Coach Tuesday Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 (edited) http://blogs.buffalobills.com/2011/01/10/chan-talks-to-mr-wilson/ What I find interesting in here is the mention that Ralph and Chan "visit every week" during the season. That may not seem like much, but it is. Over the years, I've seen it hinted at by insiders and reporters alike that one of the things that Ralph does that drives his subordinates insane is in-week meddling during the season. One reporter (can't remember which one) wrote that Ralph typically would bug his coaches on Monday and Tuesday about the previous game, making them spend hours on the phone with him on the two days that were most critical for gameplanning for the next game. Chan's comments make me wonder if this is still a problem. I also wonder how common it is among NFL owners. I'm guessing it's unusual for an owner to insist on access to the head coach every single week. It would drive me nuts as a coach - while the owner is my employer and surely is entitled to check in and kick the tires whenever he wants, he should try to restrain himself as much as possible. That's what a GM is for, among other things - running interference between ownership and middle management. Edited January 10, 2011 by Coach Tuesday Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RealityCheck Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 I don't believe it. The word around here is that Ralph is cheap and does not care about winning. Something smells fishy around here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
808 Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 could you imagine sparanos talks? a bunch of entertainers who know nothing of football asking him why henne isnt tom brady? would be screams to hear what sparano really thinks of that group Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuntheDamnBall Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 I guess. And certainly history has proven that Ralph's methods by and large haven't been successful. OTOH, might it not be useful for Chan to have Ralph's ear if there's something he really, truly feels he needs? I generally agree with you, though: strong leadership and vision in the GM's office should mean that there's a good intermediary and enough communication from top-to-bottom without interfering with the necessary daily tasks. Maybe Whaley grows up into that leader while Nix sets things in order? One can hope... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Never NEVER Give-up Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Look, it's Ralph's team. He loves them - yes, probably even more than we do. He's the #1 fan and because he owns then, he can insinuate himself into anything going on at OBD - and rightly so. Mary Wilson gave Marv Levy this tip when Marv first joined the Bills as coach - talk to Ralph! So Marv set-up a weekly call with Ralph (I think it was Wednesdays), and a friendship was born. If Chan is doing omething similar - good for him - he's being smart about it. Maybe the arrogance of Mularkey & Williams is what did them in. Jauron was liked by Wilson, probably because he talked to Ralph - that's why it was so hard for Ralph to put him out of his misery. Bottom line: His team, his way!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach Tuesday Posted January 10, 2011 Author Share Posted January 10, 2011 Bottom line: His team, his way!! How has that worked out for him? Not trying to be flippant - but at some point, even a moderately-savvy businessman is able to conduct a post-mortem on a decade + of failure and realize that there is one common denominator... and it's not like he's such an egomaniac like Jerry Jones that he refuses to look in the mirror, is it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 (edited) Look, it's Ralph's team. He loves them - yes, probably even more than we do. He's the #1 fan and because he owns then, he can insinuate himself into anything going on at OBD - and rightly so. Mary Wilson gave Marv Levy this tip when Marv first joined the Bills as coach - talk to Ralph! So Marv set-up a weekly call with Ralph (I think it was Wednesdays), and a friendship was born. If Chan is doing omething similar - good for him - he's being smart about it. Maybe the arrogance of Mularkey & Williams is what did them in. Jauron was liked by Wilson, probably because he talked to Ralph - that's why it was so hard for Ralph to put him out of his misery. Bottom line: His team, his way!! Ralph was very fond of Mularkey as well, from what I know of the situation. It was Tom Donohoe that he had the problem with, during Mularkeys' time at One Bills Drive. But, overall, I agree with your point. I think many of us assume way too much sometimes, when it comes to how things run with the Bills, or any other team. I would actually be more surprised to hear that any NFL owners didn't keep in touch with their head coach on a regular basis. Many of the owners are "captains of industry" who obtained their wealth, long before they were NFL owners. Their team is their passion, not necessarily their livelihood. Edited January 10, 2011 by Buftex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 How has that worked out for him? Not trying to be flippant - but at some point, even a moderately-savvy businessman is able to conduct a post-mortem on a decade + of failure and realize that