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This was taken from another Bills MB:
It's pretty much in sync with everything I've been reading about him. I'm not sure how I'm going to act if he is able to turn this offense around.
jcblanco22
"Hi everyone, lifelong Cowboys fan here who requested to join your forum today because of the Gailey hiring. I see that a lot of Bills fans are feeling a spectrum of emotions ranging from frustrated to disgusted over this move, and believe me, I would say that about 60% of Cowboys fans weren't thrilled with Gailey's tenure in Dallas from what I've read on our own message boards over the years.
That being said, I was always in that 40% that thought he was great for Dallas. In fact, I was happy to see Jerry Jones own up to the mistake he made when he fired Chan, even if he just finally came out with his admission in the last year.
You guys have gotten a solid coach who I am convinced will be much better in his 2nd NFL HC stint, and I'm saying that while thinking he did just fine in his 1st one as well. One thing Gailey is is a very rational guy who tries to learn from past mistakes. You guys heard it for yourself in today's PC when he went right back to the January '99 Wild Card game the Cowboys lost to the Cardinals and stated that in retrospect, he may have let the team get overconfident. He seemed to have that answer and memory right at the forefront of his mind, as if he actively gives his past shortcomings the proper amount of attention in order to avoid repeating them.
Gailey rescued a Dallas team that had fallen under significant disorganization under Barry Switzer and really turned them around. He instituted post-practice penalty laps for any pre-snap penalties that occurred in practice, got Nate Newton to drop close to 100 pounds when had ballooned up close to 400 during the offseason leading into the '98 campaign, and succeeded in getting a team that had gotten very fat and happy so to speak, to refocus and make the playoffs.
Skeptics always point to the fact that he inherited a team with all of these future HOFers, but that is misleading on a few fronts. To begin with, he had a very difficult proposition as a rookie HC in inheriting that type of team, because of the sense of entitlement from the veterans and the "I have 3 Super Bowl rings, why are you coming in here to change the offense we won those championships with" type of attitude he had to endure. During Chan's 2 years, all 3 future HOFers also suffered key injuries that caused them to miss stretches of games and in Michael Irvin's case, it was 12+games in '99, an injury he never returned from. Emmit Smith was also said to be on his last legs after the '97 season, and he had the last 2 great seasons of his stellar career under Chan (1,332 yards in '98 and 1,397 in '99 in 13 1/2 games).
One thing that is often forgotten is that Gailey had the '99 Cowboys headed to 4-0 when Michael Irvin suffered his injury in Veteran's Stadium. He also suffered subsequent other injuries at the WR position that year, until it got to the point that he had a 5th string rookie starting in the Wild Card game that year against the Vikings. Aikman also missed time that season (as he had during Gailey's first year), and Emmit Smith even missed 2 1/2 games with a broken hand. The 8-8 record and Wild Card berth the Cowboys managed that season was actually an accomplishment considering all of the changing personnel on offense he had to deal with.
Gailey is an adaptable and very creative offensive mind. He may have tried to force things a bit in Dallas as a rookie HC-- he had Michael Irvin lining up in the backfield and even out of the game on some 3rd downs back in '98 for example--, but I think he long ago learned from those mistakes. To be fair, he also had some great offensive wrinkles that he introduced, such as running the option with Emmit Smith and Ernie Mills and direct snaps to halfback Chris Warren waaaay before the Wildcat was in vogue, that opposing defenses never saw coming that year.
Look for Chan to really do some creative things with guys like Fred Jackson, who is very quick in space and can do multiple things well. If Marshawn Lynch does end up being retained by the team, look for Gailey to do good things with him as well. There's no denying Gailey has a solid track record with running backs, be they mediocre ones or Hall of Famers. For example, Emmit Smith has credited Gailey in the past with having resurrected his career, and Lamar Smith, never anything to write home about before or after his time with Chan in Miami, had his most productive years when Gailey worked with him.
Finally, I've seen a few challenging the idea that Gailey has developed QBs. I agree to an extent, I think the better description for what he's done is maximize a few of these guys' abilities when he's had them. I.E. Fiedler, Stewart, and Tomczak had their best seasons under Chan's tutelage.
Sorry for the long post and for stepping into the Bills discussion here, but I thought I would add my .02. I am looking forward to watching your team with unprecedented interest this season and to rooting for Chan and your team to do well."
