Bills To Interview Panthers Exec Brandon Beane
The Bills’ general manager search is underway. Buffalo has asked permission to speak with Panthers assistant GM Brandon Beane about their GM vacancy, a league source tells ESPN.com’s Wendi Nix (Twitter link).
Soon after the Bills fired Doug Whaley, Beane’s name emerged as a potential candidate for the gig. The exec has a shared history with new Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott and while the Panthers will try to keep him, they cannot prevent him from accepting a GM position elsewhere if it includes final say over the 53-man roster. It remains to be seen whether McDermott, who reportedly had control over the Bills’ draft last week, would be willing to cede that control.
The name of Chiefs executive Brett Veach is also circulating in personnel circles as a candidate for the Bills’ GM job, Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports hears (on Twitter).
Chiefs Exercise Dee Ford’s Option
Chiefs announce they have exercised the fifth-year option on Dee Ford. The outside linebacker will be under team control through 2018. 
[RELATED: 2018 Fifth-Year Option Decision Tracker]
Ford was selected No. 23 overall in 2014 after being named First-Team All-SEC at Auburn and garnering MVP awards at the Senior Bowl. Ford didn’t do much in his first two seasons, but he broke out last year as Justin Houston missed the majority of the season. In 15 games (14 starts), Ford racked up 38 total tackles and 10 sacks.
Per the rules of the fifth-year option for first round picks, Ford’s 2018 season will be guaranteed for injury only. If he remains on the roster, he’ll earn $8.718MM in that season. For 2017, he’s slated to carry a $2.596MM cap figure.
Fallout From Bills’ Front Office Shakeup
The Bills deciding to trade out of their No. 10 slot, when the Chiefs surrendered their 2018 first-rounder to headline a package that netted them Patrick Mahomes, indicated Doug Whaley was not going to be around much longer, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports notes. Buffalo moving down 17 spots — a move the Bills were believed to be pushing for prior to the draft — signaled a long-term plan more than one designed to help an embattled GM’s team win now. (However, Chiefs GM John Dorsey told B.J. Kissel of KCChiefs.com — Twitter link — Whaley was involved in talks that originated early this week.)
Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com notes the Bills’ chaotic front office situation goes back to 2014, when Terry and Kim Pegula took over and were surprised when Doug Marrone exercised an opt-out option that garnered him $4MM and left the Bills without a coach despite having completed a rare over-.500 season in 2014. The current Jaguars HC’s 9-7 campaign, aided the Patriots resting starters in Week 17 of that season, represents the most the Bills wins since 2004.
La Canfora notes Whaley has not gotten along especially well with any of his coaches, describing less-than-ideal relationships with both Marrone and Rex Ryan, and the one with Sean McDermott did not take off. Bill Polian declined to join the Bills in January of 2015, and La Canfora notes that decision kept Whaley in charge and helped lead to Marrone bolting on his contract.
Now running the show in Buffalo, McDermott was not happy the Patriots plucked Stephon Gilmore in free agency, La Canfora writes. The RFA decisions on Chris Hogan and Mike Gillislee did not help, either. The CBS-based reporter notes some of Pegula’s confidants advised him to fire Whaley years ago. The Bills signed Whaley to an extension last year, however.
A source categorized the Bills’ draft room this weekend as “one of the weirdest three days,” per Breer, due to the fact a leadership component wasn’t entirely present. McDermott, though, was the one who was providing the final say, Breer reports. The first-year HC was given autonomy to remove prospects from the draft board as well. Pegula said today Whaley put together the draft and the organization decided to fire him after the three-day event, Mike Rodak of ESPN.com relays.
Scouts were upset with Ryan’s program last year, Breer notes, adding that Bills coaches felt some of Whaley’s draft decisions — be it the trade-up for Sammy Watkins or selection of injury-risk Shaq Lawson — didn’t fit the schemes they were using. As for Watkins, it’s possible the Bills made his injury situation worse. Breer reports that the wideout’s foot injury was too severe for him to complete walkthroughs, but no one put a stop to his comeback attempt, and the pain worsened as he pushed through it to lead to a two-month shutdown. Watkins returned for the final six games but only cleared 80 receiving yards twice, albeit on a run-centric team. Already rumored to be set to decline Watkins’ fifth-year option, the Bills are probably more likely to go in that direction now that Whaley is gone, Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap tweets.