there is one common denominator... and it's not like he's such an egomaniac like Jerry Jones that he refuses to look in the mirror, is it? The assumption immediately inferred is that Ralph and Chan are meeting (or at least talking) each week and that Ralph is injecting some sort of opinion or mandate into how to run the team. An hour or two meeting/conversation with the owner each week about the team and what your doing is not too much too much to ask; IMO. I'd agree, if Ralph is insisting upon changes in the gameplan, then yes it's a problem. But, if he just wants to get the inside scoop every week from the HC; it's certainly within his right and I don't see how it can do any harm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Never NEVER Give-up Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 All points relevant, I'm just saying it's his team & he's gonna run it as best he can - he just flipped the front office & coaches last year. He will meet with the "inner circle" at his FLA reesidence shortly - all in an effort to run his team the best he can. You ask, how's that working for him - it hasn't recently - he knows it and is sick about it - he feels Donahoe (thanks for the reminder) screwed the team on a long term basis. He brought in Marv because of his team building and collegial style - not becaue of his drafting accumen. That ate up 2 years and they made the mistake thinking Brandon could be GM - but the realization was they need a Football guy - so Nix is it now. Brandon is still there and probably doing everything he did before - just not handling football duties, rather the business side of things. Frankly (at least for 2 more years) the front office & coaches are set - the proof will be in the drafting. Then the players gotta play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach Tuesday Posted January 10, 2011 Author Share Posted January 10, 2011 All points relevant, I'm just saying it's his team & he's gonna run it as best he can - he just flipped the front office & coaches last year. He will meet with the "inner circle" at his FLA reesidence shortly - all in an effort to run his team the best he can. You ask, how's that working for him - it hasn't recently - he knows it and is sick about it - he feels Donahoe (thanks for the reminder) screwed the team on a long term basis. He brought in Marv because of his team building and collegial style - not becaue of his drafting accumen. That ate up 2 years and they made the mistake thinking Brandon could be GM - but the realization was they need a Football guy - so Nix is it now. Brandon is still there and probably doing everything he did before - just not handling football duties, rather the business side of things. Frankly (at least for 2 more years) the front office & coaches are set - the proof will be in the drafting. Then the players gotta play. Sigh. That definitely, and succinctly, summarizes the past decade. It could be used by business schools as a teaching example of organizational mismanagement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyT Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 (edited) The assumption immediately inferred is that Ralph and Chan are meeting (or at least talking) each week and that Ralph is injecting some sort of opinion or mandate into how to run the team. An hour or two meeting/conversation with the owner each week about the team and what your doing is not too much too much to ask; IMO. I'd agree, if Ralph is insisting upon changes in the gameplan, then yes it's a problem. But, if he just wants to get the inside scoop every week from the HC; it's certainly within his right and I don't see how it can do any harm. Agreed. It's a pretty small chain of command relative to most businesses so I'm not surprised by this at all. And it sure beats Jerry Jones who reportedly sits in on the weekly post-mortem film breakdown with the coaching staff. Edited January 10, 2011 by MattyT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo Barbarian Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Look, it's Ralph's team. He loves them - yes, probably even more than we do. He's the #1 fan and because he owns then, he can insinuate himself into anything going on at OBD - and rightly so. Mary Wilson gave Marv Levy this tip when Marv first joined the Bills as coach - talk to Ralph! So Marv set-up a weekly call with Ralph (I think it was Wednesdays), and a friendship was born. If Chan is doing omething similar - good for him - he's being smart about it. Maybe the arrogance of Mularkey & Williams is what did them in. Jauron was liked by Wilson, probably because he talked to Ralph - that's why it was so hard for Ralph to put him out of his misery. Bottom line: His team, his way!! If he was a fan he would spend the money and be over the cap to get the right players in here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach Tuesday Posted January 10, 2011 Author Share Posted January 10, 2011 If he was a fan he would spend the money and be over the cap to get the right players in here. 1) There is no cap right now 2) When there is, by definition, you can't "be over" it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meathead Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 ralph is chatty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Wait, I thought Ralph only micro-managed his GMs, like TD? So what's his chat frequency with Nix; daily? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shoto Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 How has that worked out for him? Not trying to be flippant - but at some point, even a moderately-savvy businessman is able to conduct a post-mortem on a decade + of failure and realize that there is one common denominator... and it's not like he's such an egomaniac like Jerry Jones that he refuses to look in the mirror, is it? I'd say it has worked pretty good for him, he invested $25 K for $650 million, not bad. All while establishing a loyal fan base. I like an engaged owner. Long Live Ralph....Go Bills Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
