Doug Whaley

Bills GM Doug Whaley Not On Hot Seat?

December 16th, 2016 at 9:51am CST by Zachary Links

There has been rampant speculation about the job security of Bills head coach Rex Ryan. While the boisterous coach could be ousted at the end of the season (or, perhaps, just before the end of the season), the man who built the roster is apparently safe. Bills sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com that general manager Doug Whaley is not in jeopardy of losing his job.

The Bills are 6-7 and have only a 2% chance of making the playoffs, according to Five Thirty Eight’s projections. In all likelihood, the Bills’ postseason drought will extend to 17 seasons and Whaley has been in charge of operations for the last four. Apparently, the Pegulas are comfortable with the way things are going in the front office.

Of course, things might be different in Buffalo if not for the rash of injuries that has plagued the team all year. The Bills were highly-praised for their draft haul this year when they landed defensive end Shaq Lawson and linebacker Reggie Ragland in the first two rounds. Whaley anticipated having both in the starting lineup from the get-go, but both suffered serious injuries and Ragland never even made it to the field this season. When you then factor in the time missed by Sammy Watkins, LeSean McCoy‘s troublesome hamstring, and the string of defensive backs that have gone down with various maladies, it’s almost hard to believe that the Bills are near the .500 mark.

One could argue that Ryan also deserves some slack given the team’s awful luck this year, but it doesn’t sound like he’ll be given another chance. If Ryan is canned, the Bills will be moving on to their sixth head coach since 2009.

Bills Head Coach Rex Ryan’s Job In Jeopardy

December 11th, 2016 at 11:49am CST by Dallas Robinson

Rex Ryan is exceedingly unlikely to return as the Bills’ head coach in 2017, and if the club suffers an embarrassing loss to the Steelers later today, Ryan could be fired as soon as Monday, a source tells Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. If Ryan is let go, Buffalo would likely promote offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn to interim head coach, according to Tim Graham of the Buffalo News.

The Bills could still finish the 2016 campaign strong, and with four winnable games remaining on the schedule (Buffalo is set to face Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Miami, and New York), the club could win out, finish with a record of 10-6, and compete for an AFC wild card slot. Such a scenario remains unlikely, however — Football Outsiders gives the Bills just a 9.9% chance of making the playoffs — and Ryan’s crumbling status in Buffalo appears to have deeper roots than simply the team’s win-loss record.

Per La Canfora, the relationship between Ryan and general manager Doug Whaley is heavily strained, and Whaley may hold the upper hand given that he’s developed a “strong bond” with team ownership. Whaley and the Buffalo front office have repeatedly indicated that the Bills’ roster is better than its record, laying blame for this season’s results at the feet of Ryan, and have shared that belief with owner Terry Pegula. The Bills have seemingly decided against the idea of hiring a “football czar” to oversee operations — a role that Bill Polian and Tom Coughlin have been considered for in the past — meaning Whaley’s job should be safe.

Other personnel and coaching staff problems abound, such as the poor reaction to Ryan’s decision to hire his brother — longtime NFL defensive coordinator Rob Ryan — as a defensive assistant. Additionally, the Buffalo front office would like to see fourth-round quarterback Cardale Jones take the field at some point this season, as the club is highly unlikely to exercise its option on incumbent signal-caller Tyrod Taylor.

Tom Coughlin Met With Bills During Offseason

October 1st, 2016 at 9:26am CST by Ben Levine

There’s now more clarity on that mysterious meeting between the Bills and former Giants head coach Tom Coughlin. According to ESPN.com’s Chris Mortensen, the two sides did actually meet… although the meeting took place during the “early part of the offseason.” Furthermore, it’s unlikely that Coughlin was interviewing for a head coaching gig, as Bills head coach Rex Ryan was reportedly at the meeting. Previous reports, which has been denied by the NFL and Coughlin’s agent, were uncertain of the purpose of the gathering.

Mortensen writes that Ryan, Bills owners Terry and Kim Pegula, and team president Russ Brandon all met with Coughlin in South Florida “around March or early April.” The hour-long discussion was focused on Coughlin’s willingness to join the organization as an active consultant. A later phone conversation between Ryan and Coughlin convinced the Super Bowl winning coach to pursue other opportunities.

“I can confirm that the meeting you’re talking about did take place, but it was several months ago and there have been no calls from any team about Tom’s availability to coach,” agent Sandy Montag told Mortensen. “He is fully engaged in his job with the NFL.”

