ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — The game was almost an afterthought.
As expected, the Bills handled the winless Browns, 33-13, on Sunday afternoon at cold, windy and under-attended New Era Field.
The victory even kept alive Buffalo’s microscopic playoff hopes … at least until it hosts the Dolphins on Christmas Eve.
But nobody wanted to talk to Bills coach Rex Ryan about his team’s domination of the 0-14 Browns.
The questioning instead, again, focused on his job future.
Last Sunday, the postgame focal point was a cbssports.com report that if Buffalo lost to the Steelers, Ryan could be fired this past Monday.
Yeah, the Bills got thumped by Pittsburgh, but Rex is still working.
Yesterday, the rumor got a step up in class, as ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Ryan was likely gone at season’s end and that the coach knows about it …inferring that owners Terry and Kim Pegula, managing partner and president Russ Brandon or general manager Doug Whaley had already delivered the message.
Still, it’s widely accepted that if the Bills win out and finish 9-7, tied for their best record in 17 years, with a substandard quarterback and a number of key injuries, it’s unlikely the coach will be fired.
And, for the second straight week, Ryan convincingly maintained he knew nothing of Schefter’s report.
“Can I say that I never heard of it until you just said it,” Rex asked with a thin smile, “or is it going to be another week-long discussion (as it was after the cbssports.com report)?
“I never did (hear that) and I really don’t care because I can tell you this, here’s what we all (including the media) have in common, nobody knows what my future is. A lot of you don’t know what your future is either. To me, I just prepare the team to the best of my ability and that’s what I’m going to do.”
When specifically asked about the ESPN report saying he knew the Bills were going to fire him, Ryan responded, “Trust me, that one’s definitely not accurate. I don’t know where some of these things come from but I’m absolutely not aware about that.”
As for interacting with the Pegulas he added, “I talk to the owners all the time. In fact, on Saturday, we went in and discussed our game plan like we always do.”
But Ryan also conceded he hasn’t asked them about his job security.
“I know what my job is … to get this team ready to go. That’s what’s important to me,” he said. “I guess I’m a little more confident in myself … my abilities than maybe others are.”
Is he disappointed that the Pegulas haven’t issued a statement refuting those reports?
“What am I going to say?” Ryan asked. “Of course you appreciate that, but it’s not necessary … that’s how I look at it.
“I just want to go beat Miami … we owe them and they’re going to get the very best we have.”
He did admit, though, that after a week of being questioned about his potential firing, he was happy to get out on the field and just coach.
“I enjoyed that … that’s what I love to do,” Ryan said. “I love to coach and I know we had our team prepared well. It was the players who went out and executed the gameplan and did a great job.
“I know (the rumors are) bad. But to me it’s, hey, (it’s) business as usual getting my team ready. Is there a negative tie? Do I understand it? Yeah, I get it. But all I can do is affect what’s right here in front of me and get this team ready to play up to our abilities and I think that’s what we did this week.”
And no matter what happens against the Dolphins next Saturday, Ryan can be assured that yet another national “NFL insider” will have some rumor from “a highly-placed source” about his future.
(Chuck Pollock, the Times Herald sports editor, can be reached at cpollock@oleantimesherald.com)
