Bills
Related Photos
-
Bills owner Ralph Wilson isn't sure if former Steelers coach Bill Cowher is interested in the Bills coaching vacancy. MICHAEL CONROY
Tools
NFL: Wilson unsure of Cowher's interest in Bills job
BUFFALO — Bills owner Ralph Wilson confirmed the team has spoken to Bill Cowher about the team’s coaching vacancy. Wilson isn’t sure whether the former Steelers coach is interested in the job.
“I don’t know,” Wilson told The Associated Press during a brief interview from his home in suburban Detroit on Friday. “You’d have to ask him.”
Though Cowher has been widely speculated as being a candidate for the Bills job, Wilson was the first person to publicly say the Bills have spoken to him. Cowher, who works as an NFL analyst for CBS, has declined to discuss his future.
Wilson stressed that he could not go into much detail about the team’s coaching search, but did say it was ongoing as the Bills attempt to fill the job left open after Dick Jauron was fired in November.
Declining to place a timetable on the search, Wilson said “we don’t want to rush into hiring a coach just to be hiring somebody quick.” He then added: “We don’t want to hire a coach with a splashy name.”
The Bills are one of two teams looking for a new coach after the Seattle Seahawks fired Jim Mora on Friday.
Wilson said the team has no preference in hiring someone with a defensive or offensive background.
“We want to hire a coach who wants to come to Buffalo and be a part of the community, you know what I mean?” Wilson said. “We’re looking for a guy with a lot of passion.”
Cowher has been regarded as a fan-favorite candidate. A group of fans have raised $1,125 to rent a billboard in Buffalo, set to go up on Monday, urging Wilson to hire Cowher.
The Bills have interviewed at least two other candidates. Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier was interviewed in Minnesota on Thursday. Perry Fewell, who succeeded Jauron as the Bills interim coach, was interviewed on Monday.
The search is being led by chief executive officer Russ Brandon and new general manager Buddy Nix.
The Bills might have to put their search on hold until after this weekend’s conference wild-card playoff games are over. Under NFL rules, coaches on the eight teams playing this weekend cannot be interviewed for jobs until next week regardless of whether their teams win or lose.
Wilson is eager to find a coach to turn around the fortunes of a team that went 6-10 this past season to miss the playoffs for a 10th straight year. The Bills had only one winning season last decade — a 9-7 finish in 2004 — and are on their fifth coaching search since hall of famer Marv Levy retired following the 1997 season.
- Bills
-
-
BILLS: Gailey not ready to choose starting QB
Don’t expect Buffalo Bills coach Chan Gailey to choose a starting quarterback anytime soon. Having evaluated the three quarterbacks on his roster, Gailey said Tuesday he anticipates holding an open competition to determine who will win the job.
-
BILLS: Free agent LB Davis signs 2-year deal
Listed at 6-foot-1 and 250 pounds, Andra Davis is an eight-year NFL veteran who was credited with 90 tackles in each of his last two seasons. He also had a career-best 3 1/2 sacks last year.
-
BILLS: Schobel still undecided on retirement
Aaron Schobel is in no rush to collect his $2 million roster bonus because the Buffalo Bills defensive end still hasn’t decided on whether he’ll come back for a 10th NFL season.
-
NFL: Bills sign veteran tackle Cornell Green
An expensive steak dinner he couldn't finish and an offer he couldn't refuse were enough to convince veteran offensive tackle Cornell Green to sign with the Buffalo Bills.
-
COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Unity has Medaille dancing
Both the men’s and women’s basketball squads tout their closeness as a key reason for their success this season. Both won the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Tournament title. The men did so for the second straight season, and the Lady Mavs won the tournament for the fourth time in five years.
-
BILLS: Gailey’s first priority is finding QB
In taking over as the Buffalo Bills new head coach, Chan Gailey’s first challenge is addressing a lingering problem: Identifying a starting quarterback.
-
BILLS: Chan Gailey hired as head coach
Gailey was hired by first-time general manager Buddy Nix, ending a two-month search to replace Dick Jauron, who was fired in November.
-
TIM'S TAKES: Nix, not Gailey, the one to worry about
General manager Buddy Nix, the affable Southerner who calls ’em as he sees ’em, reminded us again that this wasn’t a job he’d even come looking for.
-
BILLS: Evans thinks team will get right guy
Despite several setbacks and at least one rejection in the Buffalo Bills’ search for a new coach, receiver Lee Evans has confidence general manager Buddy Nix will find the right man for the job.
-
BILLS: Grimm could snub Bills
The Bills have asked permission from the Arizona Cardinals to interview assistant head coach Russ Grimm about their head coaching opening, but apparently Grimm might not be ready to give his permission.
ESPN reported on Tuesday that the former Washington Redskins lineman would most likely turn down the interview.
- More Bills Headlines
-
BILLS: Gailey not ready to choose starting QB
