Gailey's first moves hold critical importance
by Brian Galliford on Jan 20, 2010 9:00 AM EST
in Buffalo Bills Opinion
86 comments
Clearly, when you're a head coach in the NFL, every decision you make, no matter when or where, carries some degree of importance. Every decision carries some degree of magnitude when your job is as high-profile and high-demand as leading a professional football organization from the sidelines.
New Buffalo Bills head coach Chan Gailey, simply because of his job title, has important decisions to make. But his decisions won't be of run-of-the-mill importance; in case you missed it at the beginning of this paragraph, Gailey is the new coach of the Buffalo Bills. Gailey inherits the reigns of a team that has not made the playoffs in ten straight years amidst a level of fan angst rarely seen in these parts. There are holes to be filled at the most important positions on this roster. Without improvement in several key areas, Buffalo will not win many games in 2010, regardless of how much effort and creativity Gailey puts into his first year on the job here.
Right off the bat, Gailey has four critical decisions to make, and he'll need to pull the trigger quickly on most of them. Most of you will see the list that follows after the jump from a mile away; for those who don't, stash this away as a 'to do' list that, if Gailey can't complete, will likely doom the Bills' chances of being even a fringe contender in 2010.
Coaching staff
Clearly, the first thing Gailey needs to do is get his stable of assistants in place. Expect him to concentrate on the defensive side of ball first, as Gailey revealed at his introductory press conference that he would be Buffalo's offensive play-caller in 2010.
The team will target coaches that can teach, preach fundamentals, and demand the respect of their players. That's easy to promise, but sometimes can be difficult to deliver on. Gailey's most important hire will obviously be his defensive coordinator, and it is imperative that he find a guy that will demand as much respect from Buffalo's current and future defenders as Gailey garners for his impressive offensive resume.
Scheme will be revealed with these hires, as well. We have at least a philosophical idea of what Buffalo's offense will work, because that unit will be Gailey's baby. Buffalo would be a physical, run-to-set-up-the-pass offense in Gailey's ideal world, but Gailey made it clear that personnel would shape his ultimate plans on that side of the ball. Gailey ran a 4-3 while head coach in Dallas, but made it known that he is not averse to running a 3-4. More on that in a moment.
Strength and conditioning
Buffalo's injury history is well-documented, and has, at least in this humble writer's opinion, been the most frustrating thing about being a Bills fan for the past 2-3 years. Bills players have dropped like flies, and there hasn't really been any rhyme or reason to it. While I wouldn't place the blame entirely on former strength and conditioning coordinator J.T. Allaire, it's fairly obvious that he won't be returning.
Bills GM Buddy Nix, at his own introductory press conference, promised that he'd be looking into the injury issues and trying to spot a pattern. I sincerely doubt he'll find anything routine, but my guess is that he and Gailey will put an emphasis on bringing in a quality strength coach with an established program; that might be a huge selling point to fans if they can land someone with a reputation.
There are a lot of players that donned Bills red, white and blue last year that we assume would jump at the chance to do so again next year. Right now, most of those players are on their post-season vacations, but it won't be long before they get back into the weight room on a regular basis to get their bodies ready for the 2010 season. Gailey needs to have a program in place well before that happens, and the new strength and conditioning staff will need to consult with Buffalo's players to make sure that their needs are taken care of, and that programs are developed on an individual basis. The NFL is big on players taking care of themselves, and that work will need to start pretty quickly. And, obviously, it's particularly important for the injury-ravaged Bills.
Personnel evaluation
One of the curious things about the Bills firing Dick Jauron's old coaching staff the day after the season ended is that it left a significant amount of immediate post-season work waiting for a new coaching staff. Unless random Bills staffers and interns have been busy cutting up film and preparing portfolios on each current Buffalo Bill while Nix searched for his next coach, that's work that Gailey and his staff will need to address before they can even begin thinking about the direction of the organization.
Evaluating personnel is obviously a huge step that Gailey and the coaches he brings in will need to take. There are commonly-held, public perceptions of the quality and potential utility of each and every Bill currently on the roster, but the only perception that ultimately matters in regard to those players is whether or not Gailey believes he can win with them. By my count, the Bills have 22 free agents to break down, first and foremost, and then an additional 58 guys that were on the active roster last year to analyze. That's not an insignificant amount of work, and how those players are evaluated will be the first test of whether or not Gailey is on the same page with Nix, who should be in on these evaluations as well.
Obviously, we need to discuss scheme here, too, because the defensive coordinator that Gailey hires may run some funky scheme that renders the talents of, for example, Kyle Williams completely moot. Gailey made it clear that he'd tailor scheme to talent to some degree, so what the Bills eventually run will pertain highly to the results of these initial personnel evaluations.
