Tolstoy Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 As much as I respect Polian, this does sound like a lame excuse on behalf of Marrone. Marrone himself claimed to be heavily involved in player evaluation and selection during the 2014 draft. His "specialty" is O line, so he was as much responsible for the failed O-line draft picks as anyone else. Hell, he helped pick the o-line players. He selected the coaches that would coach those players. He even directly coached the o-linemen himself. How is the deterioration of the offensive line Whaley's fault? How is Hackett Whaley's fault? Failure to go for it on 4th down is Whaley's fault? I admit that the team was not deep at QB to start the season, so perhaps that one falls on Whaley. Still, QB was only part of the problem. Play-calling and a putrid running game were as much to blame. Marrone looks bad. If I were an NFL team, I would think twice about hiring a guy who thinks he is a prima donna, blames everyone else for his failures, cuts and runs on his players and coaches even though he has been treated well, and badmouths an organization on his way out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Best Player Available Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 You don't think sounds at all like Marrone covering his ass? "I could have done a better job if they gave me better players". Every coach says that crap. Whaley tried to make the OL better, what else was he suppose to do hand him pro bowl talent on a platter?Whaley has had TWO years to fix the line. And that is not counting a year with nix at the helm and everyone knowing full well Levitre would walk. Whaley has failed big time there, and it affected his prize rookie QB and Orton. And the running game. And the passing game. Chris Williams 5 mil guaranteed. really? The guy was unemployed sitting on a couch when Whaley called him. A bust cut mid seaon once. Did he or his scouts even do any homework? And his predecessor was worse. legursky looked like a stud compared to those guards. Whaley is not without blame for the offensive woes. In fact IMO the biggest reason for them. Again who are his scouts on the offensive side of the ball? They suck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 No he can't but some talent would be nice. Are you suggesting that Chris Williams, Cyrus and Cyril were talented and the coach couldn't get it out of him? And same with Pears and Urbik? By all accounts, those are not even five mediocre talents. This isn't a "coach em up" situation with the OL. They need to be athletic and smart and if they are, they play (see: Henderson, Seantrel). Spending doesn't equal quality. I don't shop at Walmart for this reason. Let's give marrone the benefit of the doubt and say that the line acquisitions were all busts and not due to his poor coaching. That happens. Draft picks can bust. FA guys can get injured. Unless marrone voiced specific objections to the players we drafted and signed, he can't fault the FO for not getting what he wanted. By the way, I wonder if marrone's comments had less to do with the line and more to do with Watkins and mike Williams acquisitions, and the philosophy that you can better EJ with better WR talent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mead107 Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 How did are running game go to crap under marrone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblehead Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 (edited) Polian doing the "CYA" tour on TV now? Great. I hope our owner stays as far away Polian as he can in the future. Edited January 3, 2015 by bobblehead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Linen Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 "If I'm going to be asked to cook the meal, I'd like to be able to pick the groceries.” - Bill Parcells When he said that I believe he had already been coaching for 12-13 years. IMO more power in personal decisions is earned and doesn't usually come after a 6-10 year one and then quit the next year because you weren't listened to. If this is true Marrone has serious psychological issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Cubed Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Whaley has had TWO years to fix the line. And that is not counting a year with nix at the helm and everyone knowing full well Levitre would walk. Whaley has failed big time there, and it affected his prize rookie QB and Orton. And the running game. And the passing game. Chris Williams 5 mil guaranteed. really? The guy was unemployed sitting on a couch when Whaley called him. A bust cut mid seaon once. Did he or his scouts even do any homework? And his predecessor was worse. legursky looked like a stud compared to those guards. Whaley is not without blame for the offensive woes. In fact IMO the biggest reason for them. Again who are his scouts on the offensive side of the ball? They suck. Ok. Whaley took over one of the worst OL in football and didn't improve it in 2 drafts and 2 FA periods, fire him. He also drafted 3 OL and one of them turned into a bonafide RT. The truth is we don't know what the Bills have in the other 2 OL because of Marrone Your really upset about Chris Williams for $5M? What FA guard this past offseason would you have signed? There wasn't exactly premier talent at G in the offseason. Here's the list: 1. Jon Asamoah 2. Davin Joseph 3. Zane Beadles 4. Travelle Wharton 5. Geoff Schwartz Let's not forget Marrone was a former OL and OL coach. He couldn't coach up any of these players? In fact Glenn looks worse. He decided to take an average to an above average RG (Urbik) and sit him for an ageing RT. But I suppose that was Whaley's decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marv's Neighbor Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Who needs the excitement of the playoffs when we have the annual drama of One Bills Drive?. