Dick Jauron Overall...

[OCinBuffalo]

I didn't add +/- ability so that we would have to pick a grade. My vote is B because I was very impressed with DJ's ability to draft, turn the team around, clear the air, and get this team thinking "team" once again, and most importantly game plan. However, I felt like there were some questionable in-game decisions made. I know that some of these are made by assistants, but he is ultimately accountable for them. It was made clear that he was a defensive, conservative coach coming in. Perhaps that's just what we needed in terms of getting back to basics, fundamental football, etc. However, next year I hope that what I will call our "summer school" as a team is over and we can move on to more advanced things - like loosening the leash on JP, throwing to the TE more, and using Josh Reed as a third down WR/RB(and all the chaos that would cause the opposing D ).

[marauderswr80]

B is where I stand aswell. He didnt care what people thought of the draft he drafted according to his system and stuck to it. He stuck with a QB he didnt know much about and it paid off bigtime. And also the OL move was big. If he dont make that move, I honestly think JP would have been benched, Evans wouldnt have had the year he did and the Bills would have had 3-4 more losses, and picking top 5 in the draft.

 

Jauron, however would have got an A in my book if he goes 8-8.

 

And by the way, nice post.

[smokinandjokin]

Is he a B because we were all expecting a D or an F??? Is he a B because he's compared to Mularkey, who was a D-?

 

I'd give him a C. Unprepared to play against Chicago, Detroit, New England game @ home. End of the Tennessee game seemed awkward- not the hail mary/no FG, moreso the 4 plays before that 4th down.

 

It took the offense too long to adjust to the weak line and shorten JP's drops to 3 and 5 steps, instead of 7 steps. I give them credit for eventually adjusting, though.

 

The Peerless Price no-catch against San Diego, where the Bills called a timeout to decide whether or not to challenge, and then challenged and lost another timeout, was a debacle.

 

So...I grade a D for the first 7 games, a B for the next 7 games, and a C for the final two. A C overall, which is good. Overall, no panic from the coaching staff when things weren't going well. They have a nice first year to build off of.

[ricojes]

I would give DJ a C for this year. I think he did a pretty good job and the team as a whole exeded expectations and were competetive. He does need to improve on his decision making and time management though. One negative decision that really sticks out, is the 4th down against Tennessee. Not that he didn't decide to attempt a FG, but that he had to ask RL if he was comfortable from that distance after the 3rd down play while the play clock was ticking. If I am the head coach, I approach RL before the Titans even kick off to see where RL is comfortabe and manage that drive to at least get to that spot. By the time the decision not to kick was made the play clock was winding down and JP had to rush the snap and throw up a prayer. Hopefully he will continue to grow with this team and impove along with them, obviously the Bills cannot afford to start over again. I am fairly confident that he can make the improvements and adjustments that are necessary to some day be a very good coach.

 

Go Bills....

[OnTheRocks]

I gave him a C.

I would have gone with a C+ or B- if the options were there.

 

 

I think he gambled and lost on a few opportunities on 4th down, and unwise use of timeouts and challenges early in the season.

And they had some late game break downs.

But the team itself was improving from week to week. I like him a lot, and although I was on the Mike Sherman bandwagon last offseason, I am glad DJ is the coach.

[Robert Paulson]

i gave him a B

 

Tuesday -Saturday i give him a B+ to an A: the game plans look good, personnell is used correctly etc

 

Game day i give him a C to C+: not that he was bumbling bad- just average on critical decisions like going for 1st downs, replay challenges, communication on decisions so plays get to the QB quickly etc. improvement in this area could be worth another 2 victories a year

[DrDawkinstein]

i gave him a B.

 

even though i agree with smokinandjokin's analysis, theres one more thing that brings his grade up. when peerless was quoted in the media talking about how the entire team likes coming into work. i think DJ's toughest job here was not on gameday but the other 6 days a week. even though theyre getting paid millions, its almost a fulltime job getting the players to WANT to play for the Bills.

 

he changed the environment in the locker room and with the players from a bunch of guys who only cared so much to a TEAM that wants to come to work and play to win.

[OnTheRocks]

i gave him a B.

 

even though i agree with smokinandjokin's analysis, theres one more thing that brings his grade up. when peerless was quoted in the media talking about how the entire team likes coming into work. i think DJ's toughest job here was not on gameday but the other 6 days a week. even though theyre getting paid millions, its almost a fulltime job getting the players to WANT to play for the Bills.

 

he changed the environment in the locker room and with the players from a bunch of guys who only cared so much to a TEAM that wants to come to work and play to win.

he really seems to be a Marv Levy clone in that matter.

Marv was a lot...no...a ton more animated on the gameday sideline, but working with the players and treating them like men Monday thru Saturday, they are one in the same coaches.

[nick in* england]

In my view a B is too high - principally because the team displayed an inability to finish the season, and because of the drubbing by Chicago... I also think B's too high because of the start that this team made, and some of the personnel choices early.

 

I give him a C grade. because despite my reservations above, he's done more than we expected, and was able to adjust mid-season, foster a collegiate team atmosphere and make the Bills exciting to watch.

[Kelly the Dog]

I wanted to give him a C, which is what he ultimately deserved for how he coached this season. But I raised it to a B for several other things that he did, which he probably won't get extra credit for in future years.