Addressing the critical positions
We know what the big ones are. Gailey needs to find a quarterback, first and foremost, and to say that Trent Edwards, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Brian Brohm didn't get a ringing endorsement from Nix would be an understatement. My sense is that Gailey will look to overhaul that position - if not completely, then in a significant way - and his first big personnel change may be to bring in a veteran quarterback.
The two other big areas, of course, are the offensive line and, defensively, the linebacker position. No matter who ends up being Gailey's quarterback in 2010, it's fairly obvious that the Bills need to be better up front. Expect massive changes in that area (emphasis on the word "massive"). Meanwhile, Buffalo's overall lack of top talent and, more importantly, depth at the linebacker position may have a bigger effect on scheme preference defensively than most are willing to admit.
One last thought: not only do positions need to be addressed, but specific players need to be addressed as well. Does Gailey see Eric Wood as a right guard or as a natural center? Where does Geoff Hangartner fit in? Does Gailey believe that Aaron Maybin can play 4-3 end, as the previous coaching staff did, or does he view him as a better fit somewhere else? There are a significant amount of players that will be in Buffalo next season, based purely on quality and contract status, and finding those players concrete positions will play a role in how the big need areas are addressed as well.
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That pic of Gailey looks very presidential. I could see it hanging on the wall at the white house.
No weekend spent pantsless is a wasted weekend.
by sireric on Jan 20, 2010 9:22 AM EST reply actions 1 recs
I don't know...
I keep thinking of this guy whenever I look at him, must be the hair:
http://www.lebmetal.com/files/2009/11/bram-stokers-dracula.jpg
New York City Buffalo Bills Backers
www.nycbbb.com
come on
He looks like a football coach, not an undead despot
Still waiting for the playoffs.... Go Bills 2010 !!!!
All I could think of was Gene Hackman in Hoosiers. I slightly angrier version.
You're not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on.
by PerryTuttle22 on Jan 20, 2010 12:41 PM EST up reply actions
Hopefully the results are the same. Can’t say we aren’t the underdog right now.
You're not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on.
by PerryTuttle22 on Jan 20, 2010 1:13 PM EST up reply actions
the tasks you so expertly outlined
appear even more daunting when considering the interplay of Nix-Gailey at the presser. It did not appear to me that they have had many (if any) in-depth discussions about the tasks at hand. When asked a question, Gailey often looked at Nix for direction or said sometthing using the future tense. He didn’t appear to me to be decisive or have a clear vision of a plan.
I can only think of the articles surrounding Shanahan’s hiatus from the game and how he spent time preparing for his return, working towards it every day and not knowing where it would be. That did not appear to be how Gailey spent his “vacation”.
And speaking of that time off, if we were so high on him all along, why didn’t they hire him sooner? There have been a multitude of staff signings by other teams during the “search” period. Had we brought him in way back when, we might have had a shot at some of that talent and a head start on “the plan” whatever that is.
"If you're happy, stay happy" - Mike Riley
Ultimately, it comes down to one thing.
Is Ralphie-boy gonna pony up the cash for quality coaches and player? The Bills need a defensive coordinator in the ilk of Mike Zimmer in Cincy or dare I say it…Leslie Frazier. Even the Ryan brothers type of guy would be a blessing to the Bills. But will the money be layed out there? Time will tell.
Well Leslie Frazier is under contract.
YES WE CHAN!
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by MattRichWarren on Jan 21, 2010 1:39 PM EST up reply actions
What would we rather see in our DC?
A younger positional coach promoted to DC? Or a veteran DC that may have been a HC?
New York City Buffalo Bills Backers
www.nycbbb.com
mike nolan would have been nice
now he’s a dolphin
Still waiting for the playoffs.... Go Bills 2010 !!!!
You get the best coach regardless of background.
If you put restrictions on who you want (like insisting on an offensive coach with head coaching experience) you’re more likely not to get the best candidate. But you might get, in Ralph’s words, lucky.
some hope to get lucky....some make their own luck. In which categorty would you put the Bills?
"Do you even hear how totally bat sh!t insane you sound?" - Archer
To me, hoping is the same as wishing
“You can crap in one hand and wish in the other, and see which one fills up first…” – Burgess Merideth
"Do you even hear how totally bat sh!t insane you sound?" - Archer
Hahaha....I am well done....I wasn't sure if anyone would catch that.
"Do you even hear how totally bat sh!t insane you sound?" - Archer
Call me crazy but I’m actually hoping that Gailey calls his old boss and gets Herm Edwards as our DC.
Jesus, if that mouthy little f***er didn’t manage to get open so often I think I would have punched him in the face years ago. - Tom Brady on Wes Welker
by CanadianBillsFan on Jan 20, 2010 12:44 PM EST up reply actions
i will not not call you crazy.
i refuse. besides, i like that idea..
Jonathan Stupar won the Heisman…while playing in the NFL!
I do too
would Herm do it though? I’m sure other calls have been made to him.
