by TYLER HATHAWAY
The Buffalo Bills have reportedly made a decision about who will be the next head coach, and its someone already familiar to the Mafia.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Buffalo is in the process of finalizing a deal to promote offensive coordinator Joe Brady to the head coaching role. Brady plans to sign a five-year deal with the Bills and will replace former coach Sean McDermott, who was fired last Monday.
Brady joined the Bills coaching staff in 2022 as a quarterbacks coach. He served as the offensive coordinator of the Bills since November of 2023, when he was named the interim offensive coordinator after Ken Dorsey was fired. Brady was then promoted to full-time offensive coordinator heading into the 2024 season. In his two full years as the play caller of the Bills offense, Buffalo averaged 29.6 points per game and 367.7 yards per game.
Other names involved in the Bills’ head coaching search included former Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who most recently was the head coach of the New York Giants. Longtime NFL quarterback Philip Rivers was targeted by Buffalo and the two sides interviewed, but Rivers reportedly pulled himself out of the search on Monday morning. The Bills also interviewed Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Grant Udinski, but ultimately, Brady got the nod.
General manager Brandon Beane, who was promoted by owner Terry Pegula to also be the president of football operations last week, spearheaded the search.
McDermott’s firing came after a 33-30 loss to the Denver Broncos in the divisional round, the eighth trip to the playoffs under McDermott that ended without making it out of the conference. The decision to fire the long-time coach was made by Pegula after seeing the Bills’ locker room after the loss.
“The first thing I noticed was our quarterback with his head down, crying,” said Pegula in a press conference last week. “I looked at all the other players. I looked at their faces and our coaches. (Josh Allen) had given everything he had to try to win that game, and looking around, so did all the other players on the team. I saw the pain in Josh’s face at his presser, and I felt his pain.”
“I felt like we hit the proverbial playoff wall year after year,” Pegula said. “13 seconds, missed field goals, ‘the catch’.”
Pegula went on to explain how he couldn’t see the Bills getting over the hump with McDermott after the successive years of coming up short in the playoffs. Beane had no impact on the decision according to the owner.
“I made the decision, and it is my decision,” said Pegula.
The Bills pick 26th in the first round in the upcoming NFL Draft in April.
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