Anything Else New Around Here?

With the drama of the Winter Classic occupying all of Western New York’s sporting mind over the past week, I think there may have been a story or two that fell through the cracks.

Marv Levy’s retirement is kind of a big deal, but not nearly as much as many are making it out to be. From the emotional view of a lifelong Buffalo Bills fan, yes, it’s a big deal. From a football standpoint, I’m not sure. Marv did an excellent job serving as the conduit between ownership and upper management. There’s no doubt he set a certain tone throughout the organization, especially in regards to drafting players who exhibited true leadership skills. You look at a guy like John Wendling, who was a safety from Wyoming the Bills took in the sixth round last year. There are lots of guys you could have drafted there who perhaps displayed some raw speed or other physical skill, but the Bills took Wendling because he was a leader. A team captain, Wendling was also one of 17 finalists for the Draddy Award, which goes to the nation’s top scholar-athlete.

I have a sense that Marv Levy didn’t actually know much of that about John Wendling. In fact, I think it’s possible that Marv Levy (and I say “possible” because I have no inside information and am just hypothesizing right now) didn’t know a whole lot about most of the players the Bills chose beyond what he was given by the scouts. I imagine the message of what type of player the Bills would err on the side of goes out to the scouts, and they adjust their grades for a player up or down accordingly. Tom Modrak and Doug Majeski let their scouts know what qualities the Bills are looking for, and Modrak and Majeski probably are the ones who prepare that information and video for Levy, Jauron and (sigh) Wilson. So as long as the message from the top continues to be an organizational philosophy focused on character, leadership and intelligence (in other words, all things being equal, get the guy who’s a leader-type) the message will continue down to the scouts.

So the question becomes, who fills that role? Marv Levy had already delegated most of his responsibilities away and acted as the organizations front man and, I think, as the voice of the customer. Russ Brandon runs the business side. Jim Overdorf handles the cap and contracts. John Guy is responsible for pro scouting, Modrak for college. And Scott Berchtold is also a key advisor who does more than just set up press conferences.

So who, if anyone, comes out on top?

Russ Brandon has been around the Bills longer than all of them, I think. But the idea of a non-football guy running the show probably makes everyone but CFO Jeffrey Littman just a little nervous. Jim Overdorf has one of the key roles as the salary cap guru, but again, not a football guy.

The football guys within the organization are John Guy, Director of Pro Personnel; and Tom Modrak, Director of College Scouting. Once upon a time, Modrak was Tom Donahoe’s right-hand man, at least in terms of scouting, and was looked upon as his successor. He somehow survived the Donohoe purge (likely because the Bills really, really needed someone to run the scouting department since Wilson’s figurehead daughter is listed as VP/Assistant Director of College Scouting), and has perhaps distanced himself enough from that debacle. He has been around the scouting game for a long time, and is the former GM of the Philadelphia Eagles. So I find it odd that his name has not been mentioned for the GM opening.

One name that has been mentioned, especially on two local TV networks, is that of John Guy. Guy has a mixed track record as Director of Pro Personnel. Many of his “big moves” over the last few years have been terrible disappointments, but his moves this season to keep the injury-riddled Bills afloat by bringing in no-names who played big were excellent. I think what works against him the most is his lack of managerial experience (an assistant GM role may be best for a year-or-two).

What I think the Bills will miss most with Levy’s departure is the sense of organizational cohesion he brought to the picture. Brandon, Jauron, Overdorf, Littman, Modrak, Guy, Berchtold, and the rest of the front office all appeared to be pulling in the same direction, and that was certainly not the case during the Donahoe years. Without another strong figure to make them each feel empowered and important, we could have the chaos and infighting of three years ago.

So I guess the questions I would like answered are: how much was Levy really involved in the draft (my opinion, not as much as we are led to believe), is Tom Modrak still on the outs because of his association with Donahoe (quite possible), how much more power will Jauron be given (enough to keep him on even footing with the front office), and can John Guy overcome a lack of experience and be named GM (no, but he’ll get more power).

Of course, the Bills could completely throw me and go outside the organization. Many pundits will certainly say that is what should be done – and perhaps it is exactly what this team needs – but it’s just not something I can see Ralph Wilson doing.

Of course, I’m just a blogger with absolutely no inside information whatsoever, so take all that with huge grains of salt…

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Sticking with Bills news, Chris Brown lets us know that the Bills will have the eleventh, 42nd, 72nd, and 73rd picks in the upcoming draft. The Bills have at least one pick in every round, with additional picks in the third, fifth, and seventh. I smell multiple first-round picks again this season with another trade-up. Just my opinion, but I think the Bills discovered a staggering amount of depth players on the roster this year, but they are in desperate need of a couple impact players. Those come in round one.

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Just in from the Sabres -

BUFFALO, N.Y. (January 3, 2008) — The Buffalo Sabres will be auctioning game-worn jerseys from the NHL Winter Classic that took place on New Year’s Day at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Also up for auction is Ryan Miller’s specially-designed goalie mask that he wore just for this game.

The auction begins today (January 3) at 5 p.m., and will conclude on Monday, January 14 at 9 p.m. Fans can access the auction by logging on to www.sabres.com, or through the auction section on www.nhl.com. All proceeds from the auctions will benefit the Buffalo Sabres Foundation.

More on the Sabres tomoroow.