Before joining the Jacksonville Jaguars, Doug Marrone was the Buffalo Bills’ head coach for a brief time. He spent two years in that role from 2013-14 before abruptly left the team thanks to a three-day out clause in his contract that allowed him to essentially walk away from Buffalo without penalty.

In his final season with the Bills, he had the chance to work with Sammy Watkins, who was a rookie. It was the only season in which Watkins played all 16 games, catching 65 passes for 982 yards and six touchdowns.

As good as Watkins was early on, Marrone wasn’t sold on the pick. After the season, it was reported that he was actually upset about it.

On Wednesday, the Jaguars coach was asked whether that report was true, admitting Watkins wasn’t exactly the guy he wanted.

“It wasn’t the player for me,” Marrone said on a conference call with L.A. media. “I love Sammy. We wanted Sammy as much as anybody. We were excited about that when the pick came through. I think what was going on was I was a little concerned about just giving up too much not knowing what our quarterback situation was.

“So, that’s the only thing that I voiced and after that, I was happy as hell to get Sammy and you go on. Not many times like that are you able to get a special player like Sammy. And that’s how I think of Sammy Watkins. I think he’s a special player.”

Marrone didn’t come out and say he was upset about the pick, per se, but he at least questioned the Bills’ decision to trade so much capital to land Watkins. Buffalo traded up from No. 9 to fourth overall, surrendering first- and fourth-round picks in 2015 in order to do so. It was a high price to pay to move up five spots, and it was questioned numerous times.

It’s telling that Marrone admitted he didn’t know what the Bills’ quarterback situation was in 2014, despite the fact that Buffalo spent a first-round pick on EJ Manuel just one year prior. In Watkins’ first season, Kyle Orton started 12 games with a 7-5 record, compared to just four starts for Manuel (2-2 record).

The lack of continuity at quarterback didn’t help Watkins, obviously, nor did his inability to stay on the field.

Marrone will get a good look at the fourth-year receiver on Sunday when the Rams come to town, though he’s hardly been a threat in Los Angeles. On the year, Watkins has caught just 14 passes for 211 yards, including just one catch for 17 yards in the last two games.