"you just have to know there's always going to be adversity. None of these games are going to be easy. Nothing will be given to us" - Paul Posluszny
I think that he’s waiting for an HC job, but I’d love to be able to nab him as our next DC.
Jesus, if that mouthy little f***er didn’t manage to get open so often I think I would have punched him in the face years ago. - Tom Brady on Wes Welker
by CanadianBillsFan on Jan 20, 2010 7:09 PM EST up reply actions
I would hope that Gailey has already been evaluating players over the past week. I would think that would be a significant part of the interview for a coach who’s sitting on the sidelines (as opposed to a playoff coordinator who doesn’t have time to do that).
If I’m Nix I want Gailey’s opinion about Fitzpatrick and Edwards, and to a lesser extent Brohm (who he probably looked at prior to his drafting) in the interview. They should know what direction they’re going with at QB right now (although not necessarily specifics).
or a coach who’s sitting on the sidelines (as opposed to a playoff coordinator who doesn’t have time to do that).
Isn’t that exactly what a playoff coordinator is doing, and what Chan hasn’t been doing the past year?
I kid, of course, but it’s just funny how that turn of phrase just doesn’t make sense in this one instance.
Jonathan Stupar won the Heisman…while playing in the NFL!
I have not yet weighed in on the Chan hiring so let me start there:
First of all, I am really not surprised. After listening to Nix at his last few press-conferences I’ve come to realize that he likes to hear himself talk and I think he likes the control part of his job. This basically told me that he was not going to hire a head coach that was going to challenge him at every turn. It had to be someone of a lesser tier that would fall into ranks. Chan Gailey fits the mold that he was looking for. An offensive guy, that has had some level of success, that has also been a head coach at various levels.
The negative: What scare me is the fact that Gailey seems to bounce around a heck of a lot, I wounder why? When I guy stays only 1-2 years somewhere before moving on, you have to wounder why? Everyone is saying how successful he’s been and all I really see is a level of mediocrity.
The positive: I think the fact that he’s been so many places, with so many different systems/schemes/environments, he’s experienced a lot of different ways to lose. I think this prepares him better to win. Someone that has been real successful at one place only would be stuck in his ways, whereas I believe that a guy like Gailey will have learned from those numerous experiences. What I like about this guy is the fact that he seems to really believe in tough football heavily based on the run-first to set-up the pass, which is what I’ve been screaming for so I have to feel positive about that.
I will give this guy a chance but I must say that I have zero expectations going into the season. Maybe it’s better that way, given that they have a lot of re-building to do – level setting the expectations effectively reduces the pressure in year 1-2?? Anyway, I’ve seen enough to understand why he was hired and I’ll support it for the time being.
Good Post Brian!
I agree with all your points, especially the Conditioning part. One must wonder is fundamentals don’t also come into play, when you see broken bones (POZ) and crazy a$$ injuries resulting from very poor tackling techniques (Whitner)… I kinda liked it when Gailey said he’d work on basic fundamentals a lot. I am really anxious to see who he gets as DC, a guy I expect to be senior with a ton of experience – this will tell us if Buddy & Chan are well respected and as a result have any influence at all.
Nothing left to say...
Scouting Info
I very good friend of mine is from Dalls and grew up there rooting for Gailey’s Cowboys. When I probed him for some info on new HC this is what he had to offer:
1. Very BIG Character guy. He is extremely religious himself and while he doesn’t preach to his players, he DOES NOT tolerate players with poor integrity and work ethic. In fact, it was one of the issues he had in Big D (i.e. Michael Irvin) that divided him from the team and ownership. “Don’t mess with Jerry’s horses!”
2. Great judge of talent. While he is a run-to-pass guy, his specific play calling is meant to utilize the strengths of individual players over “scheming” like a chess match. Towards the end of his career Emmitt lost a lot of his top end speed, as such Gailey used him solely as a between the tackles. No power sweeps, fewer screens, just follow “The Moose” throught the hole. No gimmicks. Emmitts numbers reflect pretty good success.
3. Great with quaterbacks. One of the main reasons he was brought to Dallas was his history with QBs. Troy was at the end of his career and Jerry Jones wanted someone who could squeeze every last drop out of Troy and potentially develop Jason Garrett into a starter. If you look, both posted pretty decent numbers during Gailey’s tenure, and while Garrett never became a starter, we are now aware if his current job.
4. Holds his players accountable. Playing time will definitely follow performance and practices will definitely mean something. His training camps in Big D were pretty intense.
All of this info came straight from a long-time Dallas fan who ironically happens to also be a pretty intelligent person (I know, I know, but really he is!). All in all, after my discussion with him I feel much better now. In fact, when I said the name at work, there were 2 Dallas fans who immediately perked up and were pleasantly surprised. Their words to me were essentially, damn good hire. Buck up folks, we have some hope on the horizon.
Confucius say, "Man who go to bed with itchy butt, wake up with smelly finger."
by superchops on Jan 20, 2010 12:21 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Great post. Probably wouldn't be a bad idea to put this up on a fan post. Rec'd.
