Ralph WIlson Keeps Dick Jauron As Head Coach, Defies History

Buffalo Bill's owner Ralph Wilson issued a press release confirming the Bills had signed a contract extension with Head Coach Dick Jauron, and that Jauron would be back to coach the Bills in the 2009-2010 season.

After starting this season 5-1, the Bills only won two of their next 10 games, ending the season with a losing 7-9 record for the third consecutive year under Jauron's leadership. Several of these defeats were noteworthy for questionable coaching decisions.  

Against the Jets, leading by three with the clock running down to the two-minute warning, Jauron called for backup quarterback J.P. Losman to pass the ball. Losman was sacked, and his fumble was returned by the Jets for the winning touchdown.  

In the season finale against the Patriots, with the clock running and 22 seconds left in the half, Jauron called a running play on third down from the Patriots' 13-yard line. The Bills were unable to get their field goal team on the field in time to kick the tying field goal.

Jauron has been widely criticised in the Buffalo and national press and in a poll of more than 3,500 fans after the season's end, more than 90 percent voted that Jauron should be replaced. When coaches with far better records with their teams than Jauron such as Denver's Mike Shanahan and New York's Eric Mangini were fired within 24 hours of the last game, many believed that Jauron would have to go.  

Even if Jauron had signed a contract extension in midseason when the Bills record stood at 5-1, surely Bills owner Ralph Wilson could sense the Bills fans' growing disenchantment with Jauron. Surely the loss of several thousand season-ticket holders would be worse financially than having to reach a settlement with Jauron.

It was some surprise then when Wilson announced that Jauron would be back, stating, "I believe that this team, at this time, is better served by continuity in the coaching staff rather than a disruptive overhaul.”  Jauron is the Bill's fourth coach in the last 11 years, and none have been successful, as the Bills have failed to reach the playoffs for nine years running.

As the Bills themselves exemplify, changing coaches does not always result in improved results. Hiring the right coach is equally important. Nevertheless, four NFL teams had new head coaches at the start of the 2008:

1. Washington Redskins - Jim Zorn
   
2. Miami Dolphins - Tony Sparano
   
3. Baltimore Ravens - John Harbaugh
   
4. Atlanta Falcons - Mike Smith
   

Interestingly, all four of these men had no previous NFL head-coaching experience. Even more interesting, three of these four teams made the playoffs after not making the playoffs the year before.

There is something to be said for continuity, with players not having to learn new systems and adjust to new coaches. But there is also something to be said for breaking a losing culture.  

It is the expressed goal of every NFL team, even the Bills, to win the Super Bowl. You have to go back nearly 40 years to find a Super-Bowl-winning coach that ever had three losing seasons in a row and went on to win the Super Bowl.

In 1969, Chuck Noll was hired by the Pittsburgh Steelers and in his rookie year went 1-13. The next year, the Steelers improved to 5-9 and the year after to 6-8. In 1974, the Steelers won their first of four Super Bowls.

Since Noll, there have been 18 Super Bowl winning coaches, and not one of them ever had three losing seasons in a row like Dick Jauron. Maybe Ralph Wilson believes Dick Jauron is cut from the same mold as Chuck Noll. The thinking here is that he's just not that committed to winning a Super Bowl.