Rex Ryan

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.

Rex Ryan Signs Deal With ESPN

Rex Ryan says he still has interest in coaching, but he won’t be on the sidelines in 2017. The former Jets and Bills head coach has signed a multi-year deal to be on ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown, according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. Rex Ryan (vertical)

Ryan first auditioned for the gig when he served as a guest analyst on Super Bowl Sunday. As one of the most colorful personalities in the game, he was a natural fit for the job. In January, even as Ryan said that he still had an itch to coach, he admitted that he had interest in a broadcasting career.

The one thing about (being on TV) is that you don’t lose,” Ryan said. “You’ll remember every damn loss. But the wins? You don’t necessarily remember. So, it takes a lot out of you. I’m tired of getting f—ked. Unless it’s a real situation, there’s no sense of getting into it again.

In that January interview, Ryan said he is interested “at all” in a defensive coordinator job “at this time.” Of course, after washing out in Buffalo, he wasn’t a viable candidate for any NFL head coaching position. Interestingly, he did not rule out returning to the Jets someday in some capacity.

Rex Ryan Remains Interested In Coaching

When Rex Ryan was hired as the coach of the Bills, he said that Buffalo would be his final stop as a head coach. Two years later, he’s out of a job, but he’s not necessarily ruling out a return to a head coaching gig if he gets the right opportunity, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News writes. Rex Ryan (vertical)

The one thing about (being on TV) is that you don’t lose,” Ryan said. “You’ll remember every damn loss. But the wins? You don’t necessarily remember. So, it takes a lot out of you. I’m tired of getting f—ked. Unless it’s a real situation, there’s no sense of getting into it again.

After being discarded by Buffalo, Ryan appears to be a better defensive coordinator candidate than a head coaching possibility. Despite that, Ryan says he is not interested “at all” in a DC job “at this time.”

Interestingly, Ryan says that he would not close the door on someday returning to the Jets in some capacity. Coach Todd Bowles has been retained for a third season, but as Mehta notes, there’s no telling what Woody Johnson could do in 2017 if things do not go according to plan.

In the meantime, Ryan says he’ll do some television work. His next assignment will have him serving as a panelist on ESPN for Super Bowl weekend.

Coaching Notes: Browns, Bills, Shanahan, Rex

The Browns’ firing of defensive coordinator Ray Horton is not yet official, but the team is leaning toward making a change, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com was among those to report (Twitter link). Should Horton get the ax, Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams would be in prime position to succeed him in Cleveland. The Browns have given Williams until Monday to accept the job, according to Sporting News’ Alex Marvez (Twitter link).

More coaching-related info:

  • The Bills have requested an interview with Seahawks defensive coordinator Kris Richard, per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. Panthers D-coordinator Sean McDermott‘s Wednesday meeting with the Bills went very well, notes Garafolo (Twitter links).
  • Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan‘s head coaching interviews with the Jaguars and 49ers took place Friday, tweets Jason Cole of Bleacher Report. Shanahan will meet Saturday with the Broncos, relays Cameron Wolfe of the Denver Post (Twitter link). The 37-year-old reportedly prefers the Broncos’ job to the other openings around the league.
  • The Redskins, in search of a defensive coordinator, have received the Panthers’ permission to interview assistant head coach/defensive backs coach Steve Wilks, writes Mike Jones of the Washington Post. Rapoport connected Wilks to the Redskins on Thursday, noting the coach’s relationship with ex-Panthers and now-Redskins cornerback Josh Norman.
  • Unsurprisingly, Rex Ryan won’t work anywhere as an assistant next season, reports Chick Hernandez of CSN Washington (Twitter link). The two-time head coach will wait for a third opportunity to come along in 2018; in the meantime, he’s likely to take a job as a television analyst.
  • Check out PFR’s Head Coaching Search Tracker to keep up with all the latest interviews.

Bills Rumors: Woods, Whaley, Ryan, Watkins

While speaking to reporters, Bills wide receiver Robert Woods heavily indicated that he will be testing the open market this spring, Joe Buscaglia of WKBW tweets. Woods has been a solid WR2 for Buffalo and he has had some monster games in instances where Sammy Watkins was unable to go or was playing at half strength. Coming off of a career-high 67.1% catch percentage, Woods should draw plenty of attention in March. It also helps that the USC product does not turn 25 until April.

