It's been the topic of conversation for roughly a week in Buffalo Bills country, and now, we have the first details of the event itself. Bills COO Russ Brandon met for seven hours with former Denver head coach Mike Shanahan late Monday into early Tuesday, and according to the source of the ESPN report detailing the event, the meeting went well. The report describes Brandon's presentation to Shanahan as "persuasive."
Shanahan was quoted in the report. "We had an excellent meeting," Shanahan said Wednesday. "I was really impressed with Russ Brandon and everything he had to say. We're going to stay in touch and see what develops."
Adam Schefter also notes that both sides have come to a mutual understanding that each side is going to take its time in making its respective decisions. Buffalo is said to be waiting until January 2010 to hire its next head coach, while Shanahan - one of the most prominent coaching names on the market - is sure to draw interest for several more coaching vacancies as they become available over the next two months.
Buffalo has been linked to several other big-name coaches, including former Pittsburgh boss Bill Cowher, while Shanahan has been linked to potential coaching jobs in Chicago and Washington.
The Bills are going about this business intelligently for now. There's no reason to rush, and attempting to rush Shanahan - clearly the team's top target - would probably have disastrous consequences. Buffalo is, however, willing to pay for his services; a source close to Shanahan, quoted in an NFL.com report, suggested a 5-year, $50 million deal with a piece of the franchise might do the trick.