Its encouraging that every fan of former teams that Gailey’s been on only has good things to say about the guy. Thats a big plus in my book.
Jesus, if that mouthy little f***er didn’t manage to get open so often I think I would have punched him in the face years ago. - Tom Brady on Wes Welker
by CanadianBillsFan on Jan 20, 2010 12:54 PM EST up reply actions
All our players loved Jauron too.
"Do you even hear how totally bat sh!t insane you sound?" - Archer
Yeah, but the fans didn’t. I don’t much care about player’s opinions about a coach simply because the player’s opinion will vary with the success of the team (in my mind anyways). But if your coaching a horribly losing team (KC) or HC a team that can’t pass the first round of the playoffs (Dallas) and the fans of those team still think your a great coach despite the fact that you lost, THAT says a lot to me.
There is nobody out there that is more qualified to talk about the intraquacies of a man’s coaching style and expirience then the diehard fans of those teams. Ask just about any Bills fan and they’ll tell you (me included) that Dick Jauron was a horrible head coach and a bad deffensive coordinator. Ask KC and Dallas fans and they almost all say good things about Cailey. Thats why I think we’re not giving Gailey a fare shake. And its also why I’m witholding opinion on Gailey until the season starts.
Jesus, if that mouthy little f***er didn’t manage to get open so often I think I would have punched him in the face years ago. - Tom Brady on Wes Welker
by CanadianBillsFan on Jan 20, 2010 3:24 PM EST up reply actions
Great judge of talent
I guess he wouldn’t let a guy like Jim Leonard walk away like Jauron did.
Nothing left to say...
i'll fight this point to the death
we have many jim leonards. jim leonards are a dime a dozen. It’s the Ed Reeds, the Kerry Rhodeses that are tough to find. Finding a complement, a Jim Leonhard…well that’s easy, and there’s no reason to keep them around. Jauron’s (more broadly, the bills’) failure was their inability to find a Reed, not that they didn’t see Leonhard as a starter.
...so I guess now I root for chan gailey...
Ummm,
Jim Leonhard had 1 INT, 5 passes defensed and 53 (solo) tackles this season. We got that or better out of Whitner, Byrd, Wilson, and Scott. Hell, we got better production out of Reggie Shouldbebagginggroceries.
The guy had a career high of 44 tackles and 2 INTs with the Bills. The only 2 INTs he had in 3 years. It’s a shame we let him go…
by twoeightnine on Jan 20, 2010 2:37 PM EST up reply actions
OR
JABARI GREER, PAT WILLIAMS, ANTOINE WINFIELD, ANTHONY HARGROVE, NATE CLEMENTS, AND I’D EVEN THROW IN JUSTIN BANNAN
by micmechannic on Jan 20, 2010 6:46 PM EST up reply actions
losing greer stunk.
I would’ve liked Hargrove back too, but he’s a bit player who was causing a bunch of trouble, getting rid of him was forgivable.
Clements has stunk in San Francisco and his contract is an albatross around the team’s neck. He was a good no-sign for that money.
pat and antoine were before jauron’s time. so was justin bannan…but no one cares about justin bannan. He’s just like Leonard- everyone looks good playing next to Haloti Ngata.
...so I guess now I root for chan gailey...
Hargrove was coming off a suspension and was arrested in Rochester. There was no way he could come back to the Bills.
YES WE CHAN!
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by MattRichWarren on Jan 21, 2010 1:45 PM EST up reply actions
The negative: What scare me is the fact that Gailey seems to bounce around a heck of a lot, I wounder why? When I guy stays only 1-2 years somewhere before moving on, you have to wounder why? Everyone is saying how successful he’s been and all I really see is a level of mediocrity.
It has been said multiple times on here that Jerry Jones knows he should have given Chan more time. He spent 6 years at Georgia Tech. He spent around 5 in Pittsburgh. And as a coordinator, especially with changes in coaches, their life expectancy at one position isn’t very high.
yeah
I don’t see that as a negative… he left for better jobs ost of the time and was fired too early in Dallas
Still waiting for the playoffs.... Go Bills 2010 !!!!
by killascript on Jan 20, 2010 10:44 AM EST up reply actions
Well-written article and I tend to agree with most of the points you bring up. Chan will need to find a quality DC that hopefully is aggressive and naturally a good teacher with motivational skills. I really don’t hope Jim Bates is the guy he has in mind, because his last few years in the NFL have proven that he’s no longer what he once was as DC in this league.
I also believe the first thing that Gailey will do after he has found his coaching staff and after Nix has fired Modrak and Guy is to figure out the QB-situation. Clearly, our franchise QB is not on the roster right now, so they’ll need to evaluate, who might be available for trade (Kevin Kolb, Vick, McNabb, Jason Campbell), in FA (Pennington, Bulger) and in the draft (Bradford, Clausen).