"Hi everyone, lifelong Cowboys fan here who requested to join your forum today because of the Gailey hiring. I see that a lot of Bills fans are feeling a spectrum of emotions ranging from frustrated to disgusted over this move, and believe me, I would say that about 60% of Cowboys fans weren't thrilled with Gailey's tenure in Dallas from what I've read on our own message boards over the years.
That being said, I was always in that 40% that thought he was great for Dallas. In fact, I was happy to see Jerry Jones own up to the mistake he made when he fired Chan, even if he just finally came out with his admission in the last year.
You guys have gotten a solid coach who I am convinced will be much better in his 2nd NFL HC stint, and I'm saying that while thinking he did just fine in his 1st one as well. One thing Gailey is is a very rational guy who tries to learn from past mistakes. You guys heard it for yourself in today's PC when he went right back to the January '99 Wild Card game the Cowboys lost to the Cardinals and stated that in retrospect, he may have let the team get overconfident. He seemed to have that answer and memory right at the forefront of his mind, as if he actively gives his past shortcomings the proper amount of attention in order to avoid repeating them.
Gailey rescued a Dallas team that had fallen under significant disorganization under Barry Switzer and really turned them around. He instituted post-practice penalty laps for any pre-snap penalties that occurred in practice, got Nate Newton to drop close to 100 pounds when had ballooned up close to 400 during the offseason leading into the '98 campaign, and succeeded in getting a team that had gotten very fat and happy so to speak, to refocus and make the playoffs.
Skeptics always point to the fact that he inherited a team with all of these future HOFers, but that is misleading on a few fronts. To begin with, he had a very difficult proposition as a rookie HC in inheriting that type of team, because of the sense of entitlement from the veterans and the "I have 3 Super Bowl rings, why are you coming in here to change the offense we won those championships with" type of attitude he had to endure. During Chan's 2 years, all 3 future HOFers also suffered key injuries that caused them to miss stretches of games and in Michael Irvin's case, it was 12+games in '99, an injury he never returned from. Emmit Smith was also said to be on his last legs after the '97 season, and he had the last 2 great seasons of his stellar career under Chan (1,332 yards in '98 and 1,397 in '99 in 13 1/2 games).
One thing that is often forgotten is that Gailey had the '99 Cowboys headed to 4-0 when Michael Irvin suffered his injury in Veteran's Stadium. He also suffered subsequent other injuries at the WR position that year, until it got to the point that he had a 5th string rookie starting in the Wild Card game that year against the Vikings. Aikman also missed time that season (as he had during Gailey's first year), and Emmit Smith even missed 2 1/2 games with a broken hand. The 8-8 record and Wild Card berth the Cowboys managed that season was actually an accomplishment considering all of the changing personnel on offense he had to deal with.
Gailey is an adaptable and very creative offensive mind. He may have tried to force things a bit in Dallas as a rookie HC-- he had Michael Irvin lining up in the backfield and even out of the game on some 3rd downs back in '98 for example--, but I think he long ago learned from those mistakes. To be fair, he also had some great offensive wrinkles that he introduced, such as running the option with Emmit Smith and Ernie Mills and direct snaps to halfback Chris Warren waaaay before the Wildcat was in vogue, that opposing defenses never saw coming that year.
Look for Chan to really do some creative things with guys like Fred Jackson, who is very quick in space and can do multiple things well. If Marshawn Lynch does end up being retained by the team, look for Gailey to do good things with him as well. There's no denying Gailey has a solid track record with running backs, be they mediocre ones or Hall of Famers. For example, Emmit Smith has credited Gailey in the past with having resurrected his career, and Lamar Smith, never anything to write home about before or after his time with Chan in Miami, had his most productive years when Gailey worked with him.
Finally, I've seen a few challenging the idea that Gailey has developed QBs. I agree to an extent, I think the better description for what he's done is maximize a few of these guys' abilities when he's had them. I.E. Fiedler, Stewart, and Tomczak had their best seasons under Chan's tutelage.
Sorry for the long post and for stepping into the Bills discussion here, but I thought I would add my .02. I am looking forward to watching your team with unprecedented interest this season and to rooting for Chan and your team to do well."
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