The 2016 NFL season will literally be a "playoffs or bust" affair for the Buffalo Bills, according to a report from Vic Carucci at The Buffalo News.
That's because, per Carucci, Bills owner Terry Pegula told general manager Doug Whaley and head coach Rex Ryan at a recent meeting that if the Bills don't make the playoffs next season, both men will be fired.
A team source told The News that Pegula met with Whaley and Ryan about a week ago to review the 2015 season and look ahead.
During the session, the source said, Pegula gave Whaley and Ryan an ultimatum: make the necessary fixes to get the team into the playoffs in the 2016 season or be fired.
The Bills have not made the playoffs in 16 straight seasons, currently the longest postseason drought in North American sports. The organization just completed its first full season under the Pegula ownership, and with Ryan installed as the head coach; Whaley has two full offseasons as the GM under his belt. If what Carucci's source is saying is true, Pegula has made it clear that if the streak lives on a year from now, the rebuild will begin.
So, yeah. No pressure or anything, Doug and Rex.
But seriously, though: does anyone else out there that has followed Buffalo sports since 2011 think that this sort of ultimatum is completely out of Pegula's character? Something to chew on.
Update: reports from WGR 550 and WGRZ indicate that the Bills and Whaley are closing in on a multi-year contract extension.