Polian sings praises of Rex, overdue Bills
BILL POLIAN knows a thing or two about successful Bills teams. Though they crushingly were never crowned champions, they appeared in a record four consecutive Super Bowls with Polian as the team’s general manager for the first three.
Now Polian believes it will be “a pretty exciting year” for the Bills, who are coming off their first winning season since 2004. After Doug Marrone opted out of his contract, fired Jets coach Rex Ryan took over Buffalo’s head-coaching position and will try to get the Bills to the playoffs for the first time since 1999.
Speaking on a conference call Thursday regarding his Hall of Fame induction next month, Polian praised Ryan for “what he brings in terms of spirit, aggressiveness and defensive acumen.”
Polian, who won Super Bowl XLI as general manager and president of the Colts, is a fan of many of the moves the Bills have made, mainly the addition of running back LeSean McCoy. He felt the sudden retirement of quarterback Kyle Orton at the end of last season was “an incredible shock,” and the story of who will be the team’s starting signalcaller will dominate Buffalo’s training camp. The Bills acquired Matt Cassel from the Vikings and signed Tyrod Taylor to compete with E.J. Manuel. They’re also taking a flier on ex-Jet Matt Simms.
“Obviously the big question is, who plays quarterback?” Polian said. “We’ll find that out as the preseason goes along. The battle for the starting job at that position will I think be the No. 1 story in Buffalo, and maybe even around the National Football League as we move forward. I, like every other Bills fan, is going to be watching that with a lot of interest.”
Polian will be inducted by Marv Levy in Canton, Ohio, on Aug. 8 and said choosing the former Bills coach to induct him “was the easiest decision I’ve ever made, maybe in my life.” On the honor itself, Polian said it wasn’t something he ever believed was possible.
“The (MLB) All-Star Game was just the other night; when you think of Hall of Fame, you think of Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays and Frank Gifford and Chuck Bednarik and people like that, not people like me,” Polian said. “So it’s almost difficult to get your head around it.”
He also went to bat for former Bills special teams ace Steve Tasker and center Kent Hull, stating their cases for enshrinement in the Hall of Fame.
“In my mind Steve Tasker is the greatest specialteams player certainly that I’ve ever seen in my lifetime,” Polian said. “Obviously Kent Hull. . . . was probably the most highly respected and feared player on the team. His word was law. He was the real-life, living embodiment of what John Wayne played on the movie screen. So he carried with him a leadership mantle that far exceeded his incredible talent.”