Wade's waffling on thin ice

By Rick Anderson

Wade Phillips is looking more and more like Bill Clinton, a lame duck leader. Phillips has continuously mismanaged not only the media but his team as well. He never handled the quarterback controversy between Doug Flutie and Rob Johnson well. His waffling from making any firm commitment (on anything) from day one has not endeared him with the press and probably the same can be said about the regard he gets from his players. How can any player respect a coach who has made more blunders than his special teams units this year.

Wade Phillips may be on his way out as Bills head coach

[Bills Photo]

The Bills entered the season with high expectations, especially after they beat the Titans in the opening game. After winning their second game, the hopes of Bills fans soared even higher. Then the roof fell in.

Phillips has defended the hiring of special teams coach Ronnie Jones and tried to blame his players for the poor play. Jones had never coached special teams before this year and no one knows the reasoning why Phillips hand picked Jones to replace the fired Bruce DeHaven. While Jones is being blasted by fans and media alike for his poor special teams coaching this year, DeHaven is sitting pretty in San Francisco and laughing about the Bills plight.

Phillips made one of his most dubious gaffes last week when he was describing the duties of Chris Watson, the Bills punk and kick returner.

"Chris Watson is our safest guy so to speak," Wade said. "He's done what he can do, but he's not a punt returner he's a punt catcher and that's basically what we have to live with."

That comment sparked hot criticism of Phillips in the Buffalo media all week. It was only the latest in ongoing asinine dialog that has come out of Phillips mouth since he took over the head coaching job from Marv Levy a few years ago.

After Sunday's game, some more riffraff came out of Wade's mouth.

"Obviously we hadn't had a bad game all year until this one, and this was no contest," Phillips said to the surprise of everyone at the post game press conference Sunday.

How can any sane man say the Bills didn't have a bad game before the Dolphins game Sunday? Wade is not only a mediocre head coach at best, but he must be losing his memory. The Bills lost six games this year and the previous five were NOT good games by the Bills. Just the week before, they had gotten embarrassed by Tampa Bay 31-17. The first game against the Dolphins was also a poor performance. Maybe Wade is watching the films and not the game itself. A good editor can splice and dice almost anything these days and make even a losing effort look flawless.

When the Bills went into the locker room at half time losing 24-0, they were deserving a good tongue-lashing by the coaching staff. What they got was a watered-down plea by Phillips to "start playing."

"I told them we had a chance to come back, and I wanted them to start playing," a bewildered Phillips said. "We played better (in the second half), but we were really out of the game. You give them a 24 point lead…they're awfully good."

Coming out onto the field for the second half, Phillips was asked by CBS's Bonnie Bernstein what he had planned to get back into the game. Bernstein said right before the kickoff for the second half, "Wade Phillips walked out of the locker room, shrugged his shoulders, looked at me and said ‘We've made all the adjustments we can make. I don't know what else to do.'"

If Phillips hasn't any idea what to do when falling behind by a lopsided score, then he doesn't deserve being a head coach.....of any team, whether it's the NFL or high school.

Phillips' complacent halftime speech didn't generate too many sparks in the second half. In fact, it may have put the players into deeper slumber.

Earlier in the season, when the great quarterback debate was raging, Phillips seemed reluctant to make a choice and by not doing so, contributed to the controversy. When pressed by the media, he became vague and evasive. He said "the quarterback controversy is media generated." Any strong coach would have said, "This is my quarterback and I don't care what anyone thinks." Wade, instead was indecisive in coming out early and naming his starter, thus leaving the door open for the whole controversy.

Phillips indecisiveness goes a lot further than just the quarterbacking situation. His calling of plays, his challenges of referee's calls, handling of the media and even the relation he has with his team leaves a lot to be desired. All in all, Phillips is not a take-charge, dynamic head coach. In order for the current Bills to succeed, they need strength from the coaching ranks. They aren't getting it. Instead, Phillips, along with Joe Pendry and Ronnie Jones, are not getting the message across to the players. The problem is that they themselves don't know what the message is.

With the Bills being blown out at home in a game they needed to win to keep their playoff hopes alive, it became apparent that the Bills were not ready to take the field against the Dolphins. As in all sports, the No. 1 job of a head coach is to get his team prepared for their next opponent. If the team comes out flat and makes many mental mistakes, it is directly the fault of the coach. Sabres coach Lindy Ruff has had to answer for the nights when the Sabres don't show up. The same should be true for Phillips.

Ralph Wilson, if he has any concern about the future of the Bills besides unloading the franchise, better call Phillips into his office and give him his termination papers. The sooner the better. If Phillips is allowed to remain the Bills head coach next season, then it is obvious that Wilson does not have the Bills nor Buffalo's best interests in mind.

Bills fans in Western New York and around the country are voicing their opinions about Wade Phillips. The majority of them feel that the time is ripe for a coaching change. Even if Ted Cottrell is named interim coach, it is better than the lack of leadership that is the current situation on the Bills sidelines. Cottrell has done an outstanding job as defensive coordinator and has been often mentioned as head coach material.

The Bills season is practically over. By not being prepared with a proper game plan and mentally not into the game, the Bills handed the game over to the Dolphins. The Bills had their excuse last Monday. They had just lost three starters on defense and were bemoaning the issue all week leading up to the Dolphins game. Even before they took the field against the Dolphins, the game was lost. The excuses were in the bank collecting interest. Marv Levy would have never let injuries stand in the way of his team competing with every ounce of energy it had. Levy rallied his troops during halftime of that Houston wildcard game. His players listened and came out for the second half with their ears pinned back. They believed they could come back and they did, performing the greatest comeback in the history of the NFL. The current Bills don't have a motivator such as Levy. They have a laid-back coach who can't motivate himself, let alone his team.

Phillips is just biding his time before the inevitable. Hopefully, the inevitable will take place sooner rather than later.

Copyright © 2000 Bills Thunder & Rick Anderson, all rights reserved.