Doug Marrone quits the Bills
 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Doug Marrone has opted out of his contract as the Buffalo Bills coach and is now a free agent to pursue other jobs, per <a href="https://twitter.com/mortreport">@mortreport</a> and me.</p>&mdash; Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) <a href="https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/550428416298983425">December 31, 2014</a></blockquote>
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Buffalo must suck. Bet they told him they refuse to take a different QB. Stuck with Manuel!

Well then.....that's interesting. Basically said, "**** you ownership, EJ Manual sucks and ain't going down with the ship next year"

Damn, Buffalo was turning the corner.


No QB. Perfect for a new coach to do exactly what he wants.

Holy shit that is ****ing crazy

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>New York Jets become favorites to land former Bills HC Doug Marrone, who is from the Bronx.</p>&mdash; Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) <a href="https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/550430515983945728">December 31, 2014</a></blockquote>
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Interdasting....

I Spy tampering?

Cleveland, Buffalo, Jax and Oakland.


Complete black holes. Where careers go to die....

Ownership change clause in his contract. He also gets all 5 million next year regardless of taking another job. Problem is, all his assistants are under contract with the Bills through 2015. Schwartz through 2016.

Orton retires and then the coach walks away.

Strange

They might as well promote from within.

If only we could be so lucky.

I thought you liked Andy?

If he takes Alex with him, I'd tell him goodbye.

Hope he doesn't hire Gary Gibbs as his dc when/if he gets the jets job

Good news for Buffalo. Wish Fat Andy would do the same.

If we change coaches every 2 years our odds of success will certainly increase. Lets clean house again. Fire up the plane.

Perfect opportunity for Reid to go there and trade us 2 2nds for Alex.

Rumor is Polian is heading back to Buffalo to take over the front office

Big motivation is setting his son Chris up as his successor too which he tried to do in Indy. If he hires Schwartz as HC that would be hilarious. They'd claw each other's eyes out from day one. Huge egos there

Buffalo snownami would be enough to run away immediately

At least in NY you could still get around without a TonTon

This is not surprising.

New owner Terry Pegula waited to change the front office and coach upon his initial purchase of the Sabres and came to regret that decision. Word is that he was planning to clean house and bring in his own people once the season ended.

The Bills don't have a first round pick or a starting QB. Their defense has been excellent and their skill positions very good, but they're facing an uphill battle.

Marrone gets $4 million to walk away. He doesn't have to put up with Polian coming in, and he doesn't have to deal with the fact that the Bills have no QB and no first round pick.

Nicely done

the buffahole area is great for snowmobiling this time of year.

Is Manuel broken forever or what?

He apparently asked for an extension and was told no.

Maybe they'd take a pick 6th or something for spiller?

Pretty sure he's not under contract.

KC belongs on that list.

Gunther - HC career dead
Vermeil - HC career dead
Herm - HC career dead
Haley - HC career dead
Romeo - HC career dead
Reid - coronary possible

Hyperbole. You idiots want to run off a coach who's record in 2 years is 20-12, after taking over a 2-14 team. Not to mention he's done this with a QB most on cp hate.

Vermeil was a grandpa when he came, Herm never should have been a head coach after the Jets tenure, he's a special teams, personal guy at best.

Haley was also a stretch, the golfer is doing fine as an oc in Pitt.

Gunther/Romeo again, career coordinators at best.

I don't want to run him off. Just his QB.

The point is, none of those guys were ever HC ever again.

I bet this is Reid's last stop.

Josh mcdaniels is going to be busy with all these interviews.

He and Whaley were rumored to not get along for a long time.. plus.. unless you were feeling EJ they were doomed to be Chuefsesque at best.

Orton didn't want to play football before the season began, so that wasn't a big shocker.

Marrone did the right thing by opting out, rather than waiting for Pegula to decide whether or not to clean house. Had Marrone been fired in mid-to-late January, the best jobs would have been taken.

Personally, I think he's a very good coach. To be able to coax a 9-7 record out of Kyle Orton and E.J. Manuel, with a leaky offensive line, is pretty impressive to me.

So what will they give us for Smith?

What is it with the AFC East teams outside of the Pats?


All three of them are dead zones. Is it any wonder why the Pats have owned that division for years?

The Bills will have stable and foreseeable ownership for decades now that Pegula purchased the team. He's planning to build a new stadium and he's brought back Bill Polian to lead the rebuild. I don't think it will be too long before they're contending for a playoff spot every year, as long as they can find a QB.

Miami's ownership is garbage. Ditto for the Jets.

They're very similar to the Chiefs in the sense that they're loaded with talent....just need a QB. The Chiefs scored on a mediocre Qb, and have received mediocre results. Same can be said about the Bills/Orton.

Bills are a team that everyone will write off, but as soon as they get decent play at Qb, will be the "surprise" team of the NFL.

The pats scored on a 6th round QB. It really comes down to that. If he were in Miami you could rewrite your statement replacing pats with phins.

Yet another reason to draft a QB every year, it's that critical. Remember the taped bills owner conversations a few years back, the old guy was repeating what we all know, the only path to success in this pussified league is through the QB position.

Players opt out all the time


why is it considered quitting when a coach does it?

I think he's free to do whatever he wants. I think it's just shocking because there are only 32 of these positions. But you'd think he has something else lined up.

**** yeah. Agreed totally.

Move to Oakland or Atlanta probably. Maybe the Bengals job opens up if Lewis doesn't get a playoff win this year.

Nyj

I'd be surprised if he isn't the coach for the Jets, has to be why he quit.

Why take a worse job though? What talent do the Jets have? Unless he wants to do a complete rebuild.

