The Spaz
04-26-2004, 01:04 PM
Mike Mularkey drove to Ralph Wilson Stadium early Saturday morning anxious to begin the weekend. After being named Buffalo's new head coach in January, Mularkey was fired up about his first draft as a head coach.
He spent years as an assistant in Pittsburgh and said he only had to worry about position players. This time, Mularkey had to focus on the entire team and drafting the best players available.
"It's been a great experience so far," Mularkey said. "It's more difficult to prepare though. When I was a position coach in Pittsburgh I only worried about positions. Here I have to look at the entire team and what's best for the team rather than just the offense."
With the offense coming off a disappointing year, the Bills chose five offensive players out of their six picks. They also drafted a quarterback in the first round for the first time since 1983 when they took Jim Kelly. Mularkey said that they selected those players based on talent and their ability to help out the team.
"When you're in the draft room you have to be thinking about the whole team," Mularkey said. "Whether you've got five, 10, or 15 minutes you have to be able to make a quick decision and you always have to stay on your toes. Some of the guys are rated so closely that you have to just pull the trigger and make the decision. When you're a coordinator you don't really have to worry about those things."
http://www.buffalobills.com/news/index.cfm?cont_id=241782
He spent years as an assistant in Pittsburgh and said he only had to worry about position players. This time, Mularkey had to focus on the entire team and drafting the best players available.
"It's been a great experience so far," Mularkey said. "It's more difficult to prepare though. When I was a position coach in Pittsburgh I only worried about positions. Here I have to look at the entire team and what's best for the team rather than just the offense."
With the offense coming off a disappointing year, the Bills chose five offensive players out of their six picks. They also drafted a quarterback in the first round for the first time since 1983 when they took Jim Kelly. Mularkey said that they selected those players based on talent and their ability to help out the team.
"When you're in the draft room you have to be thinking about the whole team," Mularkey said. "Whether you've got five, 10, or 15 minutes you have to be able to make a quick decision and you always have to stay on your toes. Some of the guys are rated so closely that you have to just pull the trigger and make the decision. When you're a coordinator you don't really have to worry about those things."
http://www.buffalobills.com/news/index.cfm?cont_id=241782