Prov401
10-06-2009, 11:39 PM
I may take some heat for this, but here it goes.
Marv Levy = Was, and always has been, Overrated.
He was a bad-decent coach with the Kansas City Chiefs in the mid-late 80's. He had a .425 winning percentage there, going 31-42. He had the luck of coming to a team, loaded with talent, and a great front office. Levy would have been nothing without Bill Polian.
Bill Polian is the reason that the Bills went to any of the Superbowls in the 1990's, fact.
He signed Bruce Smith to his first contract, and was intstrumental in doing so. He took over the GM duties for a team that was coming off a 2-14 season. He signed Jim Kelly from the USFL in 1986, and traded UP to get Shane Conlon in the 1987 NFL draft, also aquiring a pick in the process that would later be used to trade down with, and draft Nate Odomes. This guy knew, and still knows talent. He is the reason that Buffalo was LOADED with all-stars. He made one of the biggest trades in Bills history in aquiring Cornelius Bennet. We had no first round pick in 1988, and still one of the sweetest sentences of all time were pronounced by former commisioner Rozelle: "With the 40th overall pick in the 1988 NFL draft, the Buffalo Bills select running back Thurman Thomas". This guy had an eye for talent, and brought it to Buffalo in any way he could. From different leauges, free agency, the draft, wherever.
He also hired Marv Levy. Now please, don't get me wrong, I believe Levy is a solid head coach. Something to the likes of a modern day John Fox. He is very insiprational, and smart. However, the keys to the car were in the posession of Bill Polian. The players are who make and play this game. I never quite got the hype surrounding Marv as one of the 'greatest coaches of all time'.
Just look at what Polian has done since being fired, yea fired (I guess 3 straight SB's weren't good enough) from the Bills in 1993. He took over the GM position with the EXPANSION Carolina Panthers. Just 2 years, TWO years, he had them in the NFC Championship game against the Greenbay Packers. That's remarkable. Now he has been with the Colts for a while and drafted Peyton Manning in 1998, when many wanted him to go with Ryan Leaf, including most in the Colts' organization. I'd say he made the right pick.
This all comes from the recent threads, and also the not-so recent threads of the past couple of years regarding how Marv Levy is being blamed for his drafts, and choice of a head coach during his GM reign. He was never a GM, and never picked any players while coaching in Buffalo during the 90's. All he did was admire what Bill Polian gave him to work with. I also believe his own coaching path, led him to hire Dick Jauron. Jauron had the type of head coaching career that Marv had before getting his true second shot. Levy gave Jauron his second shot, however Dick doesn't have an unbelievable GM that the Bills had in the Superbowl years. Blame RALPH WILSON for hiring Marv Levy in 2006. I'm sure most of you know what Bill Polian was to this organization, and if not, here's a link. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Polian
You will find a quote from Polian during his closing press conference with the Buffalo Bills, describing what team he was being forced to leave behind. He hit it dead on.
Bill Polian-"They're a very special group of men. Cherish them, you will not see their like again."
Marv Levy = Was, and always has been, Overrated.
He was a bad-decent coach with the Kansas City Chiefs in the mid-late 80's. He had a .425 winning percentage there, going 31-42. He had the luck of coming to a team, loaded with talent, and a great front office. Levy would have been nothing without Bill Polian.
Bill Polian is the reason that the Bills went to any of the Superbowls in the 1990's, fact.
He signed Bruce Smith to his first contract, and was intstrumental in doing so. He took over the GM duties for a team that was coming off a 2-14 season. He signed Jim Kelly from the USFL in 1986, and traded UP to get Shane Conlon in the 1987 NFL draft, also aquiring a pick in the process that would later be used to trade down with, and draft Nate Odomes. This guy knew, and still knows talent. He is the reason that Buffalo was LOADED with all-stars. He made one of the biggest trades in Bills history in aquiring Cornelius Bennet. We had no first round pick in 1988, and still one of the sweetest sentences of all time were pronounced by former commisioner Rozelle: "With the 40th overall pick in the 1988 NFL draft, the Buffalo Bills select running back Thurman Thomas". This guy had an eye for talent, and brought it to Buffalo in any way he could. From different leauges, free agency, the draft, wherever.
He also hired Marv Levy. Now please, don't get me wrong, I believe Levy is a solid head coach. Something to the likes of a modern day John Fox. He is very insiprational, and smart. However, the keys to the car were in the posession of Bill Polian. The players are who make and play this game. I never quite got the hype surrounding Marv as one of the 'greatest coaches of all time'.
Just look at what Polian has done since being fired, yea fired (I guess 3 straight SB's weren't good enough) from the Bills in 1993. He took over the GM position with the EXPANSION Carolina Panthers. Just 2 years, TWO years, he had them in the NFC Championship game against the Greenbay Packers. That's remarkable. Now he has been with the Colts for a while and drafted Peyton Manning in 1998, when many wanted him to go with Ryan Leaf, including most in the Colts' organization. I'd say he made the right pick.
This all comes from the recent threads, and also the not-so recent threads of the past couple of years regarding how Marv Levy is being blamed for his drafts, and choice of a head coach during his GM reign. He was never a GM, and never picked any players while coaching in Buffalo during the 90's. All he did was admire what Bill Polian gave him to work with. I also believe his own coaching path, led him to hire Dick Jauron. Jauron had the type of head coaching career that Marv had before getting his true second shot. Levy gave Jauron his second shot, however Dick doesn't have an unbelievable GM that the Bills had in the Superbowl years. Blame RALPH WILSON for hiring Marv Levy in 2006. I'm sure most of you know what Bill Polian was to this organization, and if not, here's a link. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Polian
You will find a quote from Polian during his closing press conference with the Buffalo Bills, describing what team he was being forced to leave behind. He hit it dead on.
Bill Polian-"They're a very special group of men. Cherish them, you will not see their like again."