:

McDermott is already getting obliterated in the sports media and this just came out.

 

Just google his name and you'll see what I mean. Tomorrow a good portion of sports talk will be ridiculing and roasting Sean McDermott. 

 

I ALWAYS hope we win, but man, if we don't everyone with a story is going to emerge from the shadows to take their shot. 

 

You have to ask yourself why, if he's such a stand up guy. Coaches and players can respect (but not like or be happy about) being let go for not getting the job done.

 

This is downright family laundry, scorched earth type stuff. 

I haven’t read it—just the free parts—but I had a similar thought.  There are a lot of guys who have been in that building with McD who were all too happy to throw him under the wheels of a semi.   I wonder how many chimed in—and how many may pipe up—to defend him.   From what I gather this piece is humiliating.   And, this conversation makes me wonder whether he’s lost the room, and I think we’ll get a good sense of that in the coming weeks.  

 

[dave mcbride]

5 minutes ago, Low Positive said:

I'm trying to come up with the 25 sources. Here's what i've got:

1. Daboll
2. Chad Hall
3. Heath Farwell
4. Jon Feliciano
5. Quinton Spain
6. Cole Beasley
7. Devin Singletary
8. Leslie Frasier
9. John Brown
10. Bobby Johnson
11. Lil' Dirty
12. Zach Moss
13. Ken Dorsey
14. Cody Ford

 

[Mango]

2 minutes ago, Ralonzo said:

 

Harold Ballard? Bill Wirtz? Hell, he's not even the worst owner of the Sabres seeing as he hasn't gone to prison (John Rigas)

 

At the time of purchase the Sabres had the 4th highest all time point percentage in the league. They are by far the winningest franchise to never win a cup. Buffalo fans like to say their lives are always miserable, but over 40+ years the Sabres were amongst the most winningest franchises ever. 

The Sabres are having the worst 12 year stretch in the history of professional hockey in the United States. They have now plummeted 8 spots with a .445 point percentage since he bought the team. 

Rigas going to jail for fraud means he sucks as a human. But he also owned this team during the 99 cup run. There is 0.0000% chance that Rigas is lesser hockey owner.