Bob in STL Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 (edited) I just read two more post that said that "Ralph fired Polain". That makes it the 1,789,357th time I have read this on TSW. My recollection is that Polian quit. Ralph did not fire him and Ralph did not want ask him to quit. I seem to recall this sequence of events: 1. While working as GM for Buffalo, Polian was a member of a committee put together by then commissioner Paul Tagliabue to help establish rules for the free agency/ salary cap situation that was coming into place. Polian was trying to lock up all the important Bills players to long term deals to prevent losing his team to free agency. He signed Cornelius Bennett to a lucrative deal even though he still had years on his contract. He was preparing to do the same with Will Wolford when Littman intervened. 2. Littman and Polian did not get along very well. Polian used to delight in blowing him off. The two feuded often and put Wilson in the middle of it. In this case Wilson sided with Littman and Wilford was not re-signed during the season. Littman was a long time friend. Ralph blew it. 3. Polian was upset about the interference and he announced he would be leaving after the season. He stayed with the team until after the Super Bowl. He was not fired. 4. Linda Bogdans (Wilsons daughter) role with the club had nothing to do with it. Whether Polian liked her or not was not material. There is a myth on TSW that she was part of the reason that Wilson fired her. I say this is not true. 5. Wilford, now a free agent, signed a monster deal (for the times) with the Colts in the off-season. New Bills GM John Butler matched the offer but the NFL ruled against Buffalo due to the famous escalator clause the Colts put into the offer that the Bills would not match. The clause stated that Wilford would be the highest paid player on the Colts for so many years. That clause was eliminated immediately after the Wilford ruling, partly due to Polian, who took a job working for Tagliabue after he left the Bills. So, I submit that Wilson did not fire Polian. If I am wrong then flame away and tell me what really happened. If I am right then please stop saying that he did. I think it is important that we get this right. Thanks! Edited October 16, 2010 by Bob in STL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 http://www.allbusiness.com/labor-employment/compensation-benefits-wages-salaries/10556737-1.html On Feb. 4, 1993, after the Bills had appeared in-and lost-their third straight Super Bowl, Buffalo fired Polian. He lost his job, insiders said, because he couldn't get along with team Treasurer Jeff Littmann. Bills owner Ralph Wilson, Littmann and Polian would never discuss the matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob in STL Posted October 16, 2010 Author Share Posted October 16, 2010 (edited) http://www.allbusiness.com/labor-employment/compensation-benefits-wages-salaries/10556737-1.html They say fired. Thanks for the nice reference. With no one talking I am not sure we know. I recall at the time he said he quit. Edited October 16, 2010 by Bob in STL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Wright's Mullet Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 They say fired. Thanks for the nice reference. With no one talking I am not sure we know. I recall at the time he said he quit. Bill Polian WAS FIRED by Ralph Wilson. This is because he did not get along with Jeffrey Littmann (Ralph's bean counter). Ralph wanted to fire Polian at the begining of 93 but was talked out of it by Marv Levy. He then FIRED Bill Polian after the Superbowl loss. Why anyone would try to defend Ralph or Littmann I have no idea. The root of this franchise's problems can be pinned on both of those morons. They have been the only constant over these last 30 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsVet Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 (edited) So can I continue saying RW fired Polian now? Two common denominators to the Bills' repeated failures: RW and Littman. And that is not up for debate. Edited October 16, 2010 by BillsVet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewildrabbit Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 Bill Polian WAS FIRED by Ralph Wilson. This is because he did not get along with Jeffrey Littmann (Ralph's bean counter). Ralph wanted to fire Polian at the begining of 93 but was talked out of it by Marv Levy. He then FIRED Bill Polian after the Superbowl loss. Why anyone would try to defend Ralph or Littmann I have no idea. The root of this franchise's problems can be pinned on both of those morons. They have been the only constant over these last 30 years. We can put this to rest now: From the Buffalo news and a story by Vic Carucci Dated Feb 4th 1993 http://www.highbeam....2-22491923.html ""Buffalo Bills owner Ralph C. Wilson Jr. said that his "personal and professional differences" with Bill Polian in the last three years led to the firing of the most successful general manager in team history. In an exclusive interview with The Buffalo News, Wilson confirmed