There's the right way, the wrong way, the army way and the Buffalo Bills way
by BillsfanfromDenmark on Jan 20, 2010 11:13 AM EST reply actions
On Sirius interview yesterday with Pat Kirwan and Tim Ryan
gailey said ideally he would like to run a 3-4 but needs to hire a DC and assess team’s personel, draft strategy and FA’s before committing to a scheme
Very interesting for sure, if that’s what he said. The issue, however, is that we don’t at all have the personnel to run that scheme (we lack a true NT and 2 OLB’s) and guys fitting into this scheme don’t exactly hang on trees so to speak.
As much as I would be intrigued by the idea of us running a 3-4, I just don’t think it’s in our best interest, UNLESS we bring in a proven 3-4 DC and is committed to spending some dollars in FA finding guys that fit this system (Casey Hampton or Aubrayo Franklin as NT for example).
There's the right way, the wrong way, the army way and the Buffalo Bills way
by BillsfanfromDenmark on Jan 20, 2010 2:57 PM EST up reply actions
Hybrid 4-3/3-4?
Gailey’s remark in his press conference about being open to a 3-4 defense has gotten a lot of attention, but I wonder if his follow-up comment in his interview with Chris Brown (on BB.com) could be even more important. In effect he said there are DC’s these days who run 4-3 schemes that turn at times into 3-4’s, and that that might be the best way to go for the Bills right now. That kind of hybrid defense would make it possible to avoid the kind of drastic personnel change that would be needed in moving to a true 3-4 and also provide a high degree of unpredictability for opposing offenses. An obvious example would be the defense New England has developed under Belichick. Listening to him, I wonder if this is the direction in which Gailey would most like to move if he can find the right guy to install it.
He also slipped in that
He new what direction he would like to go defensively. I believe he was referring to the current talent available on the team today when referencing the hybrid scenerio. At least he is being open minded. What better way to confuse an opposing offense than by mixing up the front seven allignment. His choice in DC will tip his hand a little on what direction he would like us to go seeing he wasn’t going to elaborate on it. I got to believe that the timing on this DC hire will indicate if he is getting what he wants initially or if it is something that will happen down the road.
We can’t forget that our division is a solid 3-4 defensive format, with some hybrid mixed in this season. An improvement would be for our young team to face this 3-4 in practice regularly along with the hybrid scenerio.
Is it really average talent or just poor coaching, how important is depth and experience.
A hybrid D
Besides Arizona and Houston (?), who else runs such a D? Is it because the personnel isn’t good enough for either scheme full time, or is it because the DC’s try to give a variety of looks.
NE runs a 3-4 the majority of the time I think….
I guess Baltimore has run some 4-3 too, but not a whole lot.
~K
"As the governor of Louisiana once said, the only way Chris Kelsay can lose his job is if he got caught in bed with a dead girl or a live boy."
by Kurupt on Jan 20, 2010 12:10 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Belichick is showing a 4-3 look more and more (although mainly he like to have his front seven walk around these days). It strikes me that a hybrid defense would be in keeping with the kind of polar offense Gailey is said to like — a power running game combined with a spread formation, leaving the opponent guessing which he is going to see.
Our last New England game
The patriots would have like four guys flooding the right side of his DL our right side of our OL and we were dead in the water.
Is it really average talent or just poor coaching, how important is depth and experience.
Good Thought
What exactly is a Hybrid Defense? I “assume” generically it is the number of DL VS LB’s. The multiple look game planning for defenses would allow a Aaron Maybin an opportunity to contribute statistically. Possibly a poor example here but if the goal is to get the player in a position to succeed, switching things up from a traditional format may allow this to happen.
Is it really average talent or just poor coaching, how important is depth and experience.
Great point Macktruck
I agree with you. I think going hybrid first is the more prudent approach. I love the 3-4, I much prefer it to the 4-3 for reasons I’ve repeated numerous times in previous posts/comments but I would hate to simple change from 4-3 to 3-4 just for the sake of it. I love the idea of continuity and minimizing the change impact on the players. For me the biggest issue was the lack of aggression in our defensive approach, i realize that we rarely broke and just bent but it also meant staying on the field too long and not giving the ball back to our offense (not that they would’ve known what to do with it…). I like the idea of a hydrid approach as it will probably add a great deal of aggression to our Defensive approach and it will also serve to evaluate players in the 3-4 in case we ever decide down the road to go primarily 3-4.
Nothing left to say...
I honestly could care less about the Defense..........
QB and OL have to be addressed first………….
Yeah, I just stare at my desk, but it looks like I'm working. I do that for probably another hour after lunch too, I'd say in a given week I probably only do about fifteen minutes of real, actual, work. - Peter Gibbons
by norcaliangelsfan on Jan 20, 2010 12:45 PM EST reply actions
Unfortunately for you
Gailey’s first priority will be solidifying a Defensive Coordinator. Or is should be. Right now we are a 6-10 team with a stronger defense than offense. Lets not turn this team into a 6-10 team with a stronger offense than defense. We can address both immediately and be successful.
