If the Bills make the playoffs?

[Bling]

Who gets the credit for this miracle? Donahue? Levy? Which GM built this team?

[hydro]

Levy. /thread

[mybills]

Levy

[User Manuel]

Marv, Donahoe made some good decisions and some bad, Marv vetted those out and I gotta say I really like what he has come up with.

[Dr. Lecter]

While TD made some key moves (Evans, Peters, Parrish) Marv is the one who fixed his gaffe's and drafted Trent, Lynch, Whitner, Poz and traded for Stroud and signed guys like Mitchell, Walker and adn Dockery.

[Mitchy moo]

Russ for promoting Turk, Marv for setting it up and Dick for executing it.

[casdhf]

Dick.

[DaBillzAhDaShiznit]

I think Marv definately laid the groundwork.

It's just a shame he did not stick it out and see the fruit of his labor.

I am sure Marv is enjoying this as much as anyone at this point, though.

[baalworship]

Tom Modrak has been running the draft since 2002, even when Marv was here. John Guy has been free agent guy. Marv also get credit because he was in charge for 2 years and made sure we were not just selecting talent but building a team.

Donahoe's failure was not talent selection as much as his overall team construction strategy and terrible head coaches (Gregg Williams and Mularkey). When you can't find a quarterback and your head coach is in over his head all your draft picks will not look as good.

[Romes]

How many players on the roster are playing on a Donahoe era contract?

Losman, Evans...I can't think of any others...:idunno:

Modrak, Guy, Levy and Dick deserve the credit from a front office standpoint.

[jdbillsfan]

Dick

[parrishlynchevans]

Why did Marv leave his job to go learn Spanish? I would of loved to see him overlook the team for the next ten years and win us a couple of Lombardis.

[baalworship]

Significant players acquired under: Tom Donahoe GM/Tom Modrak asst GM/John Guy pro personnel: (2001-2005)

Aaron Schobel, 2nd round 2001
Josh Reed, 2nd round 2002
Chris Kelsay, 2nd round 2003
Terrance McGee, 4th round 2003
Lee Evans, 1st round 2004
Roscoe Parrish, 2nd round 2005
Jason Peters, undrafted free agent
Jabari Greer, undrafted free agent
Brian Moorman, undrafted free agent

Free Agent: Rian Lindell


Significant Players acquired under Marv Levy GM, Tom Modrak asst GM, John Guy pro personnel (2006-2007)

Donte Whitner ,1st round 2006
Ashton Youboty, 3rd round 2006
Ko Simpson, 4th round 2006
Kyle Williams, 5th round 2006
Brad Butler, 5th round 2006
Keith Ellison, 6th round
Marshawn Lynch, 1st round 2007
Paul Posluzny, 2nd round 2007
Trent Edwards, 3rd round 2007
Free Agents signed: Robert Royal, Melvin Fowler, Derrick Dockery, Langston Walker

Significant players under Russ Brandon GM/ Tom Modrak Asst GM, John Guy pro player personnel 2008-present

Leodis McKelvin and James Hardy top draft picks
Free agents, Kawika Mitchell
Traded for Marcus Stroud

[OpIv37]

Significant players acquired under: Tom Donahoe GM/Tom Modrak asst GM/John Guy pro personnel: (2001-2005)

Aaron Schobel, 2nd round 2001
Josh Reed, 2nd round 2002
Chris Kelsay, 2nd round 2003
Terrance McGee, 4th round 2003
Lee Evans, 1st round 2004
Roscoe Parrish, 2nd round 2005
Jason Peters, undrafted free agent




Don't forget that every one of those guys except Evans and Parrish have been extended by Levy or the current regime. So, while Donahoe found them initially, it was Levy who chose to keep them.

[OpIv37]

Actually, now that I think about it, McGee's extension may have been at the end of the TD era- I can't remember now.

