Doug Marrone hired as Jacksonville Jaguars Assistant/OL Coach; City of Buffalo Laughs Collectively

Well this was a power play that certainly didn’t work out the way former Buffalo Bills head coach Doug Marrone wanted.

Instead of being one of the 32 head coaches in the NFL, Marrone will have to settle for a position a little lower down the ladder.

The Florida Times-Union reported today that Marrone was hired by the Jacksonville Jaguars as their assistant head coach and offensive line coach.

That noise you hear is the city of Buffalo collectively laughing good riddance.

Yes, Marrone is getting paid a cool $4 million to not coach the Bills this season.

But, was coaching the Bills really such a bad thing when the alternative was heading to the lowly Jaguars, who are years away from competing in the AFC.

Marrone made his power play, and it didn’t work as he got too cocky of himself and what he accomplished here in Buffalo.

He thought the New York Jets job was in the bag, and was reported to be very underwhelming in the interview.  The Jets turned to Todd Bowles instead.

I’m sorry, but I’m not sure why he thought he’d be immediately scooped up, as he struggles immensely in game management and compiled a record of just 15-17 during his time in Buffalo.  He didn’t really transform anything on the offensive side of the ball, as his pride and joy in the offensive line had a brutal season in his zone blocking scheme.

Yes the Bills took huge steps this season in terms of wins, but it is one that still didn’t include a post season berth along with some uninspired performances by the offense down the stretch.

Marrone’s team didn’t show up late in the season against an overmatched team in the Oakland Raiders.  With playoff aspirations still on the line, the Bills played a stinker to the tune of 26-24 in a game in which the score was closer than the game itself.

“Saint Doug” thought just because he got 9 wins in Buffalo, he would be one of the most sought after coaches in the league.

It turns out instead, that bailing on a franchise doesn’t look the greatest in NFL circles.  If he did it once, who’s to say he won’t just pick up and leave again when things get tough.

It really doesn’t make sense why Marrone left in the first place.  You would think a guy who preached family and playing as one would show a little bit of loyalty to the players who battled for him each week.  You would think he would care about his assistants, who didn’t have a chance at any job security as soon as he walked out the door.

I don’t see what Marrone had to lose.  He was very much going to come back for the next season, and if the team took another step with a playoff berth, he could’ve had all the job security he wanted in Buffalo.  An extension surely would have been handed down by the new owners with very little problem.

If the team tanked, he could surely still get a job even as an assistant somewhere in the NFL.

Say, like coaching the offensive line in Jacksonville…