Further complicating things with McDermott: Anthony Lynn was Whaley’s first HC choice, according to Breer, and ownership went with the former Panthers DC — with whom Whaley did not have much of a relationship — while letting Lynn proceed to the Chargers’ job. Tyrod Taylor‘s return on an adjusted deal also went against Whaley’s wishes and was more in line with new OC Rick Dennison‘s. The latter was the Broncos’ OC when the team pursued Taylor in 2015.
As far as the selection of the next GM, the Pegulas might not lean on team president Russ Brandon too much, with Terry Pegula saying today the owners would ask Brandon questions if they believed they need to (Twitter link via Breer). Former Eagles president and Browns CEO Joe Banner understandably expects the new GM to be someone with close ties to McDermott, the longtime exec told Sirius XM Radio (Twitter link). Panthers assistant GM Brandon Beane could well become a candidate.
Bills Fire GM Doug Whaley, Entire Scouting Staff
Less than 24 hours after the 2017 draft wrapped up, the Bills announced that they have fired GM Doug Whaley. The move does not come as a major surprise, as we heard earlier this week that major changes could be coming to the Buffalo front office, and it was clear that Whaley was losing clout to new head coach Sean McDermott. Indeed, the Bills hadn’t allowed Whaley to speak to reporters since the Senior Bowl in January, and that did not change during the draft. As ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets, McDermott “had taken over this team in every way. [Whaley] had been phased out, well before today. Now it’s just official.”
Whaley, who became the team’s GM prior to the 2013 season, did not have much success in that position, as the Bills’ best record during his tenure was 9-7, and they did not qualify for the playoffs in any of his four seasons at the helm. He also made several notable missteps, like the aggressive draft trade for Sammy Watkins and the ill-advised extension for Marcell Dareus, and he failed to identify a franchise quarterback. Nonetheless, Whaley was given the rare opportunity to hire his third different head coach after Rex Ryan was let go towards the end of the 2016 campaign (Whaley also had a hand in hiring Ryan’s predecessor, Doug Marrone). Team owner Terry Pegula also insisted several times over the course of the past several months that Whaley’s position was secure, which Mike Rodak of ESPN.com called an “awkward charade” that the Bills would have been better off avoiding.
Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com, though, feels differently. He believes, since the Bills clearly felt comfortable with McDermott running the show, it made sense for them to keep the spotlight off their rookie head coach during the draft and to bring in a new GM now to help clean up Whaley’s (and Ryan’s) messes and handle post-draft matters (Twitter links).
As Tom Pelissero of USA Today Sports tweets, multiple members of the Panthers’ front office could become candidates for the Bills’ GM position due to their connections with McDermott, including Carolina’s assistant GM, Brandon Beane. Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer expects McDermott to push for Beane, and while the Panthers will try to keep him, they cannot block him from accepting a GM job elsewhere (Twitter link).
Another potential candidate to replace Whaley is Chiefs’ co-director of player personnel Brett Veach, as suggested by former NFL exec Joe Banner (via Twitter). Veach worked with McDermott when both men were in Philadelphia and is highly-regarded in Kansas City.
Pegula issued the following statement on Whaley’s dismissal:
“After a thorough review of our football operations over the past several months, Kim [Pegula] and I informed Doug this morning that we will be moving in a new direction. We have enjoyed working with Doug. He is a good person and we want to thank him for his work and commitment to our football team. This was my decision. It was not an easy decision but I believe it’s the right one for the future of the Buffalo Bills. Our search for a new general manager will begin immediately.”
In addition to Whaley, the Bills also dismissed their entire scouting staff, as Rodak reports.
Chiefs Acquire Pick #139 From Vikings
Looks like Kansas City is moving up once again. The Chiefs have acquired pick #139 from the Vikings, according to ESPN.com’s Ben Goessling (via Twitter). Minnesota will receive a pair of fifth-rounders (picks #170 and picks #180).