purple haze Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 How has that worked out for him? Not trying to be flippant - but at some point, even a moderately-savvy businessman is able to conduct a post-mortem on a decade + of failure and realize that there is one common denominator... and it's not like he's such an egomaniac like Jerry Jones that he refuses to look in the mirror, is it? Nobody truly knows the truth of what's going on behind the scenes. But I find it strange anybody would be surprised that a man who owns a business wouldn't talk to the people he hired to manage the company. If Mr. Wilson wasn't talking to the coach I would find that strange and almost negligent. Because he talks to the coach does not mean he doesn't allow them to do their jobs. End of the day Coaches have plenty of time to prepare a game plan even if they spend a couple hours on the phone with Mr. Wilson and are made to give an accounting as to why the team performed in a certain way. The rest is just excuses. I have yet to work in a company where the owner is expected to have no access to his directors or anybody else they want to talk to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach Tuesday Posted January 10, 2011 Author Share Posted January 10, 2011 Nobody truly knows the truth of what's going on behind the scenes. But I find it strange anybody would be surprised that a man who owns a business wouldn't talk to the people he hired to manage the company. If Mr. Wilson wasn't talking to the coach I would find that strange and almost negligent. Because he talks to the coach does not mean he doesn't allow them to do their jobs. End of the day Coaches have plenty of time to prepare a game plan even if they spend a couple hours on the phone with Mr. Wilson and are made to give an accounting as to why the team performed in a certain way. The rest is just excuses. I have yet to work in a company where the owner is expected to have no access to his directors or anybody else they want to talk to. I think it's unusual for an NFL owner in this day and age to insist that his head coach be available to him for a weekly "fireside chat." That is what the GM is for. By your logic, Ralph could demand weekly access to Posluzny to discuss tackling technique and angles. Does the have the right to do this? Sure, he's the owner. Is it good management? Absolutely not. It's counter-productive interference with the going concern. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eSJayDee Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 I haven't read the blog yet, but I'd also be willing to bet that Chan & CB "chat" weekly. CB is primarily a propaganda machine, & conversing w/ him provides virtually no benefit WRT the product out on the field. Ralph & Chan's chats might also have little benefit, but they are a necessary "overhead" that is required of management. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2003Contenders Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 OK, here's the thing. In order to be a successful head coach, there is MUCH more in the job description than simply Xs and Os. Much of the real work involves proper communication and making use of strong people skills. This applies to both dealing with subordinates (assistant coaches, players, training staff, etc.) as well as superiors. Meaning that it is vitally important for the head coach to have a strong working relationship with the GM and (YES) the owner. If Ralph does indeed like to chat for a couple of hours a week with the head coach, then the coach (in this case, Chan) needs to set that time aside on his busy schedule and create a win-win situation in which he either does what he needs to patronize Ralph OR actually makes valuable use of the conversation and tries to persuade Ralph to open up his checkbook -- or even make suggestions about cultural changes within the organization. Chan seems to be a refreshingly straight shooter, and I have a feeling that he provides Ralph with an honest assessment in their weekly chats. How is that a bad thing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewildrabbit Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 While on one hand it is good that the owner is in constant direct contact with his head coach, on the other it makes me wonder how much mental awareness does the owner have if he let a complete offensive moron like Dick Jauron ruin QB's. It also brings up the question that perhaps Jauron was asked to promote Turk Schonert and AVP rather then hiring a known name OC. Looking back over the last 8 years or so that RW has been president of the Buffalo Bills, and given the track record of the drafts.... If Tom Donahoe got fired for Mike Williams, then RW should fire and remove himself over picks like JP Losman-Aaron Maybin-John McCargo and all the rest of the miscues and draft blunders. To RW: hire GM Thomas Dimertoff away from Atlanta and make him president, step away and go play with your race horses, stop trying to compete with Al Davis to see who can screw up their team the most. