Should Bill Polian be in the
Hall of Fame?
by Deshawn
Zombie
Before any discussion of
Polian’s credentials, let’s
begin with an understanding
that ‘Team Builders’ do not
make the Hall of Fame unless
they are also owners. In
the history of the NFL, only
2 men have made it to
Canton, OH primarily as team
administrators. This piece
will compare Bill Polian’s
record with theirs to
determine if he belongs
alongside them.
First, however, examine the
hard facts of Polian’s 21
year career as General
Manager:
1986 - 1993 Buffalo Bills
Franchise Winning % for 7
years prior to arrival:
.419
Convinced Jim Kelly (HoF) to
come and play for Buffalo
Hired Marv Levy (HoF) to be
head coach
Drafted Thurman Thomas (HoF)
in the second round
2 time winner “Executive of
the Year” 1988, 1991
4 Division Titles (5 playoff
appearances in 7 years)
1 AFC title game loss
Bills won 3 consecutive AFC
Championships under Polian
Franchise Winning % for 7
years he was GM: .622
Franchise Winning % for 7
years after he left: .589
1994 - 1996 Carolina
Panthers
First General Manager of the
Panthers
2 Time Executive of the year
(1995, 1996)
Played in the NFC Title game
in second year of existence
as a franchise
1 Playoff appearance in 2
years
Franchise Winning % for 2
years he was GM: .594
Franchise Winning % for 2
years after he left: .343
1997 - Present Indianapolis
Colts
Franchise Winning % for 10
years prior to arrival: .419
Selected Peyton Manning over
Ryan Leaf
Selected Edgerrin James over
Ricky Williams
Hired Tony Dungy as head
coach
Executive of the year, 1999
6 Division Titles (8 playoff
appearances in 10 years)
1 AFC title game loss
1 Super Bowl Championship
Franchise Winning % for 10
years he has been GM: .656
Observations on Polian’s
record:
-
It is hard to attribute
wins to GMs in many
cases, especially in the
modern days, because
coaches often have
control over drafting
and other personnel
moves. In Polian’s
case, he has always been
‘the man’ who made the
decisions. This
strengthens his case.
-
He turned losers into
winners. His performance
with the Panthers is
certainly indicative of
a man who understood the
system and played it
expertly.
-
His teams have appeared
in 7 conference title
games in 18 years. His
teams have won the
division half of the
seasons. His teams have
had 5 losing season in
18 years. Most of those
(4) were in the first
two years of his tenure
as GM as he rebuilt
whole rosters. With
Polian as GM, your team
is more likely to play
for a spot in the Super
Bowl than it is to
finish below .500
-
His draft record and
control of personnel is
impeccable.
-
He provided an
atmosphere where
innovation was
encouraged. The K-Gun,
the Zone Blitz, and
Manning calling all the
plays were fostered
under his oversight.
-
He has been chosen
Executive of the year 5
times in just 18
seasons.
There is little question
that Polian’s record is
completely unimpeachable in
terms of building teams that
are consistent winners. His
acumen as a GM is not in
question. The issue is
whether this is enough to
overcome the selection
committee’s bias reticence
to select pure GMs to the
Hall. Now let’s compare
Polian to the two men who
did make in.
Jim Finks
1964-1973 Minnesota Vikings
1974-1982 Chicago Bears
1986-1992 New Orleans Saints
Here is his bio according to
the Hall of Fame web site:
http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?player_id=67
Minnesota fans remember Jim
Finks as the man who
elevated the struggling
expansion Vikings to
championship status.
Chicagoans recall him as the
executive who restored the
Bears' winning tradition.
New Orleans partisans salute
Finks as the savior who
brought the Saints their
first winning season. Finks
built perennial losers into
playoff and Super Bowl teams
in a stellar career as one
of football's most respected
executives.
He placed indelible stamps
upon the Vikings, Bears and
Saints. All three franchises
flourished with players
developed by Finks. Finks
drafted nineteen of the
Bears’ 22 starters in the
Super Bowl XX win over New
England. Finks was named the
general manager of the
Vikings in 1964.