Is it really average talent or just poor coaching, how important is depth and experience.
exactly
Let’s build on what we have.
I agree with re-starting from the ground up (offensively) but certainly not on defense. Our guys on Defense did an admirable job this year and we should try and salvage as much as we can from that unit.
Nothing left to say...
yeah but he clearly said the DC is gonna be doing their own thing...........
so thats after he hires a guy its on to what he was brought here for…….which was not for Defense.
Yeah, I just stare at my desk, but it looks like I'm working. I do that for probably another hour after lunch too, I'd say in a given week I probably only do about fifteen minutes of real, actual, work. - Peter Gibbons
by norcaliangelsfan on Jan 20, 2010 1:19 PM EST up reply actions
grab a quality linebacker and a good coordinator and then spend the rest of our resources on that offense, in my book.
Jonathan Stupar won the Heisman…while playing in the NFL!
Agreed
maybe two linebackers, one inside and one outside. Draft and FA. This will be Buddy’s next big moment, know that Chan is on board. Buddy needs to hit a home run/grand slam in this draft.
Is it really average talent or just poor coaching, how important is depth and experience.
Conditioning, Coordinators, and Quarterbacking
What an alliterative list of needs….
You are dead on in the need for a new and much improved conditioning staff and program. Some injuries aren’t preventable, but some we’ve seen can be. This team also needs to be stronger down the stretch in the 4th Q of games.
If Gailey hires a poor DC, we’re in trouble. This is a huge hire for the team, as is his ability to handle the O.
~K
"As the governor of Louisiana once said, the only way Chris Kelsay can lose his job is if he got caught in bed with a dead girl or a live boy."
by Kurupt on Jan 20, 2010 1:03 PM EST via mobile reply actions
AGREED!
The main reason for the injuries has always been conditioning. That is our primary need with defensive personnel. Talent is mostly there. Honestly, our scheme isn’t that bad either. Fewell was a pretty good DC. The only thing that seperates our D from the elite Defenses is a dominant middle linebacker, conditioning/injuries, and offensive time of possession.
Confucius say, "Man who go to bed with itchy butt, wake up with smelly finger."
Dick Juaron who?
Look let’s face it Bills fans, no matter who they would of hired unless it was cowher, marty there would be heat from us fans. I was pissed at first and was always thinking Billick, why not? But even that hire would piss a lot of fans off. Hire a DC or OC and “Ralph is bein cheap, same old stuff.” Remember when Dicks name was mentioned a few years ago? I also like the viking and bears being bad in the division I was wondering how the hell does he even get looked at? Somehow Marvs name isn’t blamed as much for that hire he escapes most blame for Juaron. My point is if Gailey was recommended by Cowher as his predecessor and he has coached all sides of the ball give him a shot because a OC and DC cannot cut it. Chan has a lot of experience and has been something we haven’t had in our previous coach…. A WINNING RECORD. Look at the jets lucky to even make playoffs thanks to week 16 and 17. Now they are a huge threat to everyone. If Chan can instill confidence in our players and make tackles the first time and keep the ball offensively more than a 3 and out we could make playoffs next year. This coach wants to be here, let’s welcome him. After the draft we can critique him more. I wanna let buddy and chan attempt to prove themselves.
by sketchydave on Jan 20, 2010 1:08 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Nice Article Brian
I think Kyle Williams would make a great DE in a 3-4
I don’t. :-)
YES WE CHAN!
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by MattRichWarren on Jan 21, 2010 1:47 PM EST up reply actions
Worried about Gailey's history?
Just compare his career to Jaurons! Makes me wonder what the Bills were thinking bringing Jauron in. Jauron spent his WHOLE career associated with crap. The bright spots were Green Bay (worked as defensive backs coach under Holmgren during the Brett Favre era) and was a decent defensive coordinator in Jacksonville. He had a lucky year in Chicago as Head Coach and the rest of his career – as a player and as a coach – Jauron was on teams ranging from mediocre to atrocious.
Everywhere Gailey has been, there has been measurable success (yes, even the Georgia Tech years). The measuring stick they use for college football success is ridiculous. Chan Gailey kept GTech eligible for bowls during his tenure while raising the grad rate for his football players from 31% when he got there to a semi-respectable 55% the year he left. That is quite an accomplishment.
I think he is a good fit for our franchise at this time and would like to see what he can accomplish. I just wanted to point out that after some research, he doesn’t deserve some of the poo-pooing he’s been getting. In reality, with just a step back to see the big picture, we may have reeled in quite a coach without having to break the bank.
