Buffalo Bills: ESPN’s Herm Edwards Gives Buffalo Solid Advice
By Ryan Brennan
Former NFL head coach Herm Edwards had encouraging words for the Buffalo Bills next season.
The Buffalo Bills caught up with former NFL head coach and current ESPN NFL Analyst Herm Edwards at last week’s Pro Bowl. Edwards had some encouraging words for Sean McDermott and the Bills, including some valuable advice on bringing some wins to this city.
Herm Edwards emphasized the difference between philosophy and players, noting that a lot of coaches tend to get the two twisted. Many fans would agree that Rex Ryan was one of those coaches that weighed his philosophy more important than the players on his roster.
Edwards doesn’t think that will be a problem with Buffalo Bills‘ new head coach Sean McDemott. Here’s what the former head coach had to say about McDermott:
"“Philosophy is one thing – players are another. If your philosophy doesn’t fit the players, then you’ve got a problem. I think Sean (McDermott) is smart enough to realize that regardless of what his philosophy is, it’s got to be player-friendly."
Edwards has a point here. Of course, every coach has his own philosophies that they prefer and use most of the time, but it’s important to remember that players work the same way. Not every cornerback is best at zone coverage, whereas others prefer it. Not every quarterback is good on their feet, while others would say it’s their strong suit.
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If Sean McDermott had the ability to go through a fantasy draft and choose every single player he wanted on the Buffalo Bills‘ roster, then he would be able to orchestrate a group of guys that fit in his scheme. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen and instead, McDermott inherited a group of guys that actually fit a completely different philosophy.
That shouldn’t stop him though.
"“These philosophies and systems, that’s all coach talk,” said Herm Edwards. “The reality is that you have the players that you have. You’re not going to get rid of all these players. There’s a reason they’re in the National Football League. They happen to be good players."
Does that mean Sean McDermott won’t flourish? Absolutely not. He will still be able to use his philosophies and schemes with this team, but he will have to stay player-friendly and remember that some players aren’t going to perform their best in certain schemes.
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Rex Ryan had a hard time doing that and to make it worse, let the players have too much control and freedom with the game. It will also be important for McDermott to hold players accountable and keep them disciplined each and every week.
Here’s another excerpt from Herm Edwards:
"“I think the coaches that have success in our league are the coaches that might have a philosophy, but the system is player-friendly – and I can’t say that enough. It’s player-friendly."
With Sean McDermott’s attention to detail, I think a lot of the problems surrounding the Buffalo Bills will soon disappear. He will be able to tell what’s working, what’s not working, how to maintain what’s working and also how to fix what isn’t. His philosophies will play a part, but nothing will be set in stone.
This is the type of coach the Buffalo Bills should’ve hired two years ago.
Here’s one last excerpt from Herm Edwards — and probably the most important:
"“Players play, coaches coach. When you get that twisted – when the philosophy becomes bigger than the players – you’ve got a problem. I think most coaches understand that, so it’s a matter of, now, how they work that system and how these players will obviously flourish in it.”"
It sounds like Herm has confidence in Sean McDermott and also seems to believe that the Bills are close to ending their 17-year playoff drought. Of course, that will have to wait for now.
It’s nice to see McDermott getting recognition from all over the league and media.
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What record do you think Sean McDermott ends with in his first year with Buffalo? Leave your predictions below!