Bills fire Chan Gailey, begin FO restructuring

[ThomasTomasz]

The Bills have fired coach Chan Gailey after three seasons.

While Gailey never could get his team better than six wins in a season (beginning in 2010, Buffalo went 4-12, 6-10 and 6-10), he also was saddled with an offense run by quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and a defense that never ranked in the top 25 in points allowed. Also, the huge $100 million contract offered to Mario Williams in the offseason didn't noticeably make the team any better.

Gailey is considered an offensive coach, yet he couldn't get Fitzpatrick to live up to expectations after the team gave him a $62 million extension last year. He also seemed to have a problem knowing how many carries to give running back C.J. Spiller (sort of like former Ravens coordinator Cam Cameron and running back Ray Rice or Kansas City coach Romeo Crennel and running back Jamaal Charles), especially when Fred Jackson missed time with injury.

For now, there's no word on whether Bills general manager Buddy Nix will keep his job.

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/blog/eye-on-football/21478520/bills-fire-coach-chan-gailey

 

[EmpireWF]

Necessary. Sucks how badly that franchise has nosedived the past decade.

 

[Maynard]

sometimes i wonder what these owners/gms are thinking. why would they hire chan to begin with? did they try to lose? a good coordinator, but not a good HC.

 

[Champ]

Please take back Fewell

 

[ThomasTomasz]

sometimes i wonder what these owners/gms are thinking. why would they hire chan to begin with? did they try to lose? a good coordinator, but not a good HC.

When they hired Gailey, I didn't think there was anything else left there. Like you, I thought good coordinator, but not an NFL head coach. For the Bills, I would have much rather tried to hire an upstart coordinator and go with the potential than the mediocre. But, with the Buffalo/Toronto deal, and the Bills being bad for a long time, maybe a retread like Gailey was their best option?

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Clearly had to go.

Now they should fire Buddy Nix for giving a really good backup QB $62M and throwing way too much money at Mario Williams.

 

[JeremyHight]

If the coach is getting canned, why not the GM?

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Clearly had to go.

Now they should fire Buddy Nix for giving a really good backup QB $62M and throwing way too much money at Mario Williams.

Love Mario Williams, but not at that money, clearly they didn't do their homework on either. I read where they could save money by cutting Fitzpatrick now, so they probably do that. If the Williams deal is anything like the Haynesworth deal, I hope they front-loaded his guaranteed money so they can release or renegotiate next off-season.

 

[BigBiss]

Jim Haslett?

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Jim Haslett?

Just signed an extension in DC, but I think his second half could have pushed him back into head coaching consideration. I'd still go with someone who hasn't had a job before and could bring a fresh perspective, but I think Haslett deserves another shot at some point.

 

[BigBiss]

Just signed an extension in DC, but I think his second half could have pushed him back into head coaching consideration. I'd still go with someone who hasn't had a job before and could bring a fresh perspective, but I think Haslett deserves another shot at some point.

I agree but at this point I think you need some one who Buffalo means something too ... Haslett is the only person I can think of who is qualified that would be the case with

 

[ThomasTomasz]

I agree but at this point I think you need some one who Buffalo means something too ... Haslett is the only person I can think of who is qualified that would be the case with

Possibly. It would also mean a switching of defensive philosophy from the 4-3 to 3-4. They just invested a truckload in Mario Williams, and while he performed pretty well in limited time in the 3-4 last season, but is he going to be worth it in the 3-4?

 

[BigBiss]

Possibly. It would also mean a switching of defensive philosophy from the 4-3 to 3-4. They just invested a truckload in Mario Williams, and while he performed pretty well in limited time in the 3-4 last season, but is he going to be worth it in the 3-4?

meh Tomlin has proven you can be head coach with out installing your defense ... there is no Lebeau in Buff though

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

I wanted Haslett to keep the job after Linehan got canned in St Louis, instead of hiring he who shall not be named.

The problem with Haslett, is his free wheeling renegade style wears thin quickly.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Bills just fired every other coach on Gailey's staff. Guess they hope to attract a big name, who will bring all of their own people. Usually, the team will leave most of the coaching staff in limbo while the new coach does a review and decides who they want to get rid of, and who they want to keep.

 

[TheImmortalGoud]

Buddy Nix should be fired as well.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Looks like he'll be reassigned or gone at some point. Some major restructuring going on for the Bills front office too.

The Buffalo Bills will name Russ Brandon the team's president/CEO with full authority, a team source told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.

General manager Buddy Nix will keep his job but the team will transition to Doug Whaley at GM at some point.

Brandon returned to Buffalo on Monday night after spending the day meeting with team owner Ralph Wilson at his home outside Detroit. Nix did not make the trip, and instead stayed at the team's facility.

The Bills fired coach Chan Gailey on Monday after finishing 6-10 this season.

Gailey's dismissal is a significant setback for Nix. The general manager announced in November that Gailey wasn't going anywhere, because another coaching change would stunt the team's development.

The Bills, however, closed by losing seven of their final 10 games.

Wilson had initially backed Nix's build-through-the-draft approach. Three years ago, the 94-year-old owner said he expected the rebuilding process could take as long as five years.

Brandon has been unhappy with the criticism leveled at the Bills, and how it's translated into poor ticket sales. Buffalo failed to sell out three of its final four home games. And the fourth, against St. Louis on Dec. 9, wasn't a sellout until a local restaurateur purchased the remaining 10,000 tickets.

The Bills missed the postseason for the 13th straight season, despite the high-profile offseason addition of defensive lineman Mario Williams with a six-year, $100 million free-agent contract.

Buffalo's playoff drought is the NFL's longest active streak. And the team also finished with a losing record for an eighth straight season.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/8799106/russ-brandon-buffalo-bills-get-full-authority-buddy-nix-gm