Thurman#1 Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 (edited) http://buffalonews.com/2017/04/12/analysis-honorable-tom-modrak-gray-man-bills-drought/ Gaughan has always had a lot of sources in the Bills locker room and front office, especially back in those years when he was one of the primary beat reporters. Ralph Wilson, for one, would always talk to Gaughan, but he had a ton of guys in his Rolodex back when there were Rolodexes. Modrak passed the other day and this is Gaughan's take on a subject that has been very controversial over the years ... how much he was to blame for the bad picks through the years he was here. Some excerpts: "Tom Modrak was a wonderful, high-character, class individual and an excellent football scout. Regardless of the Buffalo Bills' "Drought," there is universal agreement on the preceding statement in the football world. It's the truth. Many across the NFL have recognized it in the wake of Modrak's death at age 74 Tuesday. What kind of job did Modrak do for the Bills? That's where it gets gray. Not good enough, for sure. That's a fact for everybody involved with the football administration of the franchise the past 17 years. But it's hard to make too many definitive statements about Modrak's contributions to the Bills' because he never was the one in full control of the team's personnel. "'Tom does a good job, but he doesn’t make the last call,' late Bills owner Ralph C. Wilson Jr. told The News in January 2011. 'He puts the board up. We have a lot of hard-working scouts. But it comes down to making the last decision. That’s not Tom.'" ... and ... "Was it Modrak who decided Haloti Ngata couldn't play in the Buffalo defense, and the Bills should take Donte Whitner instead? Absolutely not. That was Dick Jauron and aide Bill Kollar." ... and ... "Modrak loved Jordy Nelson in 2008. Nelson went 36th to Green Bay. The Bills picked 41st. Jauron and offensive chief Turk Schonert were desperate for a tall receiver. Schonert probably correctly sensed his seat already could get hot. The pick was James Hardy. Reach. Bust. Not Modrak's fault. "Then there was Aaron Maybin. Again, Jauron & Co. were desperate for an edge rusher in the Tampa defense. Desperate. Modrak saw Maybin's potential to rush from both sides but knew it was a reach. Did he jump up and down hard enough to object? It's what the coaching staff was begging for." This is the way it always seemed to me, but it's interesting to finally see it in black and white. And Gaughan does seem to be saying that maybe Modrak could have fought harder for what he believed in. It always seemed weird how we did so well in the later rounds but screwed up the early picks, the most important ones. This helps explain it. Coaches and front office folks don't get as involved in the later picks. Edited April 13, 2017 by Thurman#1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rubes Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Damn. So many what-ifs with this team over the years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DallasMac Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 There is no defending Maybin over Orakpo. Just a horrible decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronxbomber21 Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Even the random Bills fans with no knowledge of scouting or an eye to evaluate talent new Orakpo shouldve been the pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papazoid Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 the person who had final say is most to blame......that was not modrak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffismagic Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 So the Bills still haven't learned a thing after all these years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Sounds like jauron was to blame! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffismagic Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Sounds like jauron was to blame! Bills were letting Jauron pick players for his crappy Tampon 2 scheme instead of the personnel guys. Good thing those days are over... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasovon Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 I do feel that our lack of a strong presence on the Personnel side of things has been a huge part of our drought. Coaches coming in and picking whoever fits their scheme best rather than BPA is exactly how a losing roster is built. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffismagic Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 I do feel that our lack of a strong presence on the Personnel side of things has been a huge part of our drought. Coaches coming in and picking whoever fits their scheme best rather than BPA is exactly how a losing roster is built. Look at last year's draft. 3 picks on an inside linebacker? DE from Clemson? This organization structure doesn't work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nucci Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Look at last year's draft. 3 picks on an inside linebacker? DE from Clemson? This organization structure doesn't work. Last years draft was all Ryan...he's gone now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffismagic Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Last years draft was all Ryan...he's gone now But the same structure is in place... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freddie's Dead Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 As has been said over and over here. Any one of us armed with Kiper, Mayock, and McShay's draft boards could have done a better job than the paid professionals used by the Bills. This article is just another confirmation of the ridiculous dysfunction at OBD in the 21st century. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 So this clinches for me that his boards were poor. He had Maybin as the best edge rusher and hardy as a top WR. The fact the bills reached for need does nothing to explain why the players to choose from to fill the need were not even quality NFL back ups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rodrigo Borgia Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 But the same structure is in place... @ChrisBrownBills - Breaking: Doug Whaley out, #TwoBillsDrive member @jeffismagic in at the GM position. Stay tuned for further updates. #Structure Change Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffismagic Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 @ChrisBrownBills - Breaking: Doug Whaley out, #TwoBillsDrive member @jeffismagic in at the GM position. Stay tuned for further updates. #Structure Change Now that could work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beef Jerky Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 @ChrisBrownBills - Breaking: Doug Whaley out, #TwoBillsDrive member @jeffismagic in at the GM position. Stay tuned for further updates. #Structure Change You would might as well call us the hopeless Browns then hahaha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greybeard Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Now that could work. For all we know, Rex had the final word in the last two drafts and Marone before that. So I guess we may be picking on the wrong guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 For all we know, Rex had the final word in the last two drafts and Marone before that. So I guess we may be picking on the wrong guy. Not if you believe that Marrone was livid over the Sammy trade and that Whaley left him high & dry without a QB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffismagic Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Not if you believe that Marrone was livid over the Sammy trade and that Whaley left him high & dry without a QB Yes, it seems Whaley was drafting in 2013 and 2014. Once Rex is hired first pick is a man cover corner in Darby, DE from Clemson, and 3 picks spent on a 3-4 inside linebacker thumper with high football IQ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts