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wow....no one saw this coming...its good for us, they'll be sucking it up for a while longer now!

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Bills set to begin coaching search after Mularkey submits resignation
By JOHN WAWROW, AP Sports Writer
January 13, 2006

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) -- Ralph Wilson shook Mike Mularkey's hand and then expressed his hope that the Buffalo Bills' second-year coach would be around for a very long time.

Little did the Bills owner know that Mularkey's tenure would last a mere eight more days.

Mularkey submitted his resignation Thursday, a person familiar with the discussions between the coach and the team told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the official announcement hadn't been made. The Bills, who declined to comment on Mularkey's status, have scheduled a news conference for Friday morning when they are expected to formally announce the coach's resignation.

Reached by The Associated Press, Mularkey declined to comment, except to say: "Right now is not the best time to talk."

He added that he was aware of the press conference being scheduled and preferred that the news come then.

Mularkey's resignation is a stunning turnaround for a franchise already in transition and for a team coming off a 5-11 season and missed the playoffs for the sixth straight year.

And Mularkey's departure wasn't part of Wilson's master plan when he shook up his front office last week by firing team president and general manager Tom Donahoe, and then lured Hall of Fame coach Marv Levy out of retirement to take over as GM.

Wilson, however, went out of his way to back Mularkey. Hours after announcing Donahoe's dismissal, the owner called an impromptu second press conference to emphasize he was retaining Mularkey.

"I want him because I think he can be a very outstanding coach," said the 87-year-old Wilson, who then made a reference to his age. "I hope he'll be here long after I'm not trying to answer your questions."

ESPN.com, citing unidentified sources, first reported that Mularkey had reached a settlement with the team to cover the final three years of his contract. ESPN.com also reported that Mularkey's decision to leave the team was because of undisclosed family reasons.

The former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator is married and has two boys.

There are also questions of whether Mularkey was comfortable with being forced to fire five assistants -- three of whom he hired, including offensive coordinator Tom Clements -- and how much latitude he had in hiring their replacements.

Mularkey was 14-18 in two seasons with Buffalo.

The Bills are now forced to find their third head coach in five years, and fourth since Levy retired after the 1997 season.

The possible candidates include Bills defensive coordinator Jerry Gray, who completed his fifth season with Buffalo; recently fired New Orleans coach Jim Haslett; Dick Jauron, Detroit's interim coach; and Chicago defensive coordinator Ron Rivera.

Gray, who's interviewed with Houston, would be considered a strong candidate should the Bills determine they want to maintain some continuity by hiring someone familiar with the team. Although the Bills defense struggled this season, finishing 29th in the NFL, the unit was slowed by injuries.

Gray told The AP he was unaware of Mularkey's resignation, but would want to have a fair chance at being considered for the job.

"I've been here five years and I know the guys, so I don't have to re-evaluate anything. We would just have to take off and run from there," Gray said. "You don't want to take steps backward, you want to take steps forward, and that's what Mr. Wilson has been doing."

Gray added he's been contacted by Lions president Matt Millen, but an interview has not yet been scheduled.

Haslett is a former linebacker who played for the Bills from 1979-85.

Jauron and Rivera, meanwhile, are familiar to Levy, who maintains a home in Chicago and has worked broadcasting Bears games. Jauron joined the Lions in 2004 after he was dismissed as the Bears' head coach.

The Bills will have to catch up quickly because six other teams are also looking for coaches.

PLEASE don't let Marv Levy coach this team. PLEASE.  He's 100 years old and has no business on the sidelines.

They should hire Joe Paterno. What a duo that would be.

That's exactly why most of us would want him to get hired.

ahhh and the sweetness continues...