Yeah I'm thinking collusion. Jets knew Ryan was gone after this year, NOW there's mutual interest. Buffalo just across the state, Woody Johnson wanted to be ahead of the coaching pick me, seems like funny business to me.

Chris Mortensen ‏@mortreport 2m2 minutes ago
Bill Polian has informed Bills owner Terry Pegula he will remain at ESPN for 2015 and beyond. Never had a formal offer but had discussions.

If we keep attempting to fit this square peg in this round hole, maybe it will eventually fit?

Bills had elite defense and special teams this year. Offense was a complete and absolute mess (and even more so than the Chiefs under Andy/Smith).

Marone to interview with Jets sunday or monday according to N.Y. Post

Thats the only way I could forgive this, first the starting QB and then the head coach leave with absolutely no warning... my memory might be faulty here, but isnt it pretty rare for a HC to just up and quit so abruptly like this?

There are usually atleast rumblings and rumors swirling around beforehand.

That team looks like a group just a few critical pieces away from being really dangerous when you factor in that defense.

It was a clause in his contract, which was signed in 2013, that he had a three day opt-out window if ownership were to change during his tenure.

IMO, it was a smart move because he was denied an extension for himself and his assistants.

One way or the other, he and his staff were done in Buffalo.

I believe you about the extension deal, just havent read anything about it... last thing I read said that his position was secured with the win over the Packers.

I have some serious insight into Buffalo's situation through a colleague. Pegula was leaning towards cleaning house but hadn't made the final decision. Once Marrone was denied an extension (which of course, indicates that he was leaning in favor of a house cleaning), Marrone wisely opted out.

The biggest issue with Pegula is what to do with Russ Brandon. He's been the team president since 1997 and the Bills haven't appeared in the playoffs since the 1999 season. But by all accounts, he's very popular in the stadium and really led the charge to keep the Bills in Buffalo.

Marrone has ties to NYC. It may be his ideal city to coach in.

With the whole GM position up in the air, I doubt anyone told him he had to stick with a certain player. It's Buffalo, not Washington.

It sounds to me like Pegula is the REAL problem over there, pretty much like he's putting that team into the same kind of Browns or Raiders rut of firing a head coach and starting over every two years.

Clean house after the guy nearly took this very incomplete team to the playoffs, beat the Pack in Buffalo, took a good defense and guided them to the cusp of greatness?

Brandon on the other hand, kinda sounds like a loyal and loveable but somewhat incompetent type... it shouldnt be too hard to sideline him in some way and leave the nitty gritty to people who know what they're doing.

At any rate, for as much grief as they've caused the Chiefs over the years, I've always felt bad for small market doormats and hope they're able to rise above it somehow.

Problem? He just bought the team and saved them from relocation. He's also promised to privately fund a brand new stadium for the Bills.

As I mentioned earlier, he purchased the Sabres in a similar situation a few years back and failed to change the regime immediately, which is something he came to regret. He's learned from that mistake and will hire his own people.

It's not like he purchased a dynasty. He purchased a team in a city of 500,000 people that hasn't had a playoff appearance, not win or loss, but appearance, in 15 years. He's a savior, not a problem.

Furthermore, Buffalo heads into the 2015 season without a first round draft choice. Doug Whaley could have stayed at #8 and taken Odell Beckham, jr. and still had a first rounder. Now, they head into 2015 with no starting QB and no first round draft choice.

Do you really believe that an owner would opt to retain him?

Marrone saw the writing on the wall, opted out, and got paid in the process. Honestly he might have been a fool to NOT opt out, especially when his Jets dream job opened up.

He got out at the right time, hard to blame a man for that... He's going to get a ton of headcoaching offers

Marrone didn't want to be a moron and get marooned.

We never said these people were smart, man. I still have a lot of faith in Fatndy. He'll be fine.

New York Jets to interview Doug Marrone today

The New York Jets' strong interest in Doug Marrone will take tangible form Saturday.

NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reported that the Jets are interviewing Marrone on Saturday, per a source informed of the team's plans.


Marrone opted out of his contract with the Buffalo Bills on Wednesday, and immediate speculation linked the coach to Gang Green.

Rapoport added that that interest is strong on both sides of the table for Marrone -- a Bronx native -- to become the Jets' next coach.

The Jets interviewed assistant Anthony Lynn on Wednesday, fulfilling the Rooney Rule requirement. So if Marrone is indeed their man, the Jets could hire him as soon as they come to an agreement.

New York has also requested to interview Ravens offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak and Cardinals defensive coordinator Todd Bowles for their head-coaching job.

Chargers offensive coordinator Frank Reich will interview for the job, according to Rapoport, per a source informed of the team's plans. The Jets also interviewed Seahawks assistants Tom Cable and Dan Quinn on Friday.

What a shitty year to hire a coach

Adam Schefter ‏@AdamSchefter 5m5 minutes ago
Doug Marrone arrives in NJ later today for Sunday's scheduled interview with Jets. Marrone scheduled to meet Monday with Falcons.

Atlanta is a much better job then Jets. Jets is gonna be a total rebuild.

Atlanta's defense is a mess. They don't have a pass rusher and overpaid for Tyson Jackson (LOL). Their division is total crap, so it's possible he could get them to the playoffs next year but they need a complete defensive overhaul.

The Jets are the opposite. They have plenty of defensive pieces but clearly, they need a complete offensive overhaul, including a QB. I think it will be some time before the Jets sniff the playoffs.

Yeah, pretty much a draw twixt Atlanta and NY... the hawks have an offense, the jets have a defense.

Although you might give the edge to NY since they are Pioli free.