[Michael82]

Significant players acquired under: Tom Donahoe GM/Tom Modrak asst GM/John Guy pro personnel: (2001-2005)

Aaron Schobel, 2nd round 2001
Josh Reed, 2nd round 2002
Chris Kelsay, 2nd round 2003
Terrance McGee, 4th round 2003
Lee Evans, 1st round 2004
Roscoe Parrish, 2nd round 2005
Jason Peters, undrafted free agent
Jabari Greer, undrafted free agent
Brian Moorman, undrafted free agent

Free Agent: Rian Lindell


Significant Players acquired under Marv Levy GM, Tom Modrak asst GM, John Guy pro personnel (2006-2007)

Donte Whitner ,1st round 2006
Ashton Youboty, 3rd round 2006
Ko Simpson, 4th round 2006
Kyle Williams, 5th round 2006
Brad Butler, 5th round 2006
Keith Ellison, 6th round
Marshawn Lynch, 1st round 2007
Paul Posluzny, 2nd round 2007
Trent Edwards, 3rd round 2007
Free Agents signed: Robert Royal, Melvin Fowler, Derrick Dockery, Langston Walker

Significant players under Russ Brandon GM/ Tom Modrak Asst GM, John Guy pro player personnel 2008-present

Leodis McKelvin and James Hardy top draft picks
Free agents, Kawika Mitchell
Traded for Marcus Stroud
Interesting...thanks for posting that. I still say is was the Marv Levy regime that fixed the problems wrong with the TD team and kept the ones who needed to stay, while getting rid of the others.

[IAG]

They both should get props...I always though TD did a good job, but never found a QB and I feel great for Marv observing this from afar...

[Crisis]

marv is the one who fixed the lines.

our offensive line was a joke before he came in.

[patmoran2006]

All three deserve credit and they deserve blame..

Donahoe made some HORRIBLE moves which costed us shots at the playoffs in recent years. But a good portion of our nucleus is a result of his drafting and signing: Schobel, Evans, Parrish, Peters, McGee, Greer, moorman, Lindell.

Levy's first years a FA resulted in an utter calamity of a free agent class, which maybe set us back a year, but overall except for McCargo he did an excellent job with the draft, and he did bring in Langston Walker and Derrick Dockery to the OL.

But for whoever the hell is in charge of the current regime, they did a TREMENDOUS JOB this past offseason. Marcus STroud and Mitchell were huge difference makers already in the Seattle game, and maybe we dont win vs Jags if Hardy doesnt make that catch in the end zone. And you have to be a total FOOL to be down on McKelvin after a whopping two games. He's not playing becuase Youboty is playing THAT good and deserves to be in there right now.

So basically they should all get some credit for what this team may become now, and a lot of blame, especially to TD for making this team so ****ty to begin with.

[Ebenezer]

Levy's first years a FA resulted in an utter calamity of a free agent class, which maybe set us back a year,

could it have been that that is all he had to work with? possibly no other players wanted to come here?

[SquishDaFish]

The WHOLE Buffalo Bills organization including Marv

[B-DON]

How about Bill Walsh for recommending Trent to Marv?

[LifetimeBillsFan]

It has been a collective effort. But, I think that Marv Levy was the key guy because he changed the atmosphere and culture of the front office and the team, which was horrible after the collapse of 2005.

Perhaps the most important thing that Levy did was to create a collaborative atmosphere in the front office where he solicited and was willing to listen to what others in the front office had to say, rather than dictating to them what he wanted, as was the case with Donahoe. For example: Marv admitted to the media that there were a couple of instances during his first draft when he would have done things differently, but was convinced by others in the Bills' warroom to do things the way they ended up doing them (one example that I recall was that they were going to take Kyle Williams in the 4th round, but he was convinced to pass on Williams then and take Ko Simpson then and Williams later).

I think that approach "liberated" Modrak, Guy, Overdorff and Brandon, etc. and allowed each of them to get better at their jobs.

When Marv left, one of the things that there was mention that Ralph Wilson wanted preserve was this collaborative atmosphere that Levy had created--and that was a reason why he didn't try to bring in a GM from outside of the organization.

I don't know if that atmosphere has continued to exist under the current structure of the organization, but I think the fact that Marv was able to turn the atmosphere around in the Bills' front office after Donahoe left and give the organization a vision of how to do things and how to build a team that could ultimately compete for a Super Bowl title has been critical to the turnaround on the field that we have seen.

And, that's probably why I would give Marv Levy the most credit. Although, I think that he might be the first one to point out that there have been significant contributions from a lot of people in creating the potential for success that the team has and has begun to show this season.

I just hope that the front office continues to do whatever they have been doing in terms of bringing in talent to the club. And starts to make some serious progress in terms of trying to retain some of the talent that they have at key positions that has been emerging and that they really need to keep (ie Evans and Peters!).