jethro_tull

i would be very happy with alex smith- product of an excellent system- and a FA stop-gap makes sense based on the depth / skill level of this year's QB class. heard on ESPN this morning that Smith's lack of success on offense takes him off of the A-List of available coaches. thanks ESPN!

agree 100%. been living far west of chi for 20+.

the lovie smith (firing) reminds me of when the chicago bulls fired coach doug collins in favor of phil jackson. collins was successful, the team was making the playoffs and "on the rise". however, GM jerry krause cited that collins took the team from "point A to point B" but that their destination was point C. fortunately for the bulls, they caught lightening in a bottle with a maturing michael jordan and everyone smelled like a rose except for collins (who IMHO could have had he stayed). the bottom line is that a championship run requires high level personnel and competent coaching. lovie smith has proved his capability for competent coaching and offers the bills the lowest risk to scratch "coach" off of the list of ingrediants for a run at greatness.

i'm on the lovie bandwagon but this chip kelly guy is very intriguing. he sounds like the kind of long term, let him learn the ropes kind of coach in the pittsburgh steelers give 'em some rope tradition. give hime security and tenure and let him form his craft NFL style. kind of risky but let's see how the interview process goes- if he agrees to a pow wow. reading his wiki bio pretty much sells me. while lovie might get the bills to the playoffs sooner- kelly has the potential to build a dynasty system once he finds his way.

you want fire- tony sparano is available ...

areed. just a little anxious given the Bills history of letting good players go.

FYI the Bill's competition (Chicago Bears) have interviews scheduled with Mccoy, Mike Sullivan and atlanta special teams coach keith armstrong.

I just heard last night on the radio that the Bears are going after Levitre. The Bills better not let him go and should get serious ASAP.

fan lynch mob. bears fans are rabid and foaming at the mouth and have been for years. the sports talk radio here is full of hate and haters- their famous station "670 the score" is often very informative but often a sports version of the jerry springer show. after every bears game two old school bears players (doug buffone, ed obradovich) love to get their blood pressure up and neck veins popping over anything and everything the bears players (and especially coaches) did wrong. after a loss, their level of intensity is through the roof and the things they say is beyond tabloid trash- and the fans eat it up. this has been happening for years. they really don't know what they have and with talk of rebuilding and switch to the 3-4 defense (after forever playing the 4-3) and- depending on their new coach, the Bears are likely to regress. http://chicago.cbslo...e-show-week-13/ a better O-line- absolutely. also a decent tight end. the mike martz O/C hire year before last led the bears to trade TE greg olsen to jacksonville because martz' game plan does not use a tight end- except for blocking. unfortunately greg olsen was cutler's favorite target his first year with the bears. as we bills fans are well aware, a TE is worth millions when your QB has to check down because of pressure.

bills have contacted lovie- but they are in line. http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/12/31/lovie-smith-gets-four-interview-invitations-on-first-day-out-of-work/ lovie smith's record is better than jon grudens (.540).

agree completely about angelo's drafting and i really like jay's skills at QB- but they were crippled by the loss of draft picks at a time when they could not afford to lose them.

i woud take reid- his teams are always on the map.

did you see cousins play in college? hoo boy. he is a perennial top flite backup- the skins made a good move. gruden just announced he is remaining at ESPN and will not be coaching again. jimmy johnson quit on the dolphins, no thanks. cowher is not realistic. - what is wrong with a promising college coach given some time to learn and adapt to the NFL? bears fans have been organizing a lovie lynch mob for years. they have no idea what they are asking for- just taking their frustrations out. the real issue with the bears was their former GM. the bears didn't draft until the third round in '09 and '10 because of the cutler trade.

seriously- pull the trigger is right. knowing lovie very well though he will definitely take his time and weigh all options and opportunities. His firing was a move based on appeasing the Bears fans lynch mob. Chicago sports talk radio has been filled with hate talk for years.

I don't see Lovie settling for a DC role.

I like gruden but he really ain't that great- his W/L record is South of Marv Levy, Lovie Smith, Wade Phillips, Jim Mora and Andy Reid! Also, why isn't he still in the game?

ABSOLUTELY! as mentioned in another thread- Smith is rock solid as a coach and was hampered (if not strangled) by the poor decisions of former GM Jerry Angelo who crippled the team when he made the trade for Jay Cutler. The Bears were playing wack-a-mole because of that deal- need a WR- OK sign Brandon Marshall- uh-oh, need a TE and a new OL! Uh-oh, smack down the injury prone mole of ageing LB Brian Urlacher!

kirk cousins= matt cassell

agree- definitely a potential issue- however the Bears put themselves in the hole by waiting until the last minute to release their previous OC (Ron Turner) before they hired Mike Martz- there wasn't anyone left / available. Mike Tice was promoted from within when Martz was released. A Smith hire would check off 90% of the requirement list boxes.

I would be extremely happy with Lovie Smith. He is extremely smart, very respectful of his players in public and passionate about the game with them in private. The Bears have been deluged with holes because of being in late round draft jail per the Jay Cutler deal with Denver and the rotton hand former GM Jerry Angelo dealt with respect to personnell decisions. \ Smith has made the best of an ageing LB corp, a horrible patchwork offensive line and no decent TE or second WR. He has made some poor decisions too- like Mike Martz as OC, but his game management is very good (not great) and he knows what to do to win- if given the right personnel. I believe he would easily turn the Bills defense around (he is a disciple of Dungy and the Tampa-2 4-3 alignment) and would do wonders with the Bills running game and OL- with a semi decent QB- the Bills are headed for playoffs NEXT YEAR if Smith were the coach. Bottom line- Smith would not be a weak link in the path to a championship. Coaching would be a settled issue.

disagree. alex vanpelt and turk schonert would look like geniuses if peyton were their QB.

best wishes chan, you are a good man and put your heart into this team. use your funds wisely and you should be very comfortable for the rest of your life, God bless.

i hope not- did you forget what happens to peter finch after he delivers the monologue?

you forgot about the private salon.

can the t-mobile broad sing? i would follow her up a hill in her batgirl outfit. - any kind of succession plan opens doors that were previously closed- including successful college coaches.