Here’s more out of Buffalo:

  • During Monday’s disastrous press conference, Bills GM Doug Whaley says he is “open to anything” regarding the team’s coaching search, including giving up control of the 53-man roster, Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News tweets. That contradicts reports from the last week which have indicated that Whaley is not interested in hiring any coach who would want to have authority over roster construction. Whaley also said that he was “not privy to the conversation” in which Rex Ryan‘s fate was decided. If Whaley is to be believed, that means he was not involved in dismissing the last coach, yet he is in charge of hiring the next coach. All in all, the presser from yesterday left many questioning the power structure and chain of command in Buffalo.
  • Watkins will have another foot surgery this week, Tim Graham of The Buffalo News tweets. We don’t have much in the way of details, but there is no indication that the surgery will cost Watkins time in 2017.
  • Linebacker Lorenzo Alexander says his agent has had preliminary discussions with the Bills about a new deal, Sal Capaccio of MSG tweets. Alexander joined Buffalo last year on a one-year deal worth $885K with just $75K guaranteed. Initially viewed as a special teams signing, Alexander had a career year in 2016, totaling 64 tackles and 12.5 sacks.

Extra Points: Revis, Jets, Bills, Vikes, Panthers

Cornerback Darrelle Revis wants to retire a Jet, he told Brian Costello of the New York Post, but it’s possible the team will release the declining defender in the offseason. Regarding that notion, the 10th-year man offered, “My thing would be this: Do the New York Jets want to treat my situation with class or no class? With me being one of the best players in the history of this franchise, do they want me to retire here or not retire here?”

Revis sees himself as “one of the best cornerbacks to ever play this game,” but he realizes he’s “losing a step.” Thus, the soon-to-be 32-year-old is seemingly open to taking a pay cut to remain with the Jets. “You have to understand what the next step is, what the next chapter is for you, and I understand that,” he said. “You feel where you’re at in your career, you talk to the guys upstairs and see what’s going to best help me and best help the team moving forward.”

Revis is set to rake in a $13MM salary and count upward of $15.333MM against the cap next season, and the Jets surely view those as unpalatable figures. If the two sides do renegotiate Revis’ contract prior to next season, he’ll represent himself.

More from around the NFL:

  • Even if Teddy Bridgewater recovers from his disastrous knee injury by next season, the Vikings will begin 2017 with Sam Bradford as their starting quarterback, report Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter of ESPN. Not only has Bradford fared well this year, but he’ll account for a $17MM cap hit against Bridgewater’s relatively meager $2.18MM charge next season. Both signal-callers are scheduled to become free agents in March 2018.
  • Bills wide receiver Sammy Watkins opined Thursday that the team needs to “change the culture” in the wake of Rex Ryan‘s firing. Another high-profile Bill, running back LeSean McCoy, shared a similar sentiment Friday. “I think the discipline has been an issue,” McCoy told reporters, including Mike Rodak of ESPN.com. “Players just [need to take] accountability for their own actions. … I just think as players, as professionals, we need to step up and play accountable. That’s the biggest issue.” McCoy added that “the coaches have to be hard on us” and “yell at us,” and revealed that players often had difficulty understanding their on-field assignments under Ryan. Similarly, defensive tackle Marcell Dareus said Tuesday that Ryan’s scheme may have been too complicated. It’s worth noting, of course, that Watkins, McCoy and Dareus are likely the Bills’ three best players.
  • Panthers offensive lineman Trai Turner expressed confidence Thursday that left tackle Michael Oher would return next season. That will indeed be the case, per ESPN’s David Newton, who writes that Oher is out of the concussion protocol and preparing for the 2017 campaign. The 30-year-old missed all but three games this season as a result of the concussion he suffered in Week 2.
  • To recap a day filled with pass rusher-related news, the Seahawks extended Michael Bennett; the Colts’ Robert Mathis, who’s 18th on the all-time sack list, is retiring after Sunday; and the NFL won’t reinstate suspended Raider Aldon Smith this season.

AFC Notes: Bills, Browns, Jags, Bengals, Colts

Rex Ryan was a beloved players’ coach with the Jets from 2009-14, but it doesn’t seem that was fully the case during his nearly two-year run in Buffalo. Reacting to the Bills’ Tuesday decision to fire Ryan, one defensive player informed Bleacher Report’s Tyler Dunne, “That was music to my ears.” Similarly, some other Bills never bought into Ryan and felt he tore down the elite defense he inherited in 2015, according to Dunne (Twitter links). On the other side of the ball, wide receiver Sammy Watkins told the team’s official website that a “culture change” will be in order with Ryan’s successor. “Change the culture, change the mindset and get players on board,” he said. “If they’re not listening, cut them, kick them out, whatever. Sit them on the bench. I think that will help us move forward.”

