Bills' Whaley to keep roster control with McDermott hired

While Buffalo Bills owner Terry Pegula insisted he will let his new head coach and general manager work together to run his team, final roster control will remain in the same hands.

At new head coach Sean McDermott's introductory press conference Friday, the former Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator confirmed general manager Doug Whaley will have final say over the 53-man roster.

"Doug has control of the 53," said McDermott, according to ESPN's Mike Rodak. "We've talked, and going through the process with the Pegulas, I'm very comfortable with the situation.

"I wouldn't take this job if I wasn't comfortable with the situation. Terry and Kim (Pegula) made sure of that, and I appreciate that."

Whaley and the Pegulas went under scrutiny this season as reports of the owners becoming hands on with roster and coaching decisions appeared. The firing of previous head coach Rex Ryan was also troublesome with Whaley stating after the season that he had nothing to do with the decision.

Pegula didn't take questions at the press conference, but appeared on WGR 550 radio earlier in the day to provide some context for McDermott's hiring. He confirmed both coach and GM will make decisions side by side and report directly to Pegula.

"I told (McDermott) the GM and the coach work together," Pegula said. "Obviously, Doug is sitting in the room with him while he's interviewing. So (McDermott) knows, if he's hired by this GM ... I like him.

"It's not like we're bringing a new GM in and hiring (McDermott) as a coach first. This GM, coach working together, they both answer to the owners."

McDermott squashed any ideas that ownership was too dysfunctional in Buffalo to attract coaches, stating the Bills' position was the "best job on the market" because of the Pegulas and the fan base.