Maiorana: Firing Doug Whaley would solve nothing

Show Caption Hide Caption Take 2: Heather and Sal from Media Day SAL AND HEATHER

Doug Whaley's greatest failure has been EJ Manuel, and his continued support of the QB.

Whaley came to the Bills prior to 2010 after a 10-year stint with the Steelers.

ORCHARD PARK — Not only does Doug Whaley not deserve to be fired as general manager of the Buffalo Bills, there’s really no basis for Terry and Kim Pegula to even consider it.

There, I said it, just like I said a few weeks ago that it was utterly ridiculous for fans to ask for coach Rex Ryan to be fired. Many of you disagree on both issues, and that’s fine, but handing either man a pink slip when this 16th consecutive year of playoff-less football in Buffalo is complete simply makes no sense.

This has nothing to do with the fact that it’s the Christmas season and I might happen to be in a good mood. I haven’t gone soft (except around the waistline), nor have I been numbed (at least not yet) by the perpetual disappointment the Bills provide their loyal and tortured fans.

Whaley should not be fired — and I’m told by a source that there’s “zero percent chance” that’s happening — for the simple reason that, by and large, this is a better roster than the one he inherited from Buddy Nix following the 2013 draft.

Obviously it’s not a great team because once again, unfathomably, the Bills won’t participate in the postseason, a drought that is now tied for the eighth-longest in NFL history. However, I fail to see what canning Whaley would accomplish. As I pointed out a couple weeks ago when I went to bat for Ryan, constant upheaval in the front office and coaching staff has done nothing for the Bills during this epoch of futility. Why do it yet again?

This franchise needs to stop hitting the reset button and stay the course. God rest his soul, but the late owner Ralph Wilson never seemed to understand this. I believe the Pegulas do.

Whaley has been with the organization since 2010, brought in to serve as Nix’s assistant GM as well as run the pro personnel department following a 10-year tenure in the Steelers scouting department during which he earned a Super Bowl ring in 2008.

He officially took over for Nix in May 2013, but it’s widely believed that he was performing GM duties before that because the team had been transitioning from Nix to Whaley throughout that offseason.

There is debate over who actually had the final say on the drafting of EJ Manuel in the first round that year. I contend that while it was Nix’s job title at the time, Whaley was knee-deep in the evaluation of Manuel and he’s just as responsible for that colossal swing and miss.

So, he didn’t get off to a great start, and that pick haunts the Bills three years later. But that draft also brought wide receiver Robert Woods and linebacker Kiko Alonso. Woods has been a solid No. 2 target, and Alonso, after a fine rookie season and a lost second year to injury, was traded by Whaley in 2015 for running back LeSean McCoy. I’d give a positive check mark to Whaley for that.

Also in 2013, Whaley brought in free agents Dan Carpenter, Manny Lawson, Corbin Bryant and Nickell Robey, and he traded Kelvin Sheppard for defensive end Jerry Hughes. Pretty good work there, too.

It was a mixed bag in 2014. He pulled the trigger on the Sammy Watkins trade. I didn’t like it at the time, and still don’t because the price was too high; first-round picks should never be traded. But, no one can deny that Watkins is a supreme talent, and if the Bills ever figure this out, and the quarterback starts throwing him the ball more frequently, Watkins will be a big star for this team.

Draft picks Seantrel Henderson and Preston Brown have been full-time two-year starters, though neither has played well this season, so the bloom has worn off a bit after promising rookie seasons. Whaley also brought in a nice haul of free agents including Bacarri Rambo, Colton Schmidt, Jordan Gay, Brandon Spikes, Corey Graham and yes, Kyle Orton (who was undoubtedly better than Manuel in 2014, though that isn’t saying much).

Whaley also had some misses in 2014. Second-round pick Cyrus Kouandjio has been a bust, the Bryce Brown trade cost Buffalo a fourth-round pick for no production, and the free agent signings of Chris Williams, Mike Williams, Kevin Kolb, and Keith Rivers, were useless, though injuries were the prime reason with the exception of Mike Williams.

On to 2015 where Whaley drafted Ronald Darby, John Miller, and Karlos Williams, all of whom have been contributors as rookies, though Miller has struggled all season. Whaley also acquired McCoy and signed Tyrod Taylor, Richie Incognito and Charles Clay, which clearly upgraded all those positions, and he got Hughes to re-sign before he could test free agency.

The Percy Harvin experiment failed, Jerome Felton has not impressed, and Denarius Moore was a disaster. As for acquiring Matt Cassel, a mistake, yes, but at least Whaley got back a fifth-round pick from Dallas, which is better than nothing.

My argument to retain Whaley would be altered if reports of his inability to get along with head coaches were true, but I have learned that isn’t the case.

Whaley and Doug Marrone had disagreements like any GM and coach would, but that wasn’t why Marrone opted out of his contract and took his $4 million golden parachute. No one but Marrone knows the true story, but it wasn’t because he couldn’t work with Whaley.

There have also been rumblings that Whaley doesn’t get along with Ryan. I’m told they are “completely in lock step” on personnel matters. Again, that flies contrary to much of what you’ve heard and read, but unless I or anyone in my profession can impersonate a fly on the wall, learning the undisputable truth is difficult.

There are several reasons why the Bills skidded off the road this year, not the least of which was that Ryan did not do a good job adapting to his new team’s personnel, especially on defense; several players underperformed; and the Bills, despite Taylor’s occasional flashes of wow, still do not have a franchise quarterback. That isn’t to say Taylor can’t get there, but in 2015, he wasn’t anywhere close.

Whaley shares some blame in all of this; of course he does. But if I’m Terry Pegula, I’d spend the winter going to Sabres games and leave my football guys alone to do their jobs rather than blow things up. Again.

MAIORANA@Gannett.com