More from the AFC:

  • Browns executive vice president Sashi Brown and vice president Andrew Berry were in attendance at Wednesday’s Houston Bowl to scout Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garrett, tweets ESPN’s Adam Schefter. This isn’t the first connection between Cleveland and Garrett, who could go No. 1 overall in next spring’s draft. The 1-14 Browns will lock up that selection with a loss to the Steelers on Sunday.
  • Impending free agent cornerback Prince Amukamara would like to re-sign with the Jaguars on a multiyear deal, but he admitted Thursday that the team has bigger issues on its plate at the moment. “Right now the front office priority is probably finding a head coach and stuff like that, but I would hope to be a priority to them [after the hire],” he told Mike DiRocco of ESPN.com. Amukamara, who inked a one-year deal with the Jags last March, has appeared in 13 games and made 11 starts – his highest totals in those categories since 2012. Despite being in danger of posting his first interception-less season, the 27-year-old ranks a respectable 51st among 119 corners at Pro Football Focus. “I think it was huge to just be able to show that I am durable and I can play this game if I’m healthy,” added the former Giant.
  • Like Amukamara, Bengals corner Dre Kirkpatrick doesn’t want to leave his current setting. “I love this organization,” the soon-to-be free agent told Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com. Kirkpatrick, a 2012 first-round pick who’s currently in his fifth-year option season, is second among Bengals corners in snaps (906). He has also picked off exactly three passes for the third time in his career and is set for his second straight year with at least 14 starts. PFF isn’t overly bullish, however, as it ranks Kirkpatrick as this season’s 74th-best corner.
  • The Colts worked out linebacker Dezman Moses and safety L.J. McCray on Thursday, per ESPN’s Adam Caplan (Twitter links). Moses is easily the more experienced of the pair, having appeared in 46 games to McCray’s 22, and has been available since the Chiefs cut him Oct. 7. McCray hasn’t caught on anywhere since the 49ers waived him Sept. 5.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Bills Notes: Lynn, Whaley, Tyrod, Rex

The decision to shelve Tyrod Taylor for the Bills’ Week 17 game against the Jets did not involve interim coach Anthony Lynn, creating an interesting situation for Sunday.

Lynn said today, via Joe WKBW’s Joe Buscaglia (on Twitter), he was not in the room when the decision was made to start EJ Manuel over Taylor, the team’s starter throughout the Rex Ryan era and obviously Lynn’s tenure as a major decision-maker on the team. Promoted to OC in September, Lynn has emerged as a head-coaching candidate but won’t have a choice as to who he starts at quarterback in what could be his only instance as the Bills’ HC. However, the Bills may be leaning toward keeping the former longtime running backs coach as their next sideline boss.

Taylor has played in each of the games during Lynn’s OC run, with Manuel’s last significant stretch of work coming under Greg Roman‘s offensive guidance midway through last season. The decision came down from ownership since the Bills do not want to risk injury to Taylor as a decision on whether or not to pick up his option — one tying the run-centric quarterback to the team long-term — looms after the season.

Here’s more from western New York.

  • Doug Whaley having the chance to pick a third Bills head coach strikes ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak as strange since it sends a message the new coach will not have control of the team’s 53-man roster and thus would have to agree to work with Whaley. But Rodak points out this could be an attempt by owners Terry and Kim Pegula to give Whaley one more chance to prove his worth since this next hire not working out — which basically means a playoff berth for north American professional sports’ most postseason-starved franchise — would lead the organization to move on from the GM.
  • Ryan previously said the Bills would be his last coaching job, but the former Jets leader did not count on a two-year run in Buffalo. A close friend of the Ryans does not believe Rex Ryan will settle for a TV job for good, insisting the 54-year-old coach will want another chance — even in college — to lead a team again, Elizabeth Merrill of ESPN.com writes.
  • The Bills made Ryan the scapegoat for the 17-year playoff drought, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News writes, believing the decision is a premature one indicative of a directionless franchise. Mehta also notes Whaley wanted to hire Hue Jackson before the Pegulas set their sights on Ryan.
  • If Taylor wants to remain in Buffalo, he will likely have to renegotiate the contract he signed in August, Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap writes. Believing most teams would see Taylor as a high-end backup ($7-$9MM per year), Fitzgerald points out part of Ryan’s downfall in Buffalo could be his infatuation with Taylor’s athletic skill set by referencing to the coach’s desire to sign Michael Vick, trade for Tim Tebow and his coveting of Colin Kaepernick while with the Jets.

Fallout From Rex Ryan’s Firing

The Bills are on the hunt for a new head coach after firing Rex Ryan on Tuesday, but the presence of general manager Doug Whaley is likely to limit their options, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. With Whaley entrenched atop the Bills’ front office, head coaching candidates who want significant say in roster construction might be less inclined to take the job.