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TC in St. Louis Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 I don't get the regression in Eric Wood and Cordy Glenn. I don't think our offensive line coach did a very good job with the players brought in by Whaley. But, let's see what happens with the new coach. The Mike Williams situation was absurd. Probably never should have made that trade. Whaley knew that Marrone had kicked Williams off the team in Syracuse, and he was just asking for trouble when he brought him in. I don't think Williams ever had much of a chance. I don't think his career is over. He's an excellent athlete. If resentments between coach and GM reach the point where they are screaming at each other in public, things have to change. Let's just look at the Oakland game. 13 carries for 13 yards against the 27th ranked run defense. Something is wrong. Needs fixing. Whaley did pull off some good maneuvers the past couple years. Kiko, Graham, #51, Hogan, the trade for Hughes. I think Bryce Brown is going to be a great player too. Can't wait to see who's next. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Best Player Available Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Ok. Whaley took over one of the worst OL in football and didn't improve it in 2 drafts and 2 FA periods, fire him. He also drafted 3 OL and one of them turned into a bonafide RT. The truth is we don't know what the Bills have in the other 2 OL because of Marrone Your really upset about Chris Williams for $5M? What FA guard this past offseason would you have signed? There wasn't exactly premier talent at G in the offseason. Here's the list: 1. Jon Asamoah 2. Davin Joseph 3. Zane Beadles 4. Travelle Wharton 5. Geoff Schwartz Let's not forget Marrone was a former OL and OL coach. He couldn't coach up any of these players? In fact Glenn looks worse. He decided to take an average to an above average RG (Urbik) and sit him for an ageing RT. But I suppose that was Whaley's decision. I'm not sayimg Marrone is without blame. yes Whaley drafted three lineman one a second rounder. Sorry again who is scouting these guys? He hits on a 7th rounder. Maybe they will develop but they looked horrible this season. HC rarely have time too babysit what his O-line coach is doing. or spend time with what his GM hands him. I do not believe and I am not defending him. That Marrones job title was HC and O- line babysitter. IMO some of the tension in the FO was the inability too get a decent O- line. And other assistant coaches inability too do their jobs. Whaley is as new at his job as the QB he took. Maybe he will turn out to be a great GM. Right now I do not see it. I love Watkins, and glad he is a Bill but that trade was horrendus and right now biting the team in the butt. No first rounder no viable QB going into the Offseason. And a O-line in complete freefall. maybe the new coaching staff will turn it around year one. i hope so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rico Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 So I was just watching some ESPN2 show called "NFL Insiders" and Polian was on, talking about why he turned down the advisory role with the Bills. It was the same that we'd already heard - the job became more of a heavy lift and time commitment than he was looking for. But they then asked him about the Pegulas and what he would recommend to get the team back on track. What he said was interesting. I'm paraphrasing, but essentially it was "Make sure the new head coach is actually listened to by the personnel department, when he says he needs something to run his team, they should be listening to him, and they should be acquiring the kinds of players the coach says that he needs." So I'll deduce from that what it was that Marrone said to Polian on his way out, about the structure of the front office and the responsiveness. Marrone is a dickhead, no question - but this is not the first time we've heard this kind of thing about the Bills' front office. Pollen did say that the Pegulas are smart and committed and will do what they need to do to get the ship righted. Time to fire some lifers, Terry. Absolutely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heitz Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Clayton was on with Schopp and The Bulldog last night and talked about Polian, there were a few interesting points... He said Polian was going to come in to run the ENTIRE football operation, he said that he would have brought AJ Smith in (though I didn't catch if he said as GM or Pro Personnel) - basically he would have been running the show on the Football side. Where it got interesting was one of the GR guys brought up that when he changed his mind (after Marrone left) Polian backed off from the job because he didn't want the "heavy lifting" (presumably of a coaching search). They pointed out that it just seems odd that a coaching search would be too much heavy lifting, but running the entire football ops wouldn't be. I'm sure the truth lies somewhere in between on this whole Polian thing, it's all a power play in the NFL! I think we dodged a bullet on this one, but that all depends on who we bring in as the next coach! