Chan Gailey was hired by the Bills yesterday, getting a second chance to prove himself as an NFL coach and inheriting a team that has missed the playoffs for 10 straight years.
Gailey was introduced by general manager Buddy Nix at a new conference which ended a two-month search to replace Dick Jauron, who was fired in November. Gailey takes over a team that finished 6-10 and becomes the Bills’ fifth coach since Marv Levy retired after the 1997 season.
Gailey has spent 15 of his 38 years of coaching in the NFL. In his two years coaching the Cowboys, he went 18-14 and led the team to consecutive playoff appearances - both losses. He was dismissed after the 1999 season, and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has acknowledged his mistake in firing Gailey.
The 58-year-old Gailey acknowledged he didn’t know if he’d get another opportunity to be a head coach again.
“If you sit there and say you lose confidence in yourself, no you don’t. But then you see opportunities go by. And you hope that your body of work will speak for itself,’’ Gailey said.
For Nix, it was Gailey’s extensive background that impressed him and met most of the criteria the GM set out when he took over the search two weeks ago.
Nix was eager to find someone with previous head coaching experience and an offensive background.
“This guy met more of the criteria than I thought we could find,’’ Nix said. “And this guy’s won everywhere he’s been . . . He’ll get us back to winning and get to where we want to go.’’
Gailey said he intends to serve as the team’s offensive coordinator, and is assembling a staff.
Gailey has been out of football since he was removed as the Chiefs’ offensive coordinator in August, two weeks before the season opener. He went 44-33 during a six-year stretch as Georgia Tech’s coach before being fired in 2007.
The Bills hit several bumps during their coaching search. They spoke with former Steelers coach Bill Cowher in an attempt to lure him out of broadcasting and also interviewed ex-Broncos coach Mike Shanahan, who chose to coach the Redskins.
Last week, Jets offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer rejected the Bills’ request for an interview.
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