Inside The Bills

Kaepernick intangibles

Bills scouts addressed the media again this week leading up to the NFL draft and we’ve all heard about Colin Kaepernick’s outstanding athleticism, which is obvious to anyone that has watched him play. So I asked about whether he had all the intangibles that scouts look for from the quarterback position as well. The answer I got was definitive.

Bills scout Rashaan Curry, whose scouting region includes Nevada, called Kaepernick’s intangibles “off the charts.”

“There may not be a better kid in this draft in terms of intangibles,” said Curry. ”Now I don’t know that for sure because I don’t cover half the country, but in terms of my portion of the country there may not be a better guy in terms of intangibles than him. A guy who is smart, competitive, works hard and is driven. You get warm feelings when you think about his intangibles. You talk about a kid who not only did what the coaches asked him to do, but outside of that was a leader and dragged guys along with him.”

To further address Kaepernick’s abilities, ESPN Monday Night Football analyst Jon Gruden admitted that Nevada’s ‘pistol offense’ does complicate projecting Kaepernick to the NFL, but it’s clear he thinks highly of Kaepernick’s intangibles as well.

“Well, the pistol does make it tough, but you can’t deny production,” said Gruden. ”No one’s thrown for 10,000 yards and rushed for over 4,000. I do think you’re getting a double threat.  You’re getting a guy that has a contagious, charismatic personality – a guy that really wants to compete.  You’re getting an exciting prospect.  Might take him some time, but you’re getting a guy that can run and pass, just needs some development and needs to make the transition to the next level.”

Another NFL team looking for coach?

One advantage the Bills have had in their preliminary search for a new head coach is time. Time to get in touch with every one of their top candidates without worrying about getting beaten to the punch by other NFL teams looking for coaches. But they may now have some competition.

Per Pro Football Weekly Editor in chief Hub Arkush, the Chicago Bears have already begun surveying the NFL landscape for a new GM and head coach.

Arkush specifically named Mike Shanahan, Bill Cowher and Jon Gruden while appearing on a Chicago Sports Radio Station. The Bears are denying the report.

According to Yahoo Sports, the Chicago Bears are on Bill Cowher’s list of teams that would “excite him.” And we all know the connection that Shanahan would have with the Bears, with Jay Cutler now playing there.

This isn’t going to be easy.

Report: Indirect Gruden contact

According to News Channel 4, the Bills already approached those close to former Tampa Bay head coach Jon Gruden about Buffalo’s head coaching job, but it’s pretty clear that Jon Gruden won’t be coaching next year anywhere.

Gruden instead opted to continue as a TV analyst on ESPN’s Monday Night Football and just signed an extension this past week, despite the team’s best efforts per WIVB-TV.

With the TV money almost as good as the money paid to NFL head coaches it may be harder than some NFL teams think to coax Gruden out of the broadcast chair. There were reports out of New York this week that Gruden was completely committed to staying out of coaching in 2010, and maybe 2011 too.

That’s the one problem with trying to hire these big name coaches, they can afford to wait for the pick of the litter in terms of the best NFL situation in which to succeed. They’re ultimately going to take care of numero uno. By Gruden taking himself off the market, it also only improves the situation for Mike Shanahan and Mike Holmgren, the offensive-minded coaching candidates because the talent pool of proven offensive minds is now thinner. They’re all likely to wait until the end of the year before making a decision as to where they want to work.

Gruden going back to booth in 2010

ESPN just announced that Monday Night Football analyst and former NFL head coach Jon Gruden will be back in the broadcast booth next season.

Gruden signed a multi-year contract extension with the network according to ESPN.

Hard to say what that means for his coaching future, but I would guess with a new labor agreement still needed between owners and the players union for football beyond 2011, he’s covering his bases. I’ve got to believe there’s an out clause in the deal if the right NFL team offered him a head job.

Puzzling why Jets not interested in Gruden

According to Newsday, recently fired Bucs head coach Jon Gruden is apparently not of interest to the Jets as a head coaching possibility. Gruden, who was on Mike Holmgren’s staff in Green Bay when Brett Favre was there has run the offense that Favre has known for all but one of his 17 years in the NFL.

I guess the Jets aren’t concerned about the Favre factor. I was a bit surprised. In light of all that GM Mike Tannenbaum did to land Favre last season, and the likelihood of not having a major marquee name as head coach, they need a drawing card moving into their new stadium in a year.

Suffice to say there might be a bigger rebuilding effort in New York than some may have anticipated.