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joey greco Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 What was the timeline on that blowup at the end of preseason? Was it right after they signed that qb coach type (Palmer maybe?) and before Orton? Was Marrone looking for somebody other than EJ all along? Maybe give me EJ or that disaster of an offensive line, but not both, leading to the late signing of Orton? Also makes sense of the sudden decision to leave by Marrone. Sees himself reliving the battles over the bust with Whaley that they had over the last year, and another refusal to bring in a decent qb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanker Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 I'm shocked, shocked I tell you that Pollian's advice to the Pegulas wasn't "SELL THE TEAM!" I smell a couple of rats here - Maroon and Mortensen - who still pushes a hardon for The Bills. Maroon was a Russ Brandon hire IMHO. My advice to the Pegulas would be to hire a consultant that's not on Medicare and doesn't desperately need teeth bleaching treatments. Hey Bill - that mouth of yours is disgusting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed_Formerly_of_Roch Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 I thought he went on IR, not cut?? As someone else pointed out here a few weeks back, the point in time when Williams got hurt and wasn't playing anmore was right around the same time our running game to a big turn south?? Coincidence? maybe or maybe his play was much better than most of the expects on this board think? Chris Williams 5 mil guaranteed. really? The guy was unemployed sitting on a couch when Whaley called him. A bust cut mid seaon once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bananathumb Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Thanks for the update, Coach T. Don't like this news about Polian and Marrone pissing in the water that the Pegulas are trying to fish in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Clayton was on with Schopp and The Bulldog last night and talked about Polian, there were a few interesting points... He said Polian was going to come in to run the ENTIRE football operation, he said that he would have brought AJ Smith in (though I didn't catch if he said as GM or Pro Personnel) - basically he would have been running the show on the Football side. Where it got interesting was one of the GR guys brought up that when he changed his mind (after Marrone left) Polian backed off from the job because he didn't want the "heavy lifting" (presumably of a coaching search). They pointed out that it just seems odd that a coaching search would be too much heavy lifting, but running the entire football ops wouldn't be. I'm sure the truth lies somewhere in between on this whole Polian thing, it's all a power play in the NFL! I think we dodged a bullet on this one, but that all depends on who we bring in as the next coach! Yep. Doesn't make sense to refuse the job just because you have to find a new HC. Actually, I think the head honcho would want to do that job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Whaley has had TWO years to fix the line. And that is not counting a year with nix at the helm and everyone knowing full well Levitre would walk. Whaley has failed big time there, and it affected his prize rookie QB and Orton. And the running game. And the passing game. Chris Williams 5 mil guaranteed. really? The guy was unemployed sitting on a couch when Whaley called him. A bust cut mid seaon once. Did he or his scouts even do any homework? And his predecessor was worse. legursky looked like a stud compared to those guards. Whaley is not without blame for the offensive woes. In fact IMO the biggest reason for them. Again who are his scouts on the offensive side of the ball? They suck. Who are his scouts on the offensive side of the ball? The same as the scouts on the defensive side of the ball. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunTheBall Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 There is a tremendous amount of CYA going on at 1 Bills Drive and with Marone and Polian. I don't know why but I feel 100% certain those douche-bag lifers bad mouthed Polian and have a lot to do with the internal divisions that have existed for decades. If I were Pegula, I'd fire them all today. Pegulas first mistake was not to have a football guy ready to go on day 1 of the offseason to restructure the organization top to bottom. I would have loved Ernie Acorsi in that role. Polian, not so much. I have nothing but respect and good feelings for Bill but you can't relive the past and I don't think he was the guy for the job. Marone was a douche but made a very smart business decision for himself. Sure, he sold out all his integrity and everything he says about family and teamwork from this day forth will be laughed at, but he has 4 million reasons (plus whatever else he gets) not to care too much. I hope he goes to the Jets and gets destroyed by the NY media. My prediction (not what I want but what I think will happen) - Shwartz as HC, Pepper to DC, new OC, Whaley stays at GM, no football czar. RTB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boyst Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 The more distance between this and that now the more I wake up to realize it is probably for the best that Polian is not back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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