[editor's note, by Brian Galliford] This open thread originally was posted two weeks ago; however, recent events - most specifically the firings of Cam Cameron and Mike Martz - can now be taken into consideration. Plus, I'm swamped at work today, folks - so I won't have anything original up until dinner time this evening. For the record, yes, we can still continue this discussion even though we don't have a GM - we can do so thanks to the job security of Dick Jauron. :)
Disclaimer: absolutely nothing about this post is factual, nor are any of these names on the list there merely to start rumors. With just two games left in Steve Fairchild-Mularkey's career as the offensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills - and with Dick Jauron likely to hire a replacement within a week or two after season's end - here's a list of coaches around the league whom I (and perhaps I alone) believe could be candidates for the position.
This is, by and large, an open thread to discuss possible replacements to SF-M. Feel free to rip my list to shreds, offer names of your own, or to speculate that the Bills will hire a risk analyst in lieu of an actual offensive coach. Here's my initial list after surfing through each team's coaches this evening; the names appear in no particular order: (create a free account if you're unregistered and have something to add!)
Maurice Carthon: RB Coach, Arizona
- Carthon has recent experience as an O-Coordinator, working for Bill Parcells in Dallas in that capacity in 2003 and 2004, and under Romeo Crennel in Cleveland during '05 and '06. He's got an impressive resume, and he's an underrated candidate that has held not only three coordinator jobs, but an assistant coach position with the Jets as well. Bio
Fred Graves: WR Coach, Tennessee
- Has experience with the Bills organization, coaching wide receivers when Gregg Williams was the head coach. Has never held a coordinator job at the NFL level, but was a long-time O-Coordinator at Utah. Bio
Paul Hackett: QB Coach, Tampa Bay
- A bit of a household name, Hackett has spent three seasons as Tampa's quarterbacks coach after stints as the Jets' offensive coordinator and as the head coach at USC. He received a lot of bad press in New York, but hey - Chad Pennington was his quarterback. Bio
Hue Jackson: Off. Coord., Atlanta
- He's currently in his first season as the Falcons' coordinator; with the Falcons changing coaches, however, Jackson may find his stay shortened. Jackson was responsible for the development of Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh in Cincinnati as their positional coach. Bio
James Lofton: WR Coach, San Diego
- Hey! A former Bill! The Hall of Fame wideout has been coaching San Diego's wide receivers for 5 years, and came close to landing a head coaching job with Oakland this past off-season. He deserves a shot to move up in the coaching ranks; this post seems like a pretty good fit. Bio
Pete Metzelaars: Off. Quality Control, Indianapolis
- This one's a long shot, but Metzelaars is a popular man in this area. The former standout Bills tight end has close ties with Marv Levy and has spent four seasons with Tom Moore and Peyton Manning in Indy. He's probably not experienced enough as a coach, but hey - it'd be fun anyways. Bio
Mike Munchak: OL Coach, Tennessee
- One of my favorite coaches on this list. Widely regarded as one of the best line coaches in the league, he's been coaching Titans big men for 11 years. It might be tough to pry him away from an organization he's been with since 1982, but he could be successful with more responsibility elsewhere. He's a great motivator. Bio
Chris Palmer: QB Coach, NY Giants
- Yet another familiar name, Palmer was offensive coordinator in Jacksonville when Jauron was the Jags' defensive coordinator. Palmer has since been head coach of Cleveland and the offensive coordinator for Houston. Was Tony Romo's position coach last year in Dallas. This coach has been much-maligned, but he's got 35 years of experience and strong ties to Jauron. Bio
Keith Rowen: TE Coach, Atlanta
- Another Falcons coach likely on his way out with coordinator experience. Rowen's experience came in Arizona, where he worked under Denny Green and had a pair of explosive wideouts named Boldin and Fitzgerald. Bio
Kyle Shanahan: QB Coach, Houston
- Yes, he's the 27-year-old son of Denver's Mike Shanahan. He's already got 4 years of NFL coaching experience, and he's done a great job with Matt Schaub and Sage Rosenfels in Texan land this year. He'd be a big risk, but the pedigree - and the early coaching success - might make it worth the Bills' while. Bio
Mike Shula: QB Coach, Jacksonville
- Shula?! A Bills coach?! It makes sense; the 42-year-old has a good pedigree, a boatload of NFL experience (15 years) and was the head man at Alabama for four years before being ousted in favor of Nick Satan Saban. He's done good things for David Garrard this year, and could have the same success with Trent Edwards. Bio
Mike Tice: Asst. HC/TE Coach, Jacksonville
- Tice coached Minnesota for four seasons (2002-05) and had winning records in three of those seasons. His Vikings team had explosive offenses, and he's been responsible for the development of some of the Jaguars' offensive success the past two seasons. Jauron would be familiar with him; they coached against each other when Jauron was with Detroit. Bio
Ted Tollner: Off. Assistant, San Francisco
- Tollner started his coaching career with Buffalo in 1987 (WR). He was head coach at San Diego State for 8 years (no, he didn't coach Marshall Faulk), and worked with Jauron in Detroit as offensive coordinator when Steve Mariucci was head coach. Again, a former coordinator with strong ties to our fearless leader. Bio
Ken Zampese: QB Coach, Cincinnati
- The man, the myth and the legend behind the development of Carson Palmer. Cincinnati may be facing a coaching staff shake-up this off-season, so Zampese could be looking for work. He, like SF-M, has experience under Mike Martz in St. Louis' vaunted "Greatest Show On Turf". Bio
Rumblings user sireric has already made his case for Cam Cameron. (Personally, I'm against that - I don't like Cameron's decision-making process, and his style doesn't seem to mesh well with Jauron's.) Have at it - who do you think should take over for SF-M?
Update [2007-12-21 10:21:26 by Brian Galliford]: Names added to the list as conversation develops in the comments:
Eagles OL coach Juan Castillo
Former GA Tech HC/MIA Off. Coord. Chain Gailey
Saints QB coach Pete Carmichael, Jr.
Bengals OC Bob Bratkowski (if Marvin Lewis is fired)