With their new draft pick, the Chiefs selected wide receiver Jehu Chesson. The offensive weapon spent four seasons at Michigan, where he served in a variety of roles. This past season, Chesson hauled in 35 catches for 500 yards and two touchdowns. He also added another 63 rushing yards. His best collegiate season came in 2015, when he finished with 919 all-purpose yards and 11 scores.
Chiefs Acquire 183rd Pick From Patriots
Kansas City has gotten their hands on a third fifth-round pick. The Chiefs have acquired the 183rd pick from the Patriots, the team announced on Twitter. In exchange, New England will be receiving the 216th pick and tight end James O’Shaughnessy.
O’Shaughnessy, a 2015 fifth-round pick, has spent his entire career in the Chiefs organization. The Illinois State product has 23 NFL games under his belt, having compiled eight receptions for 86 yards. The 6-foot-4 tight end also has eight career tackles. He’ll be joining a Patriots tight ends corps that already features Rob Gronkowski and Dwayne Allen.
Chiefs Acquire Vikings’ No. 86 Pick
The Chiefs have traded for the Vikings No. 86 pick, which they will use to select Toledo running back Kareem Hunt. Minnesota will pick up No. 104, No. 132 and No. 245.
Hunt will give the Chiefs another option at running back, where veteran Jamaal Charles has been released. Hunt will team with Spencer Ware and Charcandrick West.
Did Bears Bid Against Themselves For Trubisky?
The Bears gave up a fortune to move up one spot and select Mitch Trubisky. It’s not immediately clear whether that was necessary, however. 
The Browns, Chiefs, Texans, and Cardinals all had interest in moving up and the Browns and Chiefs in particular coveted Mitch Trubisky, Adam Jahns of the Chicago Tribune hears (Twitter link). Meanwhile, Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports (Twitter links) hears the Niners shopped the pick hard for a week and found no takers. While some teams, like the Bills, had legitimate interest in Trubisky, none were interested in paying the steep price to move all the way to the second pick.
Could the Bears have stayed at No. 3 and selected Trubisky? We may never know for sure, but it sounds like there could be truth in both reports from Jahns and Robinson. The Browns, Chiefs, and other teams may have been after Trubisky, but they were probably unwilling to leapfrog the Bears to get a deal done. 49ers GM John Lynch says that Solomon Thomas and Reuben Foster were two of the top three players on his board and it’s safe to assume that Myles Garrett was the third musketeer, not Trubisky.
The Bears, it seems, got pump faked into paying a king’s ransom when they could have stood pat and gotten their man. At the same time, if Trubisky turns out to be a star who greatly outperforms Thomas, Marshon Lattimore, and other top talents linked to Chicago, none of this will really matter.
Photo courtesy of Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.
Chiefs Acquire No. 10 Pick From Bills
The Chiefs have acquired the No. 10 pick in the draft from the Bills. With the pick, the Chiefs have selected quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs gave up their first (No. 27) and a third round pick (No. 91) plus their first round pick in 2018 to move up to No. 10, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. 
Mahomes completed 65.7-percent of his passes last season for 5,052 yards, 41 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. Over the past three seasons, he’s also added another 22 rushing touchdowns.
Opinions on Mahomes and the rest of the quarterbacks this year have varied, but he was universally considered to be one of the five best QBs in the 2017 crop.
Chiefs Mulling Trade Into Top-10 Picks
The Chiefs are the club “making the most noise” about a trade into the top-10 picks, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). However, Rapoport cautions that Kansas City could simply be putting in due diligence, and tweeted earlier this evening that “everyone” is contacting teams in the top-10 to feel out prices.
The natural inclination is to assume the Chiefs are aiming to move up for a quarterback, but clearly that has not been reported as of yet. Kansas City has been linked to quarterback upgrades all offseason, even though team management has publicly stood by incumbent Alex Smith. Texas Tech signal-caller Patrick Mahomes, specifically, has been tied to the Chiefs for weeks, but North Carolina’s Mitch Trubisky or Clemson’s Deshaun Watson could also be in consideration.
Of course, the Chiefs could conceivably be looking at other positions. Depending on how high the team is willing to move, they could possibly be going after a running back such as Christian McCaffrey or Leonard Fournette, a wide receiver like Mike Williams, Corey Davis, or John Ross, or a defensive lineman such as Solomon Thomas or Jonathan Allen.