that the main reason for the dismissal was the turbulent relationship between Polian and Jeff Littmann, treasurer of Wilson's Detroit-based company. "They didn't get along well," Wilson said from his winter home in West Palm Beach, Fla. "I'm being very honest, there was some friction there. It (made for) an uncomfortable feeling on my part. And I just thought it was time to make a change and …"" P.S. Another rumor I heard while at the SB was that RW was livid at Bill Polian because his brother had a Bills playbook, or had taken one, or somehow had lost one, or somehow the opposing team had gotten hold of one. All I can remember is that Polian's brother who was in charge of team security was responsible for the missing playbook and RW was extremely pissed about the whole situation. Anyone else recall anything about this or can verify it at all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thoner7 Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 Whats wrong with Littmen to let them shell out 24 Mil to Kelsay!?!?!??! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob in STL Posted October 16, 2010 Author Share Posted October 16, 2010 (edited) Bill Polian WAS FIRED by Ralph Wilson. This is because he did not get along with Jeffrey Littmann (Ralph's bean counter). Ralph wanted to fire Polian at the begining of 93 but was talked out of it by Marv Levy. He then FIRED Bill Polian after the Superbowl loss. Why anyone would try to defend Ralph or Littmann I have no idea. The root of this franchise's problems can be pinned on both of those morons. They have been the only constant over these last 30 years. I guess I have seen enough, the Carucci article has the most crediiblity with me. I was not trying to defend anyone. Read my original post. Just looking for some facts. So can I continue saying RW fired Polian now? Two common denominators to the Bills' repeated failures: RW and Littman. And that is not up for debate. Sure. Continue to blast away. Edited October 16, 2010 by Bob in STL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chalkie Gerzowski Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 Baloney... he called Linda Bogdan a tranny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spartacus Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 The trigger event was an altercation between Polian and Linda Bogden during a draft. Ralph had the brilliant idea to make his daughter a scout and have her involved in the draft. Rumor has it that she was scouting offensive linemen. Polian put a premium on a strong OL and got flak from Bogden in the draft room about selections. He called her a bad word and Ralph was pissed. Seems he was so pissed that he has refused to build a strong OL since Polian left, just to spite him and his philosophy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsVet Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 Sure. Continue to blast away. We've seen it far too often where people gang up and destroy someone who makes an ill-advised post or statement. None of that should take place here and you were humble enough to admit you were wrong. It's just really hard to imagine RW firing the architect of the greatest run in franchise history, but this remains the truth. Watching Polian go onto success with CAR and IND is like seeing the girl you once dated get a better guy after you dumped her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthICE Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 I guess I have seen enough, the Carucci article has the most crediiblity with me. I was not trying to defend anyone. Read my original post. Just looking for some facts. Sure. Continue to blast away. Facts are he was fired. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanker Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 Bill Polian, builder of FIVE SuperBowl Losing teams. That's got to be a record. Yes, let's continue to live in the past. BEHERENOWNOWBEHEREBEHERENOWNOWBEHERE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthICE Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 Bill Polian, builder of FIVE SuperBowl Losing teams. That's got to be a record. Yes, let's continue to live in the past. BEHERENOWNOWBEHEREBEHERENOWNOWBEHERE Five Losers? I could have sworn that Indy won a Superbowl just a couple years ago. But hey, lets not let facts get in the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spartacus Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 Bill Polian, builder of FIVE SuperBowl Losing teams. That's got to be a record. Yes, let's continue to live in the past. BEHERENOWNOWBEHEREBEHERENOWNOWBEHERE not making the playoffs for more than a decade is so much better for the fans Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 Five Losers? I could have sworn that Indy won a Superbowl just a couple years ago. But hey, lets not let facts get in the way. Who'd want their team to be the winningest in the NFL? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nucci Posted October 16, 2010 Share Posted October 16, 2010 I just read two more post that said that "Ralph fired Polain". That makes it the 1,789,357th time I have read this on TSW. My recollection is that Polian quit. Ralph did not fire him and Ralph did not want ask him to quit. I seem to recall this sequence of events: 1. While working as GM for Buffalo, Polian was a member of a committee put together by then commissioner Paul Tagliabue to help establish rules for the free agency/ salary cap situation that was coming into place. Polian was trying to lock up all the important Bills players to long term deals to prevent losing his team to free agency. He signed Cornelius Bennett to a lucrative deal even though he still had years on his contract. He was preparing to do the same with Will Wolford when Littman intervened. 2. Littman and Polian did not get along very well. Polian used to delight in blowing him off. The two feuded often and put Wilson in the middle of it. In this case Wilson sided with Littman and Wilford was not re-signed during the season. Littman was a long time friend. Ralph blew it. 3. Polian was upset about the interference and he announced he would be leaving after the season. He stayed with the team until after the Super Bowl. He was not fired. 4. Linda Bogdan’s (Wilson’s daughter) role with the club had nothing to do with it. Whether Polian liked her or not was not material. There is a myth on TSW that she was part of the reason that Wilson fired her. I say this is not true. 5. Wilford, now a free agent, signed a monster deal (for the times) with the Colts in the off-season. New Bills GM John Butler matched the offer but the NFL ruled against Buffalo due to the famous “escalator clause” the Colts put into the offer that the Bills would not match. The clause stated that Wilford would be the highest paid player on the Colts for so many years. That clause was eliminated immediately after the Wilford ruling, partly due to Polian, who took a job working for Tagliabue after he left the Bills. So, I submit that Wilson did not fire Polian. If I am wrong then flame away and tell me what really happened. If I am right then please stop saying that he did. I think it is important that we get this right. Thanks! It's been 17 years. You haven't moved on yet? What are you waiting for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob in STL Posted October 17, 2010 Author Share Posted October 17, 2010 It's been 17 years. You haven't moved on yet? What are you waiting for? I have moved on long ago. That is probably why I thought he quit rather than got fired. Seems like ages ago to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewildrabbit Posted October 17, 2010 Share Posted October 17, 2010 The trigger event was an altercation between Polian and Linda Bogden during a draft. Ralph had the brilliant idea to make his daughter a scout and have her involved in the draft. Rumor has it that she was scouting offensive linemen. Polian put a premium on a strong OL and got flak from Bogden in the draft room about selections. He called her a bad word and Ralph was pissed. Seems he was so pissed that he has refused to build a strong OL since Polian left, just to spite him and his philosophy. If I'm not mistaken Linda Bogden was a darn good scout and found Eric Moulds and other WR's for the team, never heard of her scouting O linemen tho. From what I understand she did her job well. Polian was know for a fiery temperament and I'm sure he bumped heads with lots of people, never saw it get in the way of his doing his job correctly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiderweb Posted October 17, 2010 Share Posted October 17, 2010 We can put this to rest now: From the Buffalo news and a story by Vic Carucci Dated Feb 4th 1993 http://www.highbeam....2-22491923.html ""Buffalo Bills owner Ralph C. Wilson Jr. said that his "personal and professional differences" with Bill Polian in the last three years led to the firing of the most successful general manager in team history. In an exclusive interview with The Buffalo News, Wilson confirmed that the main reason for the dismissal was the turbulent relationship between Polian and Jeff Littmann, treasurer of Wilson's Detroit-based company. "They didn't get along well," Wilson said from his winter home in West Palm Beach, Fla. "I'm being very honest, there was some friction there. It (made for) an uncomfortable feeling on my part. And I just thought it was time to make a change and …"" P.S. Another rumor I heard while at the SB was that RW was livid at Bill Polian because his brother had a Bills playbook, or had taken one, or somehow had lost one, or somehow the opposing team had gotten hold of one. All I can remember is that Polian's brother who was in charge of team security was responsible for the missing playbook and RW was extremely pissed about the whole situation. Anyone else recall anything about this or can verify it at all? Thanks for the confirmation.... My memory of it was verified. I still recall hearing the announcement on a local news show in Dayton Ohio. I was so angry at the time..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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