Ugh https://x.com/i/status/2017621384420331917 Bills hiring Broncos assistant head coach Jim Leonhard as defensive coordinator, per @RapSheet
Who cares? That’s not even in our list of top 10 problems. By the time we’re ready to care about what other teams are doing Leonhard will either be bad enough that he’s fired or good enough that he’s a HC.
This sucks, the guy we all desperately wanted here. Could end up an upgrade over McDermott defensively for a strong divisional opponent, which sucks for us.
We’re a 2027 regime change away from even being able to start so probably 2028 is the earliest we can even pretend to be competitive. 2029 if all goes well.
I dunno how at this point you can still assume a Woody Johnson owned team functions like any other NFL team.
Yeah, but are you assuming/hoping he will finally stumble into right people in 2027? If so, I would expect us to try to win some games in 2027 and 2028 too, not just 2029, and if JL is good, it would not be ideal to face his defense twice in the division. The rebuild is not supposed to take that long where we don't worry about a divisional opponent for 3 years.
I guess it’s a mindset thing and 30 years of rooting for this team has me in this one. I did the thing where I care about what other teams do and get upset that they might be better and none of it matters because we can’t get almost anything right. Obviously I want the Bills to be bad and I still think they regress this year but bottom line is I find it hard to care for as long as we’re circling the drains. 2027 requires hitting on the staff to win game. We’ll still be young and probably starting from scratch at QB and potentially with someone who isn’t ready to start asap. 2028 is the earliest I can see us competing for a playoff spot unless something goes very right this year or a new HC blows us away.
I still hope we can win some games in 2027 with the new coach. I think we have the GM, and if Woody keeps him and stumbles on the good coach somehow (maybe Mooge will pick one) we could win some games. Understandably there are a lot of IFs with this owner, but we gotta keep some hope for 2027 IMO. 2026 I am willing to write off, but not beyond that. Also, even regardless of us, it's always a bright moment when the Bills bounce out of the play-offs.
I hate HCs who call plays. Distracts them from the actual game. When AG is calling plays on the defense, he can't go talk to the offense, the OL - heck, he can't even plan with the OC what the next series is going to be. Plus it creates confusion with the DC who doesn't call the plays - he doesn't get to really implement his plan. Very very few HCs who call their own plays ever succeed in the NFL. Reid and Payton may be the only two right now. Many more who try flame out. I agree that there are no excuses, AG has to play a system he wants to play. Then find somebody who agrees with what you want to do, and have them drive.
Nine out of ten people who habitually beat their head against the wall say it feels better when they stop. The other one dies in pain.
The Jets have done plenty to make me bang my head, I’m impervious. Think of me as Philip Rivers after throwing a 90 yard Touchdown. I will scream in your ear “fire Aaron Glenn Noooooowwww”
This is no longer true, Snoop. Some of the best teams in the NFL have HCs that call plays. Seattle is the prime example this year, but Shanahan and McVey are good examples too. Ryans initially called plays, but then stopped when he felt comfortable with his DC doing it. Coen calls plays, Ben Johnson. Heck, KC is the most successful recently, Reid calls the plays. Philly won the SB without HC calling plays, but the previous SB winning coach did. The coach that was just hired for the Ravens will call the plays. Joe Brady for the Bills will. Heck, even Bob after 4 years of not doing it, admitted it would have been better if he did and will do for the Titans. I think in the modern NFL the trend is the opposite. Yes, there are guys like Harbaugh, Vrabel, etc, but a successful coordinator now days is often calling the plays and it helps the team. We see more and more of that. Bob said it actually help to get in the rhythm rather than just calling time outs all game. Things are different now than they used to be. Which is why I am glad Glenn will do it.
Eh, maybe. I do think the only coaches who have done this over a number of years - Shanahan, McVay, Reid and Payton - are probably four of the best coaches in the past 30 years. If we hit on somebody like that, then almost nothing will matter. Ben Johnson, Liam Coen, Mike McDonald, Todd Monken, Joe Brady? Too soon to tell (although I have my opinions about Todd Monken and Joe Brady for sure). This usually breaks down after a year or two, when other teams have adjusted to your offense/defense and you have to manage the game better. Stefanski from Cleveland was Coach of the Year when he started up doing this, now he's fired after a failed offense over the last three years. And Doug Pederson in Philly? Yes, he won in 2017, but fizzled out shortly thereafter and was fired. Mike McDaniels in Miami. Kliff Kingsbury. All these high flying OCs who called their own plays as HCs busted out. For me, get a HC who hires great co-ordinators, focuses on the big picture, builds strategy, adapts to the flow of the game, and takes accountability for both sides of the ball. But I guess we'll see.
Let's look at the teams that made play-offs this year, and add a few teams that may make play-offs next year, say 6+ wins. Basically a list of likely play-off contenders for 2026. You can keep me honest here, but out of 23 teams that have 6+ wins, 19 head coaches will call plays and 4 do not. It is pretty clear where the League is going. It's not even close, it is overwhelming. There are a few successful CEO types, but it's pretty rate now days, as you can see. AFC Denver - Yes NE - No Jag - Yes Pitt - Yes (McCarthy confirmed) Texans - No (and he did call plays before, transitioning only after he trusted his DC with his own scheme) Bills - Yes (Brady confirmed) Chargers - No KC - Yes Bengals - Yes Ravens - Yes (new coach confirmed) Colts - Yes NFC Seattle - Yes Bears - Yes Philly - No Panthers - Yes Rams - Yes 49ers - Yes Packers - Yes Vikings - Yes Lions - Yes (at least as of now as Campbell took over the duties) Falcons - Yes Saints - Yes Cowboys - Yes
McVay? Shanahan? O'Connell? Macdonald? Edit: Ah, I see you guys are already talking these guys. Anyway, I don't think calling plays is what makes coaches good or not. Good coaches are good and bad coaches are bad whether they call plays or not.
First, good data. Maybe you're right. But ignore all the first-year and second-year coaches for a second (JAX, BUF, BAL, SEA, CHI, NO, DAL), because my thesis is these guys just haven't learned this is a bad idea yet. - Mike McCarthy has been through this before: https://www.nfl.com/news/mike-mccarthy-explains-decision-to-give-up-play-calling-0ap3000000470259 - he called plays, then he stopped, then he started again. Is it stubbornness or good sense? We'll see. - Zac Taylor - this year there were plenty of calls for him to stop, because Cincinnati had the worst defense in the league, and it wasn't getting better. https://www.cincyjungle.com/cincinn...ac-taylor-give-up-play-calling-duties-defense - Dave Canales - there are a lot of calls now for him to give it up, because his situational playcalling has been bad especially in 2025. https://www.google.com/search?q=dave+canales+situational+playcalling - Kevin Stefanski - new to the Falcons, but did this for six years in Cleveland, and as I mentioned, he had to give it up because ... spoiler alert, the team was sucking. https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id...anski-relinquishes-playcalling-duties-oc-rees - Dan Campbell - that's going to be an interesting one. He started without, now he's doing it, but let's see what happens next year. It's possible I have a dinosaur view of things. Let's see how it goes.
I was just to post the very same thing. We are yet to find a long term good coach that puts all the pieces together, manages the entire operation and develops a winning culture. Calling plays or not and on which side of the ball is completely irrelevant if you are not winning games. I’m sure NE is quite pleased with their HC not calling plays. Either process works if you are good and not at all if you are not able to handle the big picture.