Tom Coughlin[RELATED: Bills to bench Tyrod Taylor]

That could include longtime NFL head coach Tom Coughlin, with whom the Bills spoke last offseason about a front office role before he took a position with the league. Coughlin is now a possibility to end up back in Jacksonville – where he coached from 1995-2002 – but Bills owner Terry Pegula is interested in tabbing the two-time Super Bowl winner to succeed Ryan, per Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin is also high on the Bills’ list, reports Cole, who adds that the team would want to retain interim head coach Anthony Lynn as its offensive coordinator under either Coughlin or Austin.

Lynn entered the season as the Bills’ running backs coach, but they elevated him to O-coordinator after firing Greg Roman on the heels of an 0-2 start. Buffalo’s Lynn-led attack ranks first in the league in rushing, seventh in scoring, eighth in DVOA and 12th in total offense. Now, given his impressive work this season, it’s possible Lynn is actually the favorite to take over for Ryan on a permanent basis. Whaley “pushed” ownership to place the interim tag on Lynn, tweets the Buffalo News’ Vic Carucci, who wrote last week that Lynn could be primed to grab the reins going forward. Lynn garnered attention from head coach-needy franchises last winter and will again be on teams’ radars this offseason (the Rams are reportedly eyeing him), so the Bills could lose the 47-year-old if they don’t select him as Ryan’s replacement.

Rex Ryan

As for Ryan, his downfall in Buffalo was his inability to live up to his reputation as a defensive guru. The Bills had a top-tier defense in place when they hired him in advance of the 2015 campaign, but it was a below-average unit in each of his two years with the club. Ryan’s move last January to hire his twin brother, the now-fired Rob Ryan, to team with him and defensive coordinator Dennis Thurman didn’t produce positive results. In fact, Bills players told ESPN’s Jeff Darlington that the Ryans lost the defensive portion of the locker room because there were “too many cooks in the kitchen” (Twitter link). Defensive end Leger Douzable took to Twitter to bash Buffalo’s decision to ax Rex Ryan, whom he also played under as a Jet, but star D-tackle Marcell Dareus doesn’t seem too broken up about the coaching change.

While Dareus told ESPN’s Josina Anderson that he likes Ryan, the franchise’s highest-paid player explained that the defensive scheme “was just too much detail for a lot of guys, and I feel like for a lot of guys it was too much going on for them to check here and check there, if this happens and that happens. Then nine times out of 10, a team will throw something out there that we weren’t prepared for, and then the adjustment to it, we had to get use to and try to make it happen and make plays.”

The 26-year-old Dareus will be among a few marquee talents the Bills’ next coach inherits (running back LeSean McCoy and wide receiver Sammy Watkins are the others), though the environment “from top to bottom” is “toxic,” relays Carucci (Twitter link). Considering the Bills have gone a league-worst 17 years since their latest playoff trip, that’s not overly surprising.

Bills Fire Rex Ryan

The Bills are not waiting for the season to end to make a head coaching change. Rex Ryan has been let go and offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn will take over as the interim head coach. Rob Ryan (assistant head coach/defense) has also been relieved of his duties. Rex Ryan (Featured)

I spoke with Rex earlier today and we mutually agreed that the time to part ways is now. These decisions are never easy. I want to take this opportunity to thank Rex for all his efforts and wish him all the best moving forward,” owner Terry Pegula said in a statement. “Kim and I and our entire Bills organization share in the same disappointment and frustration as our fans, but we remain committed to our goal of bringing a championship to Western New York.”

Rex Ryan was not given a third year to turn things around in Buffalo despite finishing with a .500 record in his first year and guiding the team to a 7-8 mark so far this season. The Bills will not qualify for the playoffs for the 17th straight season and the organization is not willing to take the patient approach any longer.

Lynn has gone from running backs coach to offensive coordinator to head coach in just three months. His first promotion came when Greg Roman was forced out earlier this year and he’ll now get to audition for the team’s permanent role. Reportedly, the Bills wanted to push Ryan out in part because of their desire to retain Lynn. Lynn has long been identified as a strong head coaching candidate for this offseason.

There are conflicting reports regarding GM Doug Whaley’s job security. A little over a week ago, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reported that Whaley is not in jeopardy of getting fired. However, over the weekend, Ben Volin of The Boston Globe said that his status “remains up in the air.”

As of this writing, there are now three teams that will be looking for head coaches in the New Year: the Rams, Jaguars, and Bills.