The Buffalo Bills have put their best foot forward with Mike Shanahan.

It's going to take awhile to see how far forward it gets them.

Russ Brandon, Bills chief operating officer and general manager, met with Shanahan, the Super Bowl-winning coach, in Denver on Monday evening and Tuesday morning, team sources confirmed. Bills owner Ralph C. Wilson Jr. did not attend the meeting.

The sessions lasted a total of about seven hours and were characterized as discovery discussions by a team source. Brandon outlined for Shanahan the status of the Bills' franchise from financial and football perspectives, and he accentuated the positive aspects of the Buffalo head-coaching job.

The two sides agreed to keep in touch and continue dialogue.

This was the first major development in what is expected to be a long process for the Bills. A quick signing of Shanahan or any other coach is unlikely.

There are six weeks to go in the NFL regular season. It's expected Shanahan will want to take a deliberate approach to deciding on his next head-coaching job, and that means waiting to see what options are available to him for the 2010 season.

Shanahan spoke to ESPN on Wednesday.

"We had an excellent meeting," Shanahan told the network. "I was really impressed with Russ Brandon and everything he had to say. We're going to stay in touch and see what develops."

The Bills intend to give interim head coach Perry Fewell a formal interview when the season ends.

The likelihood is it's going to take seven or eight weeks for the Bills to hire a head coach, if not a little longer. The Bills, like any other team searching for a head coach, are required by the league's Rooney Rule to interview a minority candidate for the job. That rule was expanded this year to apply to all searches for senior football operations positions within the NFL.

Shanahan, 57, is 15th on the NFL's all-time regular-season victory list for head coaches. Shanahan's career record, including playoffs, is 154-103. He won two Super Bowls and had nine winning seasons in 14 years at Denver.

He is regarded as one of the best offensive minds in football. His Denver offenses ranked among the top 10 in the NFL in yards in 10 of his 14 seasons.

It's not believed that financial terms were even brought up in the meeting with Shanahan, a league source said.

The fact the Bills are shooting for one of the biggest coaching names is a sign that Wilson is willing to spend far more than ever before on a head coach.

Fired Bills coach Dick Jauron was making $3 million a year, and that was the most Buffalo ever had paid for a head coach.

The Bills last weekend reached out to former Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher, who was not interested in interviewing at this time. A league source said the Bills indicated to Cowher that a salary of $10 million is possible.

Whether that proves true remains to be seen, but that would be a stunning jump over the leaguewide standard.

Shanahan was earning a salary of about $7 million a year from Denver. The highest-paid active NFL head coach is believed to be New England's Bill Belichick, at about $6 million a year.

The pursuit of Shanahan could get heated when the season ends, as more jobs open up.

The Bills are in the process of evaluating their entire football operation and are expected to add someone new to the football personnel department.

If the Bills want to pursue a coach who won a Super Bowl ring as a head man, Brian Billick, formerly of Baltimore, probably is their only other option. Former Green Bay and Seattle coach Mike Holmgren appears determined to return in a front-office capacity. Tony Dungy, who won a Super Bowl in Indianapolis, appears determined to stay retired from the game.