Archives for April 14, 2003

When the former GM of the Bills died on Friday, he left behind legacy that will live through the NFL forever. His talent for plucking anonymous players from out-of-the-way schools is legendary. His competitiveness was unmatched – the man was Chris Spielman in a sport coat.

TBD Special Photographer Cindy Fox was at Athletes in Action Breakfast to honor Frank and others on the 10th anniversity of the greatest comeback and has provided pictures of some of those in attendence including Frank Reich, Jim Kelly, Travis Brown, Marlon Kerner, and ex-Bills TE Jay Riemersma.

‘Did you know Chuck Noll considered coaching the Bills in 1969? Noll served as defensive coordinator for Don Shula’s Baltimore Colts team, which had just lost to the Jets, 16-7, in Super Bowl III. After the game, Buffalo and New England offered Noll head coaching positions, but he instead chose to coach Pittsburgh…’.

‘For the third straight year, the Bills coaching staff will be hosting the Buffalo Bills Coaches Clinic for local high school and college coaches. It will be held on Friday, May 9th and Saturday May 10th in the Bills Fieldhouse and training facility in Orchard Park.’

‘His ability to find talent in the football hinterlands made names like Don Beebe of Chadron State, Phil Hansen of North Dakota and Marcellus Wiley of Columbia a big reason the Bills averaged 10 wins per year during Butler’s 14 seasons in their front office.’

Marv Levy once described John as a guy who builds morale. I witnessed that morale-building outside the cafeteria every afternoon. He would shake the player’s hand, ask how practice was going, inquire about a nagging injury, tell me a little funny story about the player to make him laugh, and ask how everyone at home was. He was old fashioned and he made them all feel special. The veterans who had been at other places before Buffalo knew it was special, and they knew the difference was John Butler. Rarely do NFL players have daily conversations with the top club executive.

I will say that the pressures of being a GM hardened John a bit through the years. His job and everything associated with it became increasingly personal. He looked at players and coaches as family, and would staunchly defend them against criticism. He found parting ways with a player, a standard part of a GM’s duties, emotionally painful and, at times, downright unbearable.

Ordway, who was with the Storm during training camp and was signed to the team’s practice squad on February 21, will replace [Corey] Sawyer in the lineup this weekend. Sawyer was placed on the Storm’s exempt list after missing the week while working out for the NFL’s Buffalo Bills.