Not a quick-fix artist, his
moves were tailored for the
long haul. His program began
paying dividends four years
later when Minnesota won its
first of five divisional
titles. The Vikings also
advanced to the Super Bowl
twice during Finks’ tenure
in Minnesota that ended
following the 1973 season.
The Vikings leader was not
afraid to make controversial
decisions and he proved that
in 1966 when coach Norm Van
Brocklin and quarterback
Fran Tarkenton feuded. Finks
traded Tarkenton to the New
York Giants. And when Van
Brocklin resigned a few
months later, Finks tapped
an obscure CFL coach, Bud
Grant, to lead the Vikings.
The Bears, who had not won a
championship since 1963,
hired Finks as general
manager and executive
vice-president just before
the 1974 season. The Bears,
under Finks’ leadership,
were a playoff team again in
1977 and 1979. He resigned
following the 1982 season.
In 1986, Finks signed on
with the Saints. In his
second season at the helm,
the Saints became winners
for the first time in their
19-season history. Then, in
1991, the team captured its
first-ever division crown. A
long-time member of the
NFL’s competition committee,
Finks also played
quarterback and defensive
back for the Pittsburgh
Steelers, 1949-1955.
Super Bowls won: 0, 3 NFC
Championships
Vikings Win %: .622, 2
division titles, 3
conference titles
Bears Win %: .422
Saints Win %: .621 1
division title
Tex Schramm
1947-56 LA Rams
1960-89 Dallas Cowboys
1989-90 Commissioner World
League of American Football
http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?player_id=190
Tex Schramm, except for a
three-year stint as
assistant director of sports
for CBS television in the
late 1950s, played a dynamic
role in professional
football throughout a
44-year span between 1947
and 1990.
He began his NFL career as
publicity director of the
Los Angeles Rams and
finished as president and
chief executive officer of
the World League of American
Football. In between, he
served the Rams for 10
seasons and the Dallas
Cowboys for 29 years.
Schramm earned his
journalism degree at the
University of Texas. After
two years as a sports writer
with the American-Statesman
in Austin, Texas, Schramm
moved to Los Angeles to join
the Rams. He advanced
through the ranks and was
general manager of the team
when he joined CBS in 1957.
Tex joined the Cowboys at
the time of the team's
inception in 1960. In a
29-year tenure that ended
after the 1988 season,
Schramm fashioned the
Cowboys into one of the
showcase franchises of all
professional sports. His
Cowboys teams played in five
Super Bowls, winning two,
had 20 consecutive winning
seasons, and 18 playoff
appearances in those 20
years.
Schramm's contributions to
pro football did not stop
with the Cowboys however.
For 23 years, he was the
chairman of the influential
NFL competition committee.
Along with Lamar Hunt, he
was a leading force in the
AFL-NFL merger that was
culminated in 1970.
Schramm introduced the
concept of three divisions
in each of two conferences
with wild-card playoff
teams. He led the fight for
instant replay as an
officiating tool and a
fan-interest enhancer. He
was a leading advocate of
such innovations as a
referee's microphone, a
30-second clock between
plays, extra-wide sideline
borders, wind-direction
strips on goal post,
uprights and multicolor
striping for 20- and 50-yard
lines.
Observations:
-
Tex Schramm is in a
totally different class
than Finks and Polian.
He was an innovator who
pushed the boundaries of
football. If this is
the HoF standard, then
almost no one can get
in.
-
Both men have had much
longer careers than
Polian, a function of
them coming to the
league when it was still
young. Finks served as
GM for 24 years, Schramm
for nearly 40. Polian
is already in his 70s
and may not have many
more years left in him.
-
Polian’s record is
superior to Finks. He
has a better winning %,
more title game
appearances, and far
more division crowns.
He also, like Finks,
took moribund teams to
respectability.
Conclusion: Polian
is a better candidate than
at least half of the pure
GMs in the Hall of Fame.
Unfortunately, there’re only
two of them. It’s very
difficult to compare
Polian’s record to that of
his peers, due to the number
of GMs whose control of
player movement is really
dictated by an owner or a
coach. Polian, ever the
exception, is the architect
of many great teams. His
record is strong enough for
inclusion, but based on the
dearth of GMs in the Hall, I
have no choice but to
seriously doubt his eventual
enshrinement.