We better take Rolando Mcclain at 9
I will be pissed again if we pass up on elite talent and strench for a positional need. Yes we need a Left Tackle, but if the guy is not great like Mcclain, then DONT REACH. take the best player available. And since we need serious help at LB I think it would be totally wrong to not take Mcclain. He is also a natural born leader. Poz could be shifted to outside if need be, but we seriously cannot afford to pick another Maybin. The big problem at one bills drive is the John Guy and Tom Modrak are still there. If they’re there, I have no confidence in us drafting talent, at least in the first round. They seem to always do better in the later rounds and miss on their top 15 picks. Mcclain should be the pick, its another obvious one like Orakpo, its really not that hard. But I know the Bills, and they will most likely reach for a 2nd grade LT prospect. Hopefully we bring in a vetran LT like Mcneil from the Chargers, that way it will reduce their temptation to reach for another player at the LT position. Mcclain is the number 1 prospect at LB, and we shouldn’t settle for less at #9. Don’t settle for the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th LT if you have the #1 LB sitting there IMO. LB is a need for this team anyway and Mcclain would solidify the D for years to come.
interesting.
I like both Davis and Okung, but if people felt that they weren’t at the same level as mcclain, i think you’re absolutely right: just because it’s a bigger need doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take mcclain.
...so I guess now I root for chan gailey...
Davis to me has potential but seems to easily get beat by counter moves. Watching some vids on him shows me that. He doesn’t know how to use his hands that well and seems a little slow. I think he has great potential and just needs good coaching. He also is a giant. Hes not worth the 9th pick tho, no way. Mcclain is, and thats why he should be taken and LB is a need for us. It may be secondary to LT but you have to take the better player at 9, it is really simple, but Modrak and Guy are not competent people at picking talent. Thats why the worse teams get the better picks, to better there team. By picking higher you should have a better chance at picking the right guy. No this isn’t the case all the time as we know but it helps your odds. Mcclain is the pick, if he doesn’t get picked I will be highly disappointed. He is a no brainer.
Unless one of the stud QBs is there.... get my guy Rolando! No brainer.
Look at what we missed out on last year with our stupid pick.
Very sad.
"A failure becomes just one time at bat if you refuse to let it defeat you." Marv Levy.
by SERGEANT MAJOR THOR on Jan 20, 2010 8:40 PM EST up reply actions
not surprised
I am new to posting here but I have been fallowing this site for some time. I am a huge Bills fan and grew up in the shadows of the Ralph, back when it was the Rich. Heck I even had family that played for the Bills and am very familiar with the organization.
To my points,
Brian really hit one note with me and that is the injuries. It seemed during DJ’s run as coach we always had a very high number of players hitting the IR every year. Weather it was CB’s or LB’s we always had issues. So with that said, the S&C coaches must be better at getting these guys ready. The real problem is our undersized LB’s getting pounded and effectively not lasting a full season. I think it will be fixed with scheme and with better staff. I am not shocked by this choice in HC and even read the plants post on two bills drive who posted it the day before it happened. I believe that it is a good choice, for all the reasons we have all kicked around, but most importantly I think Chan will get this franchise back to the 9-7 side of mediocrity. You may not like that thought but to me, I want a team that is consistently hitting 9-7 vs a team that is always 7-9. Also I think a team that is 9-7 is one lucky bounce away from 10-6 or even a few from 11-5. either way, we are then playoff relevant, something we have not been for far to long. The last time we had that type of coach here was with W. Phillips. Actually I think Chan is the reason Wade is getting extended in big D and if you don’t think Jones and Ralph are buddies, your nuts, they go way back… WAY back. I met them both after the SB rose bowl blow out by Big D (was there as a member of a players family. Funny they were both there talking and as I had met Ralph many times before was invited into a conversation with them, they are both very, very hard core football guys. Chan was hired because Cower recommended him, and never was Cower coming to B-lo… but I digress, Jones was the one that sold Ralph on this and I think it IS the right choice. He will put the team in a place it can succeed.
AS for the DC, this is tricky, we need someone who can get it done. I would have thought Chan would have his guys already lined up, meaning, The DC is chosen and not available… My guess is he is someone that is not a DC now but someone that has a lot of respect around the league as the next up and comer. I also think from an offensive side, I would be shocked if they did not try to keep our current OC in place. We can all agree he was over his head and not ready to be OC but has a bright future! plus he would learn form someone who has worked with the best, and lets face it someone that the bills have had in-house for a long time (ie Jim Kelly endorsed). I am firmly of the belief that we will keep our current scheme but will be a hybrid. The reason for this is simple, we have the skill players to run the base D but we have the X factor players in Maybin and MCain (our first pick in my opinion) to be a 4-3. I think we can do it with better success than NE and would translate to Houston’s style. At the end of the day, I think we are going to find this team will be better prepared, better schemed and lets face it, our D was made to look bad because the offense was SOOO ineffective. If the offense could get it going, we might find our complaints on the D are moot points.