The timing of the initial report was notable, as the Bills had recently fired offensive coordinator Greg Roman. Furthermore, there have been lingering questions regarding the job security of both Ryan and general manager Doug Whaley.

Coughlin stepped down as the Giants head coach in early January following 12 seasons (and a pair of Super Bowl championships) with the team. The 70-year-old has indicated that he wants to coach again, and he took meetings with both the Eagles and 49ers this past offseason. Coughlin ultimately accepted a job working alongside Troy Vincent in the NFL’s football operations department.

Latest on Bills’ Firing Of Greg Roman

September 16th, 2016 at 4:51pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Bills’ front office forced Rex Ryan to shake up his coaching staff after the team’s 37-31 loss to the Jets on Thursday dropped it to 0-2, reports the Sporting News’ Alex Marvez. That led Ryan to fire offensive coordinator Greg Roman on Friday and replace him with assistant head coach/running backs coach Anthony Lynn.

Ryan disputed the notion that the decision to make a change came from his superiors, telling reporters that he informed Bills ownership of his desire to move on from Roman on Friday morning. Bills owners Terry Pegula and Kim Pegula were supportive, Ryan said (Twitter link via Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News), and Carucci writes that the Pegulas hadn’t been happy with Roman’s offense going back to last season. They expressed their concerns to Ryan on Friday, and he then took action, according to Carucci, who tweets that Roman was not a Ryan fan and had hoped to leave the Bills at season’s end.

“This was my move, 100 percent,” insisted Ryan (Twitter link via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com).

Ryan denied that he scapegoated Roman, per Rodak, but the head coach did distance himself from his ex-assistant’s run-first philosophy (Twitter link).

“I want to be multiple. I want to be able to throw the football,” stated Ryan, who called dual-threat quarterback Tyrod Taylor a “rare talent” and expressed a need to “showcase” his abilities (Twitter link via Carucci).

Thanks in part to Taylor’s legs, the Roman-led Bills had the top-ranked running attack in the NFL last season at 152 yards per game. That number has been more than cut in half in 2016, though, as Buffalo averaged a meager 75.5 rushing yards per contest in losses to the Ravens and Jets.

As a passer, Taylor – whom the Bills signed to a contract extension last month – completed 18 of 30 passes for 297 yards, three touchdowns and an interception Thursday. On paper, those are excellent numbers, but the bulk of Taylor’s success came on scoring tosses to receivers Marquise Goodwin and Greg Salas. He otherwise had difficulty connecting on short and intermediate routes.

Doug Whaley, the general manager who extended Taylor, is now “on notice,” as is the rest of the football operations department, according to Albert Breer of TheMMQB (via Twitter). The long-struggling Bills showed some progress in Whaley’s first two seasons at the helm en route to a 17-15 record, but they’re now on track to miss the playoffs for a league-worst 17th consecutive year.

The chief reason for the Bills’ failures dating back to 2015 has been Ryan’s defense, not the Roman-coached offense. For his part, Ryan admitted Friday that the unit “has to improve” (Twitter link via Breer). The Bills’ defense was a below-average group last season after establishing itself as one of the league’s elite under ex-coordinator Jim Schwartz in 2014. Journeyman quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick carved up the unit Thursday, hitting on 24 of 34 passes for 374 yards and a touchdown, and the beleaguered Bills will next have to deal with Carson Palmer and the Cardinals’ high-octane offense.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AFC East Notes: Bills, Culliver, Patriots

August 10th, 2016 at 9:03pm CST by Sam Robinson

As another Bills draft comes under scrutiny in light of Reggie Ragland‘s ACL tear following the season-altering shoulder surgery that Shaq Lawson underwent, Doug Whaley‘s beginning to draw some ire from within the organization. Many inside the franchise are wondering why the recently extended GM has not taken more of the blame for drafting high-risk players, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link).

With five of the past eight Bills first- or second-round picks over the past four years set to miss or having already missed extensive time, the aforementioned anonymous sources believe the fourth-year GM should be held more accountable for what’s happened.

Sammy Watkins, whom the Bills of course traded their 2015 first-rounder to acquire, and current Dolphin Kiko Alonso are among the others who have been injured in this span. Whaley’s initial draft pick, EJ Manuel, has failed to live up to expectations after being the only quarterback selected in the 2013 first round.

Here’s more from Buffalo and some other eastern locales.

Whaley declared Lawson, Ragland and third-rounder Adolphus Washington would all start “off the bus” in Rex Ryan‘s defense after the draft. Now, Washington is the only one looking ready to live up to that billing, Mike Rodak of ESPN.com writes. IK Enemkpali could now start on the edge in Lawson’s stead after Manny Lawson sustained an injury weightlifting this summer and remains on the Active/PUP list. Although the Bills signed Brandon Spikes and David Hawthorne in the wake of Ragland’s injury, free agent acquisition Zach Brown is expected to step in and start, Joe Buscaglia of WKBW.com writes.
Chris Culliver is likely to begin the season on the PUP list, helping to explain his incentive-laden Dolphins contract, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reports. Only cleared to resume football activities last week, Culliver embarked on a mini-free agency period, but the team that signed him wants to play it safe despite not having much depth at corner. He drew interest from the 49ers, Bears and Cardinals before agreeing to sign with another cornerback-depleted team. Culliver told media, including Salguero, he expects to be on the field in around two weeks (Twitter link).
With the signing of the 6-foot-3 Culliver, the Dolphins are also continuing to transition away from smaller corners, save for those in the slot, per Salguero.
Jabaal Sheard is the most likely player to see a playing-time spike for the Patriots after Rob Ninkovich‘s injury, Christopher Price of WEEI.com writes. Sheard played 305 fewer snaps than Chandler Jones last season but rated as one of Pro Football Focus’ best edge defenders. But, as Price notes, the former Browns edge player almost matched the current Cardinals cog in quarterback hits (five to Jones’ seven) and hurries (16.5 to Jones’ 17.5). Price adds more will be expected of 2015 draftees Geneo Grissom and Trey Flowers as well. The former played in 15 games, while the latter saw time in only one as rookies.
The Jets are seeing positive results after buying low on Ryan Clady.

Rex Ryan On Rumored Playoff Ultimatum

May 30th, 2016 at 10:07am CST by Zachary Links

In January, Bills owner Terry Pegula announced that head coach Rex Ryan and general manager Doug Whaley would be returning to the team for the 2016 season. However, according to one report, Pegula also told the duo that they would be let go after the 2016 season if they were unable to guide Buffalo into the playoffs.

Soon after, the Bills locked up both Ryan and Whaley on multi-year extensions that could keep them in Buffalo through the 2019 season. While those deals would seem to be pretty solid endorsement of both men, it’s far from a guarantee of their long-term job security. The Pegulas spent $1.4 billion to purchase the franchise in 2014, so they probably wouldn’t worry about eating a few million dollars to replace a GM and/or head coach if they felt it was necessary.

Today, Jenny Vrentas of The MMQB released a bit of material that was left on the cutting room floor of her recent interview with Rex and Rob Ryan. During their lengthy chat, Rex dismissed the notion of their being a hard and fast postseason ultimatum for 2016.

“The media looks at it [like], Well, we have to win this year,” the Bills head coach said. “Or what? Oh, I am going to be fired? I don’t think so. I’m not going to worry about it, because we are going to win anyway. But it’s like, that is an ultimatum. No.”

On a related note, Rex also indicated during the interview that the business staff Buffalo might not be big fans of his. Some speculated that he was referring to team president Russ Brandon, but Vrentas notes that the two men have a solid relationship. Instead, she believes that Ryan was “simply picking a department in the building that he doesn’t interact with on a daily basis, and making the point that they might not buy in because they don’t know him well.”

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Draft Rumors: QBs, Ramsey, Treadwell, Browns

March 29th, 2016 at 6:42pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jalen Ramsey would prefer to play cornerback despite excelling at both secondary positions at Florida State, Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union reports.

His preference for the higher-paying position, though, comes with the obvious caveat of being willing to play safety as well, possibly expressing malleability to increase his chances of being taken in the top three picks.

One AFC scout in attendance said, “Take your pick; either one” regarding Ramsey’s NFL fit. “He has the range; he’s got some length to him, and he has the ball skills,” the scout told O’Halloran regarding Ramsey’s ability to slot at free safety. “He has a lot of things going for him.”

Four GMs — the Titans‘ Jon Robinson, the Steelers‘ Kevin Colbert, the Buccaneers‘ Jason Licht and the Bills‘ Doug Whaley — attended the pro day, while Mike Mularkey and Mike Tomlin were on hand as well.

Here’s the latest about this year’s crop of top prospects.

The 49ers and Browns are slated to work out Jared Goff, Alex Marvez of Fox Sports reports (on Twitter). Both Hue Jackson and Chip Kelly were in attendance at the Cal quarterback’s pro day March 18.
San Francisco also has a workout scheduled with Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee reports. The 49ers are expected to meet with Carson Wentz as well soon, as are the Browns, per Barrows. Cook is rated by most as the No. 4 quarterback on the board and could fall to the second round, while Wentz is expected to be chosen in the top 10. Colin Kaepernick‘s $11.9MM salary in 2016 becomes guaranteed if he’s still on the 49ers’ roster by 3 p.m., Thursday.
The Eagles plan to work out Wentz on Thursday, ESPN.com’s Adam Caplan tweets. Philadelphia’s brass observed Goff during a private workout on Monday. While these two passers have become the consensus top two quarterback prospects, Caplan hears from several NFL coaches and executives that Goff is better equipped to come in and contribute immediately (Twitter link).
Caplan also reports that one NFL offensive coordinator would sit Memphis’ Paxton Lynch, who hovers a bit below Goff and Wentz on experts’ draft boards as of now, for two seasons while the lanky talent learns the pro game (Twitter link).
Laquon Treadwell‘s 4.63-second 40-yard dash clocking at Ole Miss’ pro day didn’t necessarily shock scouts in attendance but caused some concerns about the first-round prospect’s long-term viability, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report hears (video link). The scouts Cole spoke with don’t believe the Ole Miss early-entry talent’s ability to get open effectively in the next four or five years will be affected by his lack of straight-line speed, but there are worries about whether Treadwell can have a long, successful career. The scouts expressed concern that once the rangy receiver loses some of his already-mediocre speed his route-running and body-positioning prowess won’t be enough to compensate.
The Browns are bringing in Treadwell for a visit Thursday, Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal reports. Despite his lack of top-end speed, Treadwell is still expected to come off the board by the middle of the first round, which would be in the Browns’ range only if they traded down from their No. 2 overall slot or up from No. 32, Ulrich writes.
Temple wide receiver Robby Anderson visited the Browns today, Ulrich reports. Jackson told media at the owners’ meetings in Boca Raton, Fla., receiver is a position is an area the Browns “need to address, obviously,” as Josh Gordon‘s status for 2016 is still unknown. “I’ve gone on record before saying I like to have bigger, faster guys play the position,” Jackson told media. “We have some very talented guys right now. They’re slight in stature, but they’re tough, and I’m looking forward to working with them and see if there’s more that we can gain from them. But at the same time, I still think it’s an area that we need to get better. And we will.”

NFL Draft Rumors: Goff, Patriots, Lions

March 17th, 2016 at 8:58pm CST by Zachary Links

Could Jared Goff go No. 1 in this year’s draft? Of course, the Titans won’t be taking a QB, but one NFL GM tells Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (via Twitter) that he believes another team could trade up into the top spot to grab the Cal quarterback.

While we wait to see if that might happen, here’s a look at the latest draft rumors (all items credited to Tony Pauline of Walter Football, unless noted otherwise):

After his pro day workout, Georgia defensive lineman Sterling Bailey met with Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, according to Pauline.
The Lions appear to be all over Boston College safety Justin Simmons. Detroit brass met with Simmons on Tuesday to have dinner, conduct an interview, and go over film. The Lions also spent time with him during Shrine week and interviewed him at the draft combine.
Stanford quarterback Kevin Hogan threw the ball well at his school’s pro day and his delivery was said to be more compact than it has been in the past. The Bills, who are known to like Hogan, had GM Doug Whaley and others on hand.
The Panthers worked out Cincinnati receivers Chris Moore and Johnny Holton on Thursday as well as Pittsburgh receiver Tyler Boyd.
Mississippi State pass rusher Ryan Brown has official visits scheduled with the Raiders, Texans, Cowboys, and, Dolphins.
Clemson cornerback Mackensie Alexander has already met with the Jets, Titans, Saints, Colts, Steelers, Lions, and Chargers, according to Rand Getlin of NFL.com (on Twitter).
Clemson defensive end Shaq Lawson‘s shoulder was flagged at the combine and he’s on the list to go back to Indianapolis for the medical recheck, Albert Breer of NFL.com tweets. Meanwhile, Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) hears that at least a dozen teams passed Lawson on his physical, while one or two teams apparently flagged him for his shoulder. Lawson met with the Jets, Titans, Saints, and Browns earlier this month.

AFC East Notes: Tannehill, Campbell, Whaley

January 31st, 2016 at 5:58pm CST by Sam Robinson

With the Senior Bowl wrapped up and all four AFC East teams in offseason mode as Super Bowl 50 nears, let’s look at the latest news coming out of the division, starting with the Dolphins.

