COACH DOUG MARRONE COMMENTS ON NATHANIEL HACKETT
What makes you believe Nate Hackett is prepared to handle offensive coordinator duties in the NFL due to age, 33, and years of NFL experience, 4?
"I have worked closely with Nathaniel the past 3 years and the first thing that jumps out at you is his boundless enthusiasm. He has a genuine love and excitement for the game of football, offenses in particular, and that transcends into everything he does. Secondly, he has a great knowledge of offenses for someone his age. Having grown up as the son of coach, particularly the son of a good coach, has certainly served him well. He's been surrounded by offensive-thinking football all his life and he's absorbed it. It's in his DNA. Finally, you hear coaches speak of "everyone being on the same page?" Well Nathaniel is on the same page with me when it comes to the offense, and it's multiple variations, that we are looking to run here in Buffalo."
Is this more of a choice due to the fact you're familiar with Nathaniel and his work or do you feel he is the best offensive coordinator available to help the Buffalo Bills?
"I felt he was the best offensive coordinator available and that's why I hired him. He did an outstanding job for us at Syracuse and I have tremendous confidence in him making the transition back to the NFL level. He's our offensive coordinator because he's earned it."
Did you consider or interview any other candidates before deciding on Nathaniel?
"I'm a firm believer in doing your homework thoroughly. As I mentioned in my opening press conference, I pride myself on my work ethic and in putting my staff together, I'm looking at every variable possible. With that said, Nathaniel's abilities and creativity arose to the forefront at a very early stage. I believe he's going to be highly successful in our organization and our players are going to enjoy executing our offensive schemes."
You ran an uptempo, 'K-gun'-like offense at Syracuse. Will that philosophy continue here? How much will the quarterback play into that decision?
"We will soon be in the process of looking at film of each player on our roster and his particular skill set. We will develop an offense that bests suits those skills sets."
What will be the identity of the offense?
"We will have a foundation that enables us to put our players in the best position possible to win."
Is Nathaniel's hiring just another step closer to the team selecting Ryan Nassib in this year's draft? "I understand the rationale for the question, but hiring Nathaniel as our offensive coordinator has nothing to do with which players we will select in this year's Draft."
