Doug Marrone won't coach the Buffalo Bills next season, and Bill Polian won't be joining the team's front office.
Polian, the former Colts general manager, informed Bills owner Terry Pegula that he will remain at ESPN for 2015 and beyond, per NFL Media columnist Michael Silver. ESPN's Chris Mortensen first reported the news.
Buffalo never extended a formal offer to Polian, but the sides spoke over the holidays about a mentoring/advisory role with the organization, per Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News.
Polian told Carucci that the scope of the role dramatically shifted with the retirement of quarterback Kyle Orton and the sudden departure of Marrone, who opted out of his contract on Wednesday.
With the job morphing into a "real heavy lift," Polian, 72, acknowledged that he wasn't ready to step in, saying: "It would have required a really long commitment to a new coach who deserved a long commitment that I wasn't prepared to make."
Polian recently signed a new contract with ESPN but admits the deal "certainly wouldn't have been as lucrative" as what Buffalo would have forked over.
So with one potential "football czar" staying put and Marrone already netting interviews with the Jets, Falcons and Bears, it's Bills fans who are left to wonder what comes next for this star-crossed franchise.
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