Ex-Bills assistant Leslie Frazier on his call with Ken Dorsey, Sean McDermott's future and 'truth' about his departure

[HipKat]

Leslie Frazier knows a little bit about departing the Buffalo Bills.

The former defensive coordinator is now an analyst for NFL Network. During an appearance on the “Zach Gelb Show” on CBS Sports Radio on Thursday, Frazier was asked about the firing of offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey this week.

“I’m really hurting for Kenny,” Frazier said. “He’s a good friend of mine, and obviously, we worked together for years. It hurt me because I hate to see coaches get fired, especially during the season. That’s a hard thing.”

Frazier said he called Dorsey on Thursday morning.

“I tried to encourage him. He was in good spirits, man,” Frazier said. “He really lifted my spirits just in talking with him. He’s not down and dejected like I thought he would be. He felt like, 'I did everything I could to put the guys in position and we just came up short.'

“He’ll land on his feet. It’s not a situation that anybody would want to be put in, but he’ll learn from this experience, and I think he’ll be a better coordinator down the line.”

Asked more broadly about the Bills’ struggles, Frazier said, “There’s a lot going on right now.”

“Putting Joe Brady in that position, it’s almost like starting over again in some ways. I’m sure Sean was looking for ways to energize the whole team and inject some confidence. I’m not sure what the answer is.

“They’ve got a tough road ahead of them. There were times when we were able to string together fix, six, seven games in a row. They’ve got the talent. They’re capable of doing it. I picked them to go to the Super Bowl on the NFL Network. I thought they had the pieces to do it. It’s just a matter of how the guys respond to this change. Is it one where it divides the locker room or are guys going to come together, rally together and play above the circumstances? Nobody knows that.”

Asked the “truth” about his departure from the Bills, Frazier said, “It got to a point for me where I felt like this was something I needed to do at this stage in my career. That 2022 season was a challenging year with some of the things that we went through, with Damar (Hamlin) and some of the things that happened with our team (with the game being moved to Detroit and travel issues). … We were getting ready to go back to the combine and I was at home and just thinking about, man, did I want to go back for another year? I made the decision to take a year off and see what happens from there. I don’t regret the decision, but I do miss the guys.

Frazier said All-Pro cornerback Tre’Davious White is rehabbing following surgery for his torn Achilles in Los Angeles, where Frazier is based for his NFL Network work.

“I went down and spent some time with him and we were just reminiscing and talking about our time together,” Frazier said. “Some of the things he said inspired me and made me think about getting back into it. He talked about what I meant to him and his teammates. Moments like that make me think about getting back, but we’ll see.”

Frazier also was asked about McDermott’s future and whether he can turn things around.

“Absolutely. He’s got a strong staff that will support him and help him get the ship turned in the right direction,” he said. “Even though they are on the outside looking in right now, you look at all the teams with four or five losses, they’re still right there and capable of making something happen. He’s proven in the past that he can lead a team to success and he can do it again.”

Given his background on the defensive side of the ball, Gelb inquired as to what Frazier sees in Josh Allen and how he would defend him. He noted that Allen has gone from making big plays with his legs to a pocket passer.

“If you don’t have to worry about running and making splash plays with his legs, then you’re just going to play coverage like teams have been doing,” Frazier said. “Teams have gotten some big plays, sitting back and playing zone, if he’s not going to run. It’s worked out well. They copy what they saw the Jets do in the first game in the season, what New England did, what Cincinnati did. Let’s just sit back and play zone. He’s not running. We don’t have to worry about that, and teams are having success.”

[travolta]

2 hours ago, HipKat said:

Leslie Frazier knows a little bit about departing the Buffalo Bills.

The former defensive coordinator is now an analyst for NFL Network. During an appearance on the “Zach Gelb Show” on CBS Sports Radio on Thursday, Frazier was asked about the firing of offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey this week.

“I’m really hurting for Kenny,” Frazier said. “He’s a good friend of mine, and obviously, we worked together for years. It hurt me because I hate to see coaches get fired, especially during the season. That’s a hard thing.”

Frazier said he called Dorsey on Thursday morning.

“I tried to encourage him. He was in good spirits, man,” Frazier said. “He really lifted my spirits just in talking with him. He’s not down and dejected like I thought he would be. He felt like, 'I did everything I could to put the guys in position and we just came up short.'

“He’ll land on his feet. It’s not a situation that anybody would want to be put in, but he’ll learn from this experience, and I think he’ll be a better coordinator down the line.”

Asked more broadly about the Bills’ struggles, Frazier said, “There’s a lot going on right now.”

“Putting Joe Brady in that position, it’s almost like starting over again in some ways. I’m sure Sean was looking for ways to energize the whole team and inject some confidence. I’m not sure what the answer is.

“They’ve got a tough road ahead of them. There were times when we were able to string together fix, six, seven games in a row. They’ve got the talent. They’re capable of doing it. I picked them to go to the Super Bowl on the NFL Network. I thought they had the pieces to do it. It’s just a matter of how the guys respond to this change. Is it one where it divides the locker room or are guys going to come together, rally together and play above the circumstances? Nobody knows that.”

Asked the “truth” about his departure from the Bills, Frazier said, “It got to a point for me where I felt like this was something I needed to do at this stage in my career. That 2022 season was a challenging year with some of the things that we went through, with Damar (Hamlin) and some of the things that happened with our team (with the game being moved to Detroit and travel issues). … We were getting ready to go back to the combine and I was at home and just thinking about, man, did I want to go back for another year? I made the decision to take a year off and see what happens from there. I don’t regret the decision, but I do miss the guys.

Frazier said All-Pro cornerback Tre’Davious White is rehabbing following surgery for his torn Achilles in Los Angeles, where Frazier is based for his NFL Network work.

“I went down and spent some time with him and we were just reminiscing and talking about our time together,” Frazier said. “Some of the things he said inspired me and made me think about getting back into it. He talked about what I meant to him and his teammates. Moments like that make me think about getting back, but we’ll see.”

Frazier also was asked about McDermott’s future and whether he can turn things around.

“Absolutely. He’s got a strong staff that will support him and help him get the ship turned in the right direction,” he said. “Even though they are on the outside looking in right now, you look at all the teams with four or five losses, they’re still right there and capable of making something happen. He’s proven in the past that he can lead a team to success and he can do it again.”

Given his background on the defensive side of the ball, Gelb inquired as to what Frazier sees in Josh Allen and how he would defend him. He noted that Allen has gone from making big plays with his legs to a pocket passer.

“If you don’t have to worry about running and making splash plays with his legs, then you’re just going to play coverage like teams have been doing,” Frazier said. “Teams have gotten some big plays, sitting back and playing zone, if he’s not going to run. It’s worked out well. They copy what they saw the Jets do in the first game in the season, what New England did, what Cincinnati did. Let’s just sit back and play zone. He’s not running. We don’t have to worry about that, and teams are having success.”

Everyone knows JA needs to run except the head coach. 

 

[Very Wide Right]

7 minutes ago, travolta said:

Everyone knows JA needs to run except the head coach. 

 

Thats not sustainable in the playoffs. 

 

[travolta]

9 minutes ago, Very Wide Right said:

Thats not sustainable in the playoffs. 

 

JA is not Drew Bledsoe and should not play like Drew Bledsoe. Bills have gone way overboard on limiting his running ability. 
 

 

[Sucked In Again]

3 hours ago, Very Wide Right said:

Thats not sustainable in the playoffs. 

 

PLAYOFFS, You're thinking playoffs, lol.

[DannyBoy]

Nothing like what the Giants did yesterday.  D coordinator and O coordinator.......Gone!  Dabo should still be good though.  Sounds like a "not Dabo decision" but the owners.  Maybe McDermott can pick up Wink Martindale.  

[jamsim67]

Josh should be able to run when it's needed, but they have the weapons to be successful if he doesn't. You run to set-up the pass, or it can be the other way around. If all that's available is a 3 to 5 yard gain, then you take it. And you keep taking it until the defense makes adjustments. Moving the chains in a ball control offense should be more than enough to be successful in the WFL. McDermott allowed the Bengals to knock them out of the playoffs by doing exactly that. And I think allowed is the perfect word to use when describing McDermott's defense. Especially in crunch time. Because when he doesn't allow teams to move the ball against his defense, they look pretty good. You have to hand it to him, he's looked great at snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Maybe that's why he hasn't been fired. That, and he's always telling us that he will learn from it. Still waiting for that. He's a company man.

 

[HipKat]

1 hour ago, DannyBoy said:

Nothing like what the Giants did yesterday.  D coordinator and O coordinator.......Gone!  Dabo should still be good though.  Sounds like a "not Dabo decision" but the owners.  Maybe McDermott can pick up Wink Martindale.  

I might be ok with that 

[HipKat]

59 minutes ago, jamsim67 said:

Josh should be able to run when it's needed, but they have the weapons to be successful if he doesn't. You run to set-up the pass, or it can be the other way around. If all that's available is a 3 to 5 yard gain, then you take it. And you keep taking it until the defense makes adjustments. Moving the chains in a ball control offense should be more than enough to be successful in the WFL. McDermott allowed the Bengals to knock them out of the playoffs by doing exactly that. And I think allowed is the perfect word to use when describing McDermott's defense. Especially in crunch time. Because when he doesn't allow teams to move the ball against his defense, they look pretty good. You have to hand it to him, he's looked great at snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Maybe that's why he hasn't been fired. That, and he's always telling us that he will learn from it. Still waiting for that. He's a company man.

 

He should run when he sees the opportunity. No more designed runs. They fail every time

[DannyBoy]

 

 

Report — Giants’ coaching staff shakeup coming after the season.  

 

Firing general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll “won’t happen,” after this season, per NFL insider Tony Pauline. What will happen, though, is a shakeup of Daboll’s New York Giants coaching staff.

Per the well-connected Pauline:

What is expected is the release of assistant coaches and the coordinators. Few expect defensive coordinator Wink Martindale or offensive coordinator Mike Kafka to be retained. People from Kafka’s team confide in me that they don’t expect the former college quarterback to survive.

I guess it's not a done deal yet but how's their work productivity going to improve knowing this?

Saleh Walks Back Allen Comments, Calls Bills QB 'Superman' (msn.com)