Thoughts on Chan Gailey as Bills head coach

John Clayton:

Gailey takes over a tough situation, one of the reasons big names such as Bill Cowher, Mike Shanahan and others passed on the job. The Bills haven't been to the playoffs since 1999, and their loyal fan base is getting frustrated by years of average teams that seem to be in perpetual transition.

What are the five things Gailey must prioritize to turn things around?

1. QB situation: First, Gailey must figure where to find a new quarterback. Under the circumstances, it might not be a bad idea for Gailey to convince ownership to stay with Trent Edwards for one more season, but owner Ralph Wilson might not go for that. Edwards has a year left on his contract, but the offense went in reverse this season with him behind center and several people in the organization are ready to go a new direction.

Mike Lombardi:

I don’t understand the Bills’ logic in hiring Chan Gailey as their new head coach. It has an almost “Raider-ish” feel to it, believing that fixing one side of the ball will fix their current losing streak. Gailey was almost hired last year by Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli to be the head coach, but because Pioli didn’t think he could sell Gailey to the media or the Kansas City fan base as the man to rebuild the team’s fortunes, he passed, opting to keep him as offensive coordinator. We know how that worked out; Gailey was fired after the third preseason game, not for his lack of offensive acumen, but because of philosophical differences between him and head coach Todd Haley.

Peter King:

News item: Chan Gailey will be introduced as Buffalo's new coach today, and the Bills are laying low beforehand, knowing they're going to get rapped heavily for it and figuring they

should put on a united front when they make their case. Four observations:

1. Easy to knock the hire. The Bills brought a batting-practice pitcher to the mound and put A-Rod and Pujols up to bat, so I'll knock it first, then give it the prayer of the chance it has.

Where was the Mike Zimmer interview? It was a big mistake not to interview the Cincinnati defensive coordinator who has turned his unit into a tough day at the office for any NFL offense. Zimmer, I can assure you, would have walked to Buffalo for the job. But he didn't get a sniff. And the list of guys who turned down the chance to even talk about the job ... it's so long that the only conclusion you can logically draw is the Bills are turning into the Raiders. No coach wants the job. So the team has to find a guy who wouldn't be a candidate elsewhere -- and Gailey, after clashing with Todd Haley in Kansas City last year, had nowhere to go.