Buffalo Bills: Is Pressure Already on Doug Whaley Despite Extension?

With the NFL’s longest current playoff drought, how much would failing to make the postseason this year, affect the job security of Buffalo Bills’ general manager Doug Whaley?

Sometimes, it’s tough what to make of all the contrasting and wide-ranging speculation on certain subject matters in the world of professional sports. For the Buffalo Bills, a prime example of this is Doug Whaley’s job security.

Whaley has been Bills general manager since May 2013, when he took over the role from Buddy Nix. Since then, he has seen the team miss the playoffs three times – not exactly a new phenomenon in Western New York.

Regardless, as the 2015 campaign wound down, rumors started to circulate, that the 43-year was on the hot seat. Apparently, all was not well between the coaching staff and upper management at One Bills Drive.

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Not long after, Ian Rapoport came out and essentially said the exact opposite. The NFL Network Insider said Terry and Kim Pegula were fans of Whaley’s work since taking over as GM and felt he worked well with Rex Ryan.

Next up, January started with a report from Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News. Carucci claimed Terry Pegula issued an ultimatum to Whaley (and Ryan) to make the playoffs in 2016 or be fired.

However – true or not – just a few days later, it was announced the Bills had signed their former Director of Pro Personnel to a contract extension. ESPN’s Mike Rodak advised that terms were not disclosed, but confirmed the deal covered multiple years.

As such, this should theoretically bring the talk surrounding Whaley’s job security to an end, at least for now. Unfortunately, this doesn’t appear to be the case, at least according to Don Banks (who, incidentally, says the Bills’ GM’s contract extension was for three years).

Now, it should be noted the Sports Illustrated writer started off his column by admitting he considered putting John Elway on the “hot seat” list, due to his handling of the quarterback situation. Sorry, but to even consider Elway, who is coming off a Super Bowl win, was ridiculous.

In any event, Banks wrote: “Until Buffalo finally gets over the hump and returns to relevancy, (the Pittsburgh native’s) job security will continue to be a question that won’t go away”. And while there is a certain degree of truth to this, it doesn’t actually mean he will be fired, even if the Bills do yet again fail to make the playoffs this coming season.

Other’s to jump on the “Doug Whaley is under pressure” bandwagon, include Louis Riddick. Speaking to WGR550, the ESPN analyst repeated Banks’ assessment, that Whaley is on the hot seat.

According to WGR550’s Matthew Coller, any pressure on the former college defensive back, partly comes from some of the comments he made during this past offseason. The most well publicized example of this, was saying he felt humans were not meant to play football.

In reality, Whaley’s right – look no further than the variety of examples over the years, including paralysis, concussions, off-field addictions to cope with the pain, and so on. Regardless, he was roundly criticized and eventually forced to apologize for his poor choice of words – also known as the truth.

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Perhaps a better example of the University of Pittsburgh graduate incorrectly dealing with the media, comes from when the Bills drafted Shaq Lawson. Despite reports that Lawson needed surgery, it was claimed the first round draft pick was cleared by the medical staff and expected to be a starter from day one.

Of course, when Lawson did go on to have surgery, Whaley was crucified. Regardless of his attempts to smooth the matter over, he should have – quite simply – been honest when originally questioned on draft night.

Ultimately, when you take everything into account, while Whaley will be under pressure to get his team into the playoffs this season, who isn’t? When you throw in the Pegulas’ preference for stability and continuity, as far as we’re concerned, he will still have his job after this season. (And yes Bills fans, this is even if the Bills extend their postseason drought to 17 years.)

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What’s your take on Whaley’s position? Do you think he’s under pressure if the Bills fail to qualify for the playoffs this season, or do you believe he’s safe either way? Let us know in the comments section below.