Jauron decision could lead to interesting front-office battle over replacement

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Eric Edholm

eedholm@pfwmedia.com
Senior editor

If I had a guess, I would say Wilson will favor a rock-solid, no-frills coach. Marty Schottenheimer, whose name has received a bit of a kick-start in the past month or so. And I would bet that Brandon would want someone like Jon Gruden (whose new ESPN deal might keep him announcing for a while) or Bill Cowher.

Mike Shanahan, perhaps the biggest name on the coaching free-agent market, likely would require too much personnel control for Brandon's liking. I wonder if the same wouldn't be true for Mike Holmgren, who has hinted he might want to coach on the East Coast, having previously conquered the Midwest and West Coast.

Could Wilson support a guy like Cowher? Yeah, I suppose he could. Blue collar, proven, tough. Cowher has some AFL qualities to him, which I suspect would appeal to the nonegenarian.

But could they get him? It will take a lot of money and control, which might be in short supply up in Buffalo.

My suggestion for a compromise: Why not go for Kirk Ferentz? The Iowa coach is probably the college coach who is most ready to be an NFL coach, more so even than Urban Meyer. Ferentz has quite an NFL resumé and would be a smart, cheaper alternative to the rock-star option that might seem more enticing on the surface. One caveat: Ferentz's deal runs through 2012 and includes a heavy buyout, but I'll have to check on the details of that.

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STEVE PILATO

Disposing of Jauron is only step one in any attempt Wilson might make in turning the Bills around. It isn't even the biggest step. Russ Brandon is the far bigger problem. Having a Sales/Marketing guy as your GM, or allowing him any say in football operations is a situation that has to be corrected for anyone to come into Buffalo & change the team around. They need to hire a real football man to come in & head up the operation, Floyd Reese & Ron Wolf come to mind immediately. There are rumors that Bill Parcells may be ready to hand the Dolphins over to the men he put in place & find a new challenge. He'd be another good candidate, if available. As for a coach, it's time Wilson stopped settling for previous failures & bring in a man who has won it all & knows what it takes to win. The Bills have already reached out to one such coach, Mike Shanahan, who has indicated he is willing to listen. Bill Cowher, whose preferred physical style of play would be a huge hit with Bills fans should also be on the short list, along with Mike Holmgren. I know about his ties to the franchise, but Jim Haslett would wind up being more of the same, & Kirk Ferentz may or may not be an NFL caliber head coach. Given the recent failures of big name college coaches in the NFL (Spurrier, Saban & Petrino) the Bills should avoid that route. They need to hit it big on this selection, because it may be the final one for the Bills in Buffalo. They should aim high & go one one of the Super Bowl winning coaches on the market & settle for nothing less.