Doug Marrone surprised the NFL world when he opted out of his contract with the Buffalo Bills last New Year's Eve. Marrone had amassed just a 15-17 record as the head coach in northern NY, but he'd brought the Bills to a second-place finish in the AFC East and a winning record in 2014 and had developed a nice base of talent, especially on the defensive side of the ball, hence why it was so shocking when Marrone decided to call it quits with Buffalo after just two seasons.
The latest report may shed some light on why Marrone ultimately chose to give up on the Bills and, unsurprisingly, it wasn't so he could become the next offensive line coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
"According to multiple sources, Marrone resigned from the Bills because he believed that he would be named the New York Jets' head coach to replace Rex Ryan, who ironically took Marrone's former position as the Bills' head coach," Charlie Campbell of Walterfootball.com reports.
Marrone reportedly viewed himself as a "shoe-in" for the Jets job thanks to the fact that team owner Woody Johnson had just hired Mike Maccaganan - with whom Marrone has a history, dating back to the early 90s - to be his new general manager. Marrone, per Campbell, also preferred the Jets opening because of a "more certain organizational direction" with "stable ownership."
The Bills had, of course, just changed hands to the Pegulas. There were ample questions over the direction of the franchise and it's really not surprising that Marrone would then feel some concern for himself and his job security considering the people signing the checks were no longer the ones who had initially hired him.
Marrone's departure from Buffalo was likely a difficult and somewhat embarrassing development for a Bills franchise that hasn't had much to be happy about in recent years.
Still, it seems Marrone did little to improve his NFL reputation with his ditching of the Bills and it seems he may only be hindering himself further now, as Campbell reports that some league sources believe Marrone is "angling" for Gus Bradley's spot at the top of the Jaguars food chain.
In the end, the Jets, who went with the stoic, but highly respected Todd Bowles and Bills, who of course picked up Sexy Rexy, may have both dodged a bullet where Marrone is concerned.