I am one of the few B-lo fans that are excited and encouraged by the changes I am seeing. I also think (insert HOPE) that this will finally lead us to being able to build a coaching org chart that will allow us to promote from within in the future.
one last comment, I am not sure who it was that wrote about J Campbell being ideal for B-lo but I think they hit the nail on the head. That is our ideal QB and I think he is young enough, strong enough and with the right coach would be perfect for Buffalo weather. To me, he is a bigger more tanned version of JK. More guts and moxy than brains, Just hope the Redskins didn’t ruin his confidence. But of all the choices, I think he is our best bet, and could be had for Parish or even a 3rd or 4th rounder. Then send Lynch (Great back not great person) off to recover said picks. I think we could see a JK TT connection between JC and FJ. Plus with Steve Johnson evolving, I think we are much better at WR than everyone thinks. and to be fair, I could see TO back though would rather Reed. But he and Lee are both long in the tooth so of the three, I think Lee and Reed are better suited for now.
AS for the OL, Man I am excited. I know this year was horrible but I love the line we are building. we are one true LT away from being very tough, and Bell may be that guy… the best part is, we now have depth at the position with players with experience. just think what road grading OL we will have when healthy….. I may be alone, but I think the Bills are actually in a great position to surprise everyone next year. This roster is not as bad as many think and though we have NEED’s I think we can address them with some small adjustments. I just hope our Special Teams don’t fall apart without BA. Something there was amiss as he was tabbed by Ralph to be the next coach, and I wonder how much he was in bed with DJ and thus both were fired by proxy…..
Thanks for posting!
YES WE CHAN!
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by MattRichWarren on Jan 21, 2010 1:50 PM EST up reply actions
F.O. Question?
I’m kinda new to this forum so forgive me if this comes across as a stupid question. The guy’s responsible for bringing in talent either free agent or draft, call them player personnel guy’s. Are they still with the Bills or have thet been shown the door? I feel anybody that needed to go it would be those guy’s. They seem to me lacking in evaluating talent. If they’re staying what chance does the HC have? Thanks
So far, they’re still here (meaning Modrak and John Guy), but I’m very confident that John Guy won’t be retained. Whether Modrak will remains to be seen.
There's the right way, the wrong way, the army way and the Buffalo Bills way
by BillsfanfromDenmark on Jan 20, 2010 3:03 PM EST up reply actions
Dang
You got a crystal ball ?Good insight BillsfanfromDenmark
by buffalobacker on Jan 21, 2010 1:38 AM EST up reply actions
looking at it
Was it them looking for the talent to fit a scheme of the HC or was it they had no ability to pick players. I dont remember us having such BAD drafts…
The Czech Republic and Republic of Slovakia are the only country outside of Canada that will know were Buffalo is and have actually visited it, and liked it! Hockey, Beer, and not liking any outsiders... hmmmmm HOME away from HOME!
our drafts have been ok, but we haven't been able to land any blue chippers.
just a bunch of good players. Where we’ve really struck out has been free agency.
...so I guess now I root for chan gailey...
Payroll
The Bill’s ranked something like 25th out of 32 teams in player payroll in 2009. Hard to compete when you don’t spend the $$. In Bill’s defense though, they ranked 11th in bonuses paid out to players. Not sure what criteria the players meet to recieve a bonus though. Minn. is tops in payroll. Sounds like you get what you pay for in most cases.
msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/billsnear bottominpayroll. Sorry, dont know how to post link.
by buffalobacker on Jan 20, 2010 7:56 PM EST up reply actions
Yeah I quess it all depends on whose #‘s you believe. Definitely not good if they are like 11th or 12th highest. Can’t use the not spending $$ excuse.Two sites with totally different #‘s now I’m confused..
by buffalobacker on Jan 20, 2010 8:02 PM EST up reply actions
I'm not going to go through all of this but.
http://content.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/salaries/teamresults.aspx?team=3
Bills: $111,956,066
The big spending Redskins: $ 105,049,071
Colts: $ 101,203,115
Patriots: $ 97,565,413
by twoeightnine on Jan 20, 2010 7:53 PM EST up reply actions
ouch, that looks bad on us. Especially when Lee Evans gets paid almost as much as Fitzgerald and he is not even close the receiver he is. We are plain dumb and dont give the money to the right people. Chris Kelsay makes probably more than most DE’s in the NFl but truth is he would be a second string DE on any other team IMO. Its really a joke
Scheme Change
Obviously, we need to discuss scheme here, too, because the defensive coordinator that Gailey hires may run some funky scheme that renders the talents of, for example, Kyle Williams completely moot.
Nix and Galey have already said they would prefer a hybrid scheme so I’m at peace. That’s definitely the way to go and that makes Kyle Williams very relevant, even if you insist he is incapable of playing 3-4 end (on any down).
in a salary cap era, no single unit (offense or defense) should be consistently sub-average for such a long stretch.
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