 

First of all, along with Marv, he changed the culture of the Bills. he made them a lot more stable, he handled the press well, he handled the players and the fans well. You can root for this guy, and in turn, his team roots for him and plays for him. He's a Buffalo kind of guy. That's a welcomed change from the friggin' abortions that were Greggo and Meathead.

 

Secondly, he seemed to have chosen some good assistants and coordinators. yes, both sides of the ball had glaring deficiencies but overall I liked what I saw from these guys considering what they had to work with and the newness of their jobs and players. It's easy to forget that neither of them ever had anything close to the responsibility that Jauron gave them. It gives a lot of hope for the future.

 

Thirdly, Jauron proved that he wasn't afraid to make the bold change, AND wasn't afraid to stick to his guns. He didn't panic, he simply did what he thought was best for the team, and that, too, bodes well for the future.

 

Fourth, the team responded to him. They had the fewest penalties in the league I think. Both sides of the ball showed some promise.

 

So his grade went up to a B from a C for me. This year, he will need to prove it more on the field with his game day decisions, and transfer that into wins and a playoff spot. I think anything less is a slight disappointment, unless they lose all their FAs and don't really replace them with adequate talent.

 

This season, he will have to prove it more

[IDBillzFan]

They had the fewest penalties in the league I think. Both sides of the ball showed some promise.

I think we were tied for ninth overall in the league, but set a team record for least amount of penalties. I was stunned to find out the OL had only four holding/illegal use of hands penalties all year.

 

Two other things this coaching staff did that was impressive to me relative to previous years: better half-time adjustments and better road performances.

 

For the first time in years, I stopped looking at road games and thinking "we'll get our ass handed to us there." Good performances in Indy, Houston, NJ and yes, even Baltimore. The two areas I hope to see improvement (where the 2006 team team could not do so year): cross-country road games and primetime games. We have sucked at both.

[2003Contenders]

I too gave him a B.

 

Although DJ made some bad game-day decisions, I also never felt that he was downright out coached this season, as his predecessors were on many occasions. In fact, he and his staff came up with some game plans that helped keep us in some ball games that we probably shouldn't have even been in. He did a good job hiring his assistants. He also has an air of confidence, sincerity and self-security about him that translates well to those around him. The number of penalties, which were a huge problem for both of the last 2 staffs, went down in major way this season. That's real discipline -- not the stupid bull-horn kind of discipline that GW beat his chest with. Jauron really does come across as a younger version of Marv, which is great as long as he continues to have quality people around him.

 

My biggest beef with him was the shut-down mode that he often allowed the team to go into (on both sides of the ball) at the end of a half. How many cheap scores did we allow at the end the first half in football games this year? NY Jets, Detroit, SD, Tennessee... Those were all games that wound up being decided within the margin of said cheap scores. There were also far too many games that ended the same way -- or when we just couldn't get the ball back for that one last drive. Maybe shoring up the run defense will help with that.

[DrDawkinstein]

I think we were tied for ninth overall in the league, but set a team record for least amount of penalties. I was stunned to find out the OL had only four holding/illegal use of hands penalties all year.

 

Two other things this coaching staff did that was impressive to me relative to previous years: better half-time adjustments and better road performances.

 

For the first time in years, I stopped looking at road games and thinking "we'll get our ass handed to us there." Good performances in Indy, Houston, NJ and yes, even Baltimore. The two areas I hope to see improvement (where the 2006 team team could not do so year): cross-country road games and primetime games. We have sucked at both.

 

WE HAVE NO CROSS COUNTRY GAMES THIS YEAR!!

 

the farthest west we go is cleveland, and we have 2 florida games, but everything else is northeast

[Kelly the Dog]

I think we were tied for ninth overall in the league, but set a team record for least amount of penalties. I was stunned to find out the OL had only four holding/illegal use of hands penalties all year.

Right, that was the stat I was thinking of. Thanks. Unfortunately, that doesn't say a lot for the Bills of the past if this was the least in their history and they finished ninth in the league. And actually, looking at the number, they were 9th in yards but 12th in total number, which is even worse.

[IDBillzFan]

WE HAVE NO CROSS COUNTRY GAMES THIS YEAR!!

 

the farthest west we go is cleveland, and we have 2 florida games, but everything else is northeast

That's good news.

 

But with our luck, we'll get a Monday night game in NE as they are coming off their bye week.

[DrDawkinstein]

That's good news.

 

But with our luck, we'll get a Monday night game in NE as they are coming off their bye week.

 

good, then everyone can watch us take the division from the golden boys next year

[ricojes]

WE HAVE NO CROSS COUNTRY GAMES THIS YEAR!!

 

the farthest west we go is cleveland, and we have 2 florida games, but everything else is northeast

Hopefully that remains true as the schedule is finalized!!!

[Sketch Soland]

I think ol Dicky J deserves a B this year. A good start. My grading criteria will only get tougher however next year, as expectations will be higher, naturally.

[MRW]

I concur with what several others have said, a B is appropriate given the wretched state the team was in after last year. I also agree that the bar is higher for next year, need to improve on some gameday decisions, handle ends of halves better, etc.