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bflojohn Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 It seems to me that Ralph, historically, has hired strong, independant leaders at certain stages of ownership. Whether it was Lou Saban, Chuch Knox, Bill Polian, or the current group, he seemingly can tolerate the "anti" yes men for a short period of time. In my view, from years of following this team, we have been "on the brink" several times, only to be short curcuited by Ralph at the critical juncture! Unbelievably, he lasted out Marv Levy to its logical duration, but he's NOT allowed others to finish the jobs they were hired to do. In my sense of things, this is his biggest failing, and unlike, say the Pittsburgh Steelers, as an example, we can only reach mediocrity because of his meddlesome ways. I firmly believe the leopard doesn't change his stripes, so new ownership, in my eyes is the tonic for success in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wardigital Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 The team was remarkably well coached by Gailey this year, considering the absolute lack of talent. If Ralph does this to his coaches, it doesn't seem to have hurt Gailey very much. I don't think Gailey could have squeezed another drop out of this team. Several remarkably close games against playoff teams, a big comeback victory, beating one of our division rivals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pine Barrens Mafia Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 leopard doesn't change his stripes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finknottle Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 I think it's unusual for an NFL owner in this day and age to insist that his head coach be available to him for a weekly "fireside chat." That is what the GM is for. I think it would be unusual if they didn't. Sure, one school of thought say's the head coach reports to the GM, and the GM talks regularly to the owner. But how many head coaches in the NFL see it that way? How many are content to say they work for the GM, and have their fate decided by the GM rather than the owner? I think most teams view the GM and the head coach as semi-equals. They work together, but both report to and are judged by ownership. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanInUticaTampa Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 How has that worked out for him? Pretty damn good. turned 25k into millions and millions of dollars, four afc championships, not bad at all. Of course, the team hasn't won much in the last 10 years, but if I was ralph, I would say things worked out pretty well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djrocks Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 http://blogs.buffalobills.com/2011/01/10/chan-talks-to-mr-wilson/ What I find interesting in here is the mention that Ralph and Chan "visit every week" during the season. That may not seem like much, but it is. Over the years, I've seen it hinted at by insiders and reporters alike that one of the things that Ralph does that drives his subordinates insane is in-week meddling during the season. One reporter (can't remember which one) wrote that Ralph typically would bug his coaches on Monday and Tuesday about the previous game, making them spend hours on the phone with him on the two days that were most critical for gameplanning for the next game. Chan's comments make me wonder if this is still a problem. I also wonder how common it is among NFL owners. I'm guessing it's unusual for an owner to insist on access to the head coach every single week. It would drive me nuts as a coach - while the owner is my employer and surely is entitled to check in and kick the tires whenever he wants, he should try to restrain himself as much as possible. That's what a GM is for, among other things - running interference between ownership and middle management. do you seriously think that is not the practice with every owner in the league.IMO it only shows that Ralph is genuinly interested in whats going on with his team every owner is and if they are not then i guarantee their teams suck. to take these talks as meddling is crazy and to say that the practice is someway wrong is also crazy IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerball Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Striped leopard gecko? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Yeah. The Bills would be SO MUCH better if only RW didn't speak to his employees over the phone on a weekly basis. There's a difference between talking to your personnel and inserting yourself into their processes like Jones, Snyder, Davis, et al have been doing for years. Yep. Once RW stops calling the Bills will magically transform into a team full of talented players and the coaches will never make a mistake again. Right. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdog1960 Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Pretty damn good. turned 25k into millions and millions of dollars, four afc championships, not bad at all. Of course, the team hasn't won much in the last 10 years, but if I was ralph, I would say things worked out pretty well. and you'd be wrong if winning consistently, or even more often than losing were significant factors in your criteria. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewildrabbit Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 The team was remarkably well coached by Gailey this year, considering the absolute lack of talent. If Ralph does this to his coaches, it doesn't seem to have hurt Gailey very much. I don't think Gailey could have squeezed another drop out of this team. Several remarkably close games against playoff teams, a big comeback victory, beating one of our division rivals. This was a joke right? Well coached? Dick Jauron and Trent Edwards ALMOST beat the Patriots in the Pats home opener 2 years ago.... almost doesn't count for anything!! Yea, Chan Gailey was ALMOST named coach of the year for his magnificent coaching job this year Get a freakin grip willya.... the Bills won 4 games against 4 bad teams. The one division rival you talk about ALMOST recently fired their current HC, but didn't because they couldn't hire Harbough. I'll bet they will replace their starting QB in Chad Henne, who btw ended up with better stats then Fitz this past season. That last game against the Jets showed what this team would have done without Fitz at QB most of the year, maybe no wins? That last game showed that Fitz has been carrying the team, what happens if he suffers a season ending injury the first game next year, what then? Chan Gailey did in Buffalo exactly what he did in KC as OC, that team went 2-14 with Tyler Thigpin at QB, he played well when he was healthy. So Gailey managed to upgrade the passing offense with ONE QB, and yet drafted a supposed super star RB at #9 and the running game got worse and went down hill....the Special teams and defense went downhill with basically the same players. This HC managed to take a team that they stated was "not that far off" and made them worse then last year at 6-10. The passing offense did manage to become exciting again this year, which was to be expected with an actual offensive minded HC/OC calling plays and setting up game plans. I don't see this HC beating Bill Belichick and the NE Patriots as he is an offensive version of Jauron, he made one area of the team play better. P.S.For ten years this franchise has been changing coaches and players .....every year we have to hear about the "lack of talent"...who's fault is that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob in STL Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 (edited) Pretty damn good. turned 25k into millions and millions of dollars, four afc championships, not bad at all. Of course, the team hasn't won much in the last 10 years, but if I was ralph, I would say things worked out pretty well. Stop making sense. ... and don't forget the two AFL championships and oh yeah, that Pro Football HoF induction. Edited January 11, 2011 by Bob in STL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nervous Guy Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 I don't believe it. The word around here is that Ralph is cheap and does not care about winning. Something smells fishy around here. but it does fit his MO as "meddling". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CardinalScotts Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 If he was a fan he would spend the money and be over the cap to get the right players in here. RIGHT - just the way Daniel Snyder does it !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 The assumption immediately inferred is that Ralph and Chan are meeting (or at least talking) each week and that Ralph is injecting some sort of opinion or mandate into how to run the team. An hour or two meeting/conversation with the owner each week about the team and what your doing is not too much too much to ask; IMO. I'd agree, if Ralph is insisting upon changes in the gameplan, then yes it's a problem. But, if he just wants to get the inside scoop every week from the HC; it's certainly within his right and I don't see how it can do any harm. To imagine that Ralph is even mentioning the gameplan in any detail, let alone insisting on changes is simply impossible. Inconceivable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nucci Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 To imagine that Ralph is even mentioning the gameplan in any detail, let alone insisting on changes is simply impossible. Inconceivable. You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shane nelson Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 This happens the end of every season, by every team in the NFL. Standard operating procedure. As far as Ralph a very good person, who has brought and retained the NFL in WNY. Does he meddle, yes. Is he a good football man. The record speaks for itself. Even during the glory days, the Bills got luck. Bill Polian was already in the organization and Marv was not considered a risky hire at the time. While the Bills will be in Buffalo as long as Ralph is alive; we will never be winners as long as he owns the team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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