Ryan Tannehill‘s inconsistency notwithstanding, Mike Tannenbaum‘s seen enough from the fifth-year quarterback to avoid spending a draft pick or signing a free agent for legitimate competition, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports. This isn’t too surprising. Miami gave Tannehill $77MM in new money last May to be their franchise quarterback, and ending a year that began with playoff expectations at 6-10, the team has other pressing needs.
The Dolphins have quite a few issues to sort out over the coming offseason, but chief among them will be overhauling their linebacking unit, according to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. Kelvin Sheppard proved enough at middle linebacker, but per Salguero, the club is aware that it needs an upgrade at that spot. Further, Miami is likely to replace one of its two outside linebackers, with Koa Misi being the most obvious candidate to be cut given his 2016 cap charge of roughly $4.88MM (the Dolphins could save $4.3MM by making him a post-June 1 release). For what it’s worth, Pro Football Focus graded Misi as the highest of Miami’s three ‘backers (No. 21), while Jelani Jenkins and Sheppard rated Nos. 38 and 84, respectively, among 97 qualifiers.
Although interim coach Dan Campbell reportedly did not take losing out to Adam Gase with the Dolphins well, the team’s interim coach last season still could have joined Gase’s staff but instead chose to join the Saints’ staff as assistant head coach/tight ends coach, Jackson writes. The Dolphins, however, prevented multiple teams from hiring special teams coach Darren Rizzi.
The Bears denied outside linebackers coach Clint Hurtt to speak with Gase about becoming the Dolphins’ defensive line coach, Jackson reports, but Hurtt coming to Miami once his contract expires after this season could still be on the table. A former Miami Hurricanes assistant, Hurtt would be an attractive option, per Jackson, if the Fins’ front falters under Terrell Williams, who got the job after Chicago chose to block Hurtt’s path.
One GM told Lisa Wilson of the Buffalo News the Bills are trapped in “8-8 limbo” without certainty at quarterback and little money to spend this offseason. Another informed the reporter he applauded the team’s patience regarding Doug Whaley and resisting the urge to start over as many teams do in the Bills’ situation. Owners of the longest NFL playoff drought, the Bills are currently $3.4MM over the salary cap, per OverTheCap, but have strung together their most wins in a two-year span (17) since 1999-2000, the former season representing Buffalo’s last playoff advancement. Tyrod Taylor will also only count $3.13MM against the Bills’ cap next season.
Whaley also justified bringing in embattled veteran DC Rob Ryan as an assistant to help enhance Rex Ryan‘s productivity while helping unite the brothers against their critics. “If you look at it, Rob and Rex, they’ve had some troubles,” Whaley told media, including Wilson. “Their name is kind of like, ‘Hey, they’re the Ryans, what happened to their defense?’ So why not bring in your brother and try to reclaim that name? That’s the way I look at it. And who’s going to have your back more than your brother? I think it’s a positive. I know it’s a positive. Everybody in the building feels it’s a positive. It’s a positive for Rex, too. It can help him expand his horizons as the head coach and get into some other things.”

Dallas Robinson contributed to this report

Bills Extend GM Doug Whaley

January 10th, 2016 at 4:01pm CST by Dallas Robinson

4:01pm: The extension will align Whaley’s contract with that of Ryan’s, meaning both men are now locked up though 2019, according to Tyler Dunne of the Buffalo News (Twitter link).

3:25pm: It’s a multi-year extension for Whaley, not a one-year “band-aid,” reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).

3:03pm: The Bills have agreed to an extension with general manager Doug Whaley, team owner Kim Pegula announced today (via Twitter). Reports indicated last week that the two sides were working on a deal that would keep Whaley in Buffalo beyond 2016, and it appears that a contract did ultimately come together.

Whaley had just one year left on his contract before today’s agreement, and a report last week that owner Terry Pegula had issued an ultimatum to both Whaley and head coach Rex Ryan — win in 2016, or find new employment. That report was later refuted by other scribes and sources, but there’s no doubting that both the front office and coaching staff is under pressure to succeed next season. As PFR’s Luke Adams noted in the post linked above, the Pegulas spent $1.4 billion to purchase the franchise in 2014, so they probably wouldn’t worry about eating a few million dollars to replace a GM and/or head coach.

Whaley, who has been Buffalo’s GM since 2013, will certainly have his hands full during the upcoming offseason. He’ll need to consider extensions for offensive lineman Cordy Glenn and Richie Incognito, and perhaps most importantly, decide if his club will go forward with Tyrod Taylor as its starting quarterback.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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