The Bills have begun their search for a new head coach following the non-renewal of Gregg Williams' contract. They have already asked for, and received permission, to speak to coordinators Charlie Weiss, Romeo Crenell, and Lovie Smith. Tom Donohoe also stated he would interview current Bills defensive coordinator Jerry Gray as well.

The Bills are definitely the number one or two job out there for potential coaches, with the New Jersey Giants being the other plum job, at least in terms of market stature. When Oakland opens up today, that becomes another plum job, but the unpredictability of Al Davis and his hires makes that questionable. The other openings are all fraught with danger: Arizona (ownership commitment), Chicago (limited budget), Washington (insane owner), Oakland (see previous), and Atlanta (losing tradition, but the lure of Michael Vick may outweigh that). The lure of Buffalo includes a few key points that head coaches dream of: a stable and committed owner, a widely respected GM who supports his coaches, an involved and extensive scouting staff, and a talented stable of players.

The Bills, in turn, are looking for a head coach that (in my opinion) has an offense oriented background and has head coaching experience. What follows is my take on each of the current rumored candidates for the Bills head coaching job, in a somewhat particular order.

Charlie Weiss (OC., NE): A talented and widely respected coordinator, Weiss has one key attribute the Bills are looking for - offensive creativity. He has worked for head coach flavor de jour Bill Belichick, another plus. He has no previous head coaching experience, which makes him a long shot to land the Bills job.

Romeo Crenell (DC., NE): A hot property right now, but he will not land with the Bills. He is a defensive coach with no prior head coaching experience, which I believe is on Tom Donohoe's no-no list. He would be a great fit in Oakland or Chicago.

Lovie Smith (DC., StL): See above. Another hot property right now, but not a fit for the Bills.

Jerry Gray (DC., BUF): Strictly a courtesy interview. I suspect the Bills would like to retain Gray as DC when the new coach comes in, but he is not ready for the head coach gig yet. He is a very young and intelligent coordinator who with a few more years under his belt will get a shot.

Dennis Green (Ex-HC): My lack of respect for one of the most overrated, domineering, scandal plagued coaches in NFL history is hopefully shared by Tom Donohoe. I haven't heard any rumors of Green coming from Bills sources, but the ESPN rumors are out there. A very poor fit for any NFL team, much less the Bills.

Ted Cottrell (Ex-DC., NJJ): The rumors will be there, but put no stock in them. Tom Donohoe was not here when Cottrell was and has no ties to him. Any Buffalo-Cottrell whispers are from Buffalo sentimentalists.

Jim Haslett (HC., NO): Haslett rumors are popular here in Buffalo since Buffalo News columnist Bucky Gleason published a rumor that Haslett has an out clause in his current contract allowing him to jump to Buffalo if the opportunity arises. It makes sense; he played in Buffalo, his wife is from Buffalo, he's a fan favorite. The Saints deny the clause exists, and Donohoe says he has no knowledge of it. Regardless, this seems highly unlikey, even with the Donohoe-Haslett-Modrak relationship being so strong. Haslett has a big-buck contract, and hiring him away would likely involve draft choice compensation to the Saints, something Donohoe simply will not do. If Haslett were dismissed, all this changes. But for now I think the Bills want to focus on other candidates.

Dick Jauron (Ex-HC., CHI): Little known fact: Jauron began his coaching career here in Buffalo in 1985. What does that mean? Nothing. He seems like the stable personality Donohoe would work well with, and he does have head coaching experience, but he is known for his defensive tilt. He is more likely than any other candidate already listed, but still very doubtful.

Tom Coughlin (Ex-HC., JAX): An ex head coach in college and the pros. Renowned for his offensive creativity. A strong leader with attention to detail. Have fun in New Jersey Tom. As much as I think Coughlin would be the ideal coach for Buffalo, something tells me he will land in New Jersey. The only good aspect to this is I won't have to see video highlights of a Tom Coughlin led BC team upsetting Notre Dame in 1993 by a score of 41-39, which was the first ND game I ever attended. Talk about bittersweet. As my recently-estranged buddy Mick said upon exiting the Football Mecca that is Notre Dame "I'm not sure if this is the happiest or saddest day of my life". Or something like that...he'll remember the exact quote. But I digress. Consider it a major coup if Couglin lands here.

Kirk Ferentz (HC., Iowa): He's the hot college candidate this year, to be sure. He has led Iowa to not just respectability, but to prominence after taking over for Hayden Fry after the 1998 season. He is getting his team ready to face Florida in the Outback Bowl on New Years Day, and he holds six years of prior NFL coaching experience. And he also seems genuinely happy coaching in Iowa and raising his family of six children. I have a feeling he's not going anywhere unless the offer is so overwhelming he can't say no. That offer is highly unlikely to come from the Bills.

Jim Fassel (Ex-HC, NJG): Fassel was the head coach at Utah from 1985-1989 before jumping to the pros as QB coach for the Giants and later, Denver. He has been an offensive coordinator and is known for his work with John Elway and Kerry Collins. He's been to a Super Bowl with New Jersey, the same team that completely quit on him this year. That being said, he appears to be the likely candidate to take the reigns in Buffalo. He will be costly, but not overly so ($2 million per?). He has an offensive background, and something tells me he will be willing to work with Bledsoe rather than cut him, a point I think will be important to Donohoe. The Bills will have competition, primarily from Arizona, where he has already interviewed, and perhaps Atlanta and Chicago as well. But ultimately, he is the best fit for the current situation and I put the odds on him being the next Bills coach at better than 50%. Bear in mind I said Fassel would be the next head coach here on November 25th, so I may be showing some bias.

And of course, remember as well that I am an idiot, so when Jerry Gray is our next head coach I can say "I didn't see that coming".