Buffalo Bills: Brandon resigns amid allegations surrounding misconduct

Russ Brandon resigns from the Pegula sports empire, which includes the Buffalo Bills, amid allegations surrounding his conduct in the workplace.

Russ Brandon has left the Pegula sports empire, in a move which many Buffalo Bills and Sabres fans will think is long overdue. However, the circumstances surrounding his departure are less than ideal.

The Pegulas have accepted Brandon’s resignation from his position as managing partner and president. As reported by Tim Graham of The Buffalo News, the move was made following an internal investigation.

The investigation by the Pegula sports empire came after allegations surrounding Brandon’s behavior in his workplace. Graham referenced two unnamed sources who had spoken to The Buffalo News.

Graham went on to write that when confronted by the claims of inappropriate relationships with female employees, Brandon denied this. However, the investigation indicated he was deceitful about this and other job-related issues which were uncovered.

Terry and Kim Pegula confirmed the news of Brandon’s resignation in an official statement. As per WGR 550, the statement read:

"We have a tremendous amount of confidence in the strong leadership teams we have built within each of those entities over the last several years. We are excited about the direction of our teams, especially after this past weekend’s NFL draft and NHL lottery results. Our focus remains on building championship teams on and off the field for our fans and community."

Given the circumstances surrounding this story, the Pegulas should be commended for not attempting to sweep this situation under the carpet. They dealt with it about as well as could be expected.

As reported by Sportsnet, Brandon contacted the Associated Press via text, to claim he had been contemplating stepping down for some time. It was apparently always his goal to reach 20 years with the organization.

And yet the abrupt timing of this move suggests otherwise. Unsurprisingly, the former member of the Florida Marlins’ front office did not respond to follow-up questions regarding the misconduct claims.

Brandon has long received criticism for his performance during his time in Buffalo. Fair or not, whatever he did — or didn’t — do, he just couldn’t seem to appease the masses.

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One example of this came during the fiasco when Doug Whaley’s departed from the Bills. The official line was that Brandon was not involved in any football decisions, and yet there were claims he was part of a prior move to fire Rex Ryan.

The East Syracuse, New York had been involved with the Western New York sporting scene for 21 years. He first joined the Buffalo Bills organization in Nov. 1997.

With the resignation of Brandon, Kim Pegula will now take over the role as President of the Bills, Sabres and the Pegula sports empire. As per the official statement, Terry Pegula will oversee the teams’ operations.

There will undoubtedly be people who do not agree with Kim Pegula succeeding Brandon. However, someone had to take on the role, and it remains to be seen if the move is temporary or permanent.

What is indisputable though, is that Brandon had to go. And at least the Pegulas allowed him the opportunity to step down and maintain some dignity, rather than outright firing him.

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What’s your take on Brandon’s resignation and his time in Western New York? Are you on board with Kim Pegula taking over his position? How do you think this will all impact the Pegula sports empire, specifically the Buffalo Bills and Sabres? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.