Chan, Buddy Reportedly To Hit Bricks

Contrary to widespread speculation, Ralph Wilson, according to the Buffalo News, may be paying attention after all.

Rumors were swirling in NFL circles Saturday that the Buffalo Bills would clean house and fire not only head coach Chan Gailey but General Manager Buddy Nix as well.

Gailey getting whacked could not possibly come as a surprise to anyone, given his 15-32 record in Buffalo. Jason Cole of Yahoo Sports mentions a few possible replacements here.

Dumping Nix, though, would show that Wilson is willing to undertake the franchise's biggest shake-up since he dismissed former team president Tom Donahoe after the 2005 season, and the first full-scale management makeover since hiring Donahoe in early 2001.

Marv Levy replaced Donahoe as general manager in the winter of 2006, but kept much of the team's front-office and scouting structure in place.

After Levy retired following the 2007 season, marketing chief Russ Brandon took over the former coach's football duties until Nix was hired in 2010.

All those changes were more tweak than reboot, though, with quarterbacks, head coaches, assistants and scouts overlapping the reigns of the various GMs.

Gailey's departure would almost certainly mean the end of Ryan Fitzpatrick's stint as Buffalo's starter, though keeping him around to back up a rookie or free-agent quarterback wouldn't be unthinkable.

Nix's replacement will be at least as important as Gailey's. His assistant, Doug Whaley, has been touted as his potential successor, but going outside the organization would make Brandon's job -- selling tickets to a dispirited fan base -- significantly easier. Especially with the new lease deal, which pumps nearly a quarter-billion dollars into Wilson's budget over the next decade.

So today's season finale against the New York Jets, quite possibly the least meaningful game in the team's history, could acquire some historical significance as the day the Bills' darkest age came to a close.