The Next Bills Coach Will Be…

For many Buffalo Bills fans today, Christmas came a month early. Owner Ralph Wilson fired coach Dick Jauron today, ruining his chance to coach the Bills to a fourth straight 7-9 season. Jauron finished with a 24-33 record with the Bills in three and a half seasons. Wilson hired Jauron, even though he had one winning season in his NFL coaching career. Since Marv Levy was hired in 1986, Wilson has yet to hire a proven coach with a winning record. Levy only had a 31-42 record with the Kansas City Chiefs, but at least he had success at college and in the CFL. Wilson even tried to find success with coordinators like Gregg Williams and Mike Mularkey. The Bills have to hire a proven coach and there are plenty of good options. Here are some options that the Bills might look at:

• Mike Holmgren: ESPN’s John Clayton has mentioned that Holmgren could be a fit for the Seattle Seahawks’ general manager job, but the Bills could be the perfect opportunity. Assuming the Bills also fire COO Russ Brandon, this might be one of Holmgren’s best chances to become a head coach and general manager. Holmgren built winners in Seattle and Green Bay and is very good at coaching quarterbacks. The Bills might be able to get Holmgren if they promise him that he can bring his buddy Jim Zorn on his staff.
• Jon Gruden: ESPN signed him to an extension, but Gruden said today that he will probably coach again. If Wilson is finally ready to offer a coach a big contract, Gruden would have a hard time turning down a lucrative offer. Gruden will also want some say in the personnel decisions and Gruden has done well in the past turning around a bad franchise. Would Gruden try to bring Monte Kiffin with him to Buffalo?
• Mike Shanahan: This might be the only coach out there that is capable of turning Trent Edwards into a good quarterback. Jay Cutler is a completely different quarterback without his old Denver Broncos coach. Shanahan would also be able to help the Bills in the NFL Draft as he found hidden gems like Eddie Royal and Elvis Dumervil. For a team that has struggled with quarterback play since Doug Flutie left Buffalo, this team could use a coach like Shanahan.
• Marty Schottenheimer: For as much as people criticize his blunders in the playoffs, Schottenheimer always coached a competitive team that made the playoffs 13 out of the 21 years he coached. His teams have made the AFC Championship three times and he is another coach that has a history of turning bad franchises into winners. Considering how cheap Wilson is, this might be one of the most realistic choices. It doesn't hurt that he played for the Bills from 1965-1968 as a reserve linebacker.
• *Wildcard Choice* Tony Dungy: This is probably not going to happen, but I have to give Ryan Stewart of the 2 Live Stews credit for this one. When he was on ESPN’s “First Take” with Skip Bayless, they were debating if Michael Vick would be a good fit in Buffalo and Stewart said maybe there was something to Dungy wanting to follow Vick to Buffalo. Dungy has said before that he is happy where he is currently, but this might be his best way to make sure Vick succeeds with his new team. Fans in Buffalo would be dancing in the streets, but this s a long shot at best. If the Bills want Vick, why not try and see if his mentor will come with him?
• Brian Billick: Currently working as an NFL analyst, the former Baltimore Ravens coach would jump at the opportunity if the money was right. Wilson might want to bring in the “offensive genius” to fix the Bills’ anemic offense, but Wilson needs to remember that Billick’s offenses always struggled in Baltimore. Billick would be an improvement over Jauron, but the Bills can do a lot better than Billick.
• Mike Nolan – Currently leading a very strong Denver Broncos’ defense, the former San Francisco 49ers coach will be one of the assistant coaches that teams will look at to promote to a head coach. Nolan struggled with the 49ers and this would be a very bad hire for the Bills. The only reason he is on this list is that Wilson is so cheap and he has yet to prove that he is willing to spend money on a new head coach.
• Leslie Frazier – The Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator is current leading one of the best defenses in the NFL. Mike Tomlin left the Vikings to lead the Steelers to a Super Bowl and teams will expect similar success out of Frazier. Expect Frazier to be one of the coaches interviewed for the Rooney Rule.
• Russ Grimm – The Arizona Cardinals offensive line coach is one of the most respected assistant coaches in the NFL and teams will think that Grimm can change around their team like his buddy Ken Whisenhunt did when he left the Steelers for the Cardinals. Grimm will be a head coach sometime in the near future and next year might be his opportunity. The Bills will be respected more under Grimm’s leadership.

Why did I leave Bill Cowher off the list? There is not a chance that Cowher comes back to the NFL for the Buffalo Bills. He will only come back for the Carolina Panthers, Dallas Cowboys or Washington Redskins (money, money, money).  You might hear other names like a coach with Buffalo connections (Jim Haslett) or a college coach (Jim Harbaugh), but Bills fans will revolt if Wilson brings in Haslett or a college coach. Expect Wilson to hire a coach from this list and Schottenheimer is the most realistic choice for Bills fans. Maybe Wilson will prove me wrong and hire Holmgren, Shanahan or Gruden. I expect the Bills to hire Schottenheimer or Frazier.