During Wednesday’s way-too-long press conference, Bills owner Terry Pegula declined to delve into his conversations with quarterback Josh Allen regarding Pegula’s decision to fire coach Sean McDermott. But Pegula seemed to hint that Allen wasn’t opposed.
More recently, a “source close to Allen” (quite possibly Allen himself) leaked this to Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News: "[H]e’s appreciative of his 8 years with Sean McDermott. Allen, I’m told, has faith in the leadership of the team under Terry Pegula and Brandon Beane, and will take an active role in participating in the upcoming head coaching interviews.”
Nothing in that report suggests disagreement with the decision to fire McDermott. Which implies that Allen was on board with it.
At a minimum, Allen is accepting the decision and moving forward, with the kind of “faith” in leadership that (based on Wednesday’s press conference) may be shaken for plenty of Bills fans. And it’s possible that Allen doesn’t see the benefit in pushing back against the move, since his views won’t bring McDermott back — and will only complicate the efforts of the next coach to galvanize the locker room.
It’s unknown when we’ll next hear from Allen. He has done the Super Bowl media car wash in the past. If he does, he’ll need to have talking points ready, because he’ll be constantly asked about the decision to fire McDermott, including the key up-or-down question of whether he was, or wasn’t, OK with it.
Exciting, high-stake NFL games sell.
Saturday’s overtime thriller between the Bills and Broncos attracted an average audience of 39.597 million viewers on Saturday, with a stunning peak viewership of 51.284 million in overtime.
Via CBS, it was the most-watched Saturday telecast on any network since the 1994 Winter Olympics, and the most-watched Saturday afternoon telecast on record.
It’s a 17.1-percent jump over last year’s division-round opener between the Texans and Chiefs, which had an audience of 33.8 million on ESPN and ABC.
The bad news for the NFL, if any, is that so many people were watching during the key moments when the league failed to engage in a full-blown replay review over a controversial interception ruling. And it’s all the more reason for the league to figure out the catch rule, apply a consistent standard, and take the time in key moments to ensure that season-deciding calls are correct.
Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady completed an interview for the team’s head coaching vacancy.
The Bills announced Wednesday that Brady is the first candidate to interview for the job to replace Sean McDermott, whom the team fired earlier this week.
Brady became the interim offensive coordinator in November of 2023 when the Bills fired Ken Dorsey, and he earned the full-time job after the season.
During the two full seasons Brady called the offensive plays, Buffalo averaged 30.6 points per game in 2024 (second most in the NFL) and 28.3 points in 2025 (tied for third most). The Bills also ranked 10th in yards per game in 2024 (361.2) and third in 2025 (378.2).
Brady has been with the Bills organization since 2022, developing a strong relationship with quarterback Josh Allen, who won the league’s MVP award in 2024.
Brady also interviewed with the Falcons, Raiders, Cardinals and Ravens.
Bills owner Terry Pegula claimed today that wide receiver Keon Coleman, Buffalo’s disappointing second-round pick in 2024, was a draft pick General Manager Brandon Beane went along with only because the coaching staff wanted him.
One problem with Pegula’s claim: The Bills themselves published video evidence that says otherwise.
A YouTube video released by the Bills after the 2024 draft shows how much Beane liked Coleman, with Beane saying repeatedly that he wanted Coleman on the Bills.
It started at the Scouting Combine, when Coleman met with the Bills’ staff and Beane came away impressed with him as both a player and a person.
“You’re smart, you know ball, and you’re quite a character,” Beane said after that meeting.
Then, on the field at the Combine, Coleman ran a slower-than-expected 40 time. When two Bills staffers pointed it out, Beane dismissed it as any kind of concern and said he hoped it would make Coleman drop on other teams’ draft boards so the Bills would have a better chance at him.
“I’m glad he ran that,” Beane said of Coleman’s slow 40. “It’ll help to get him.”
The Bills used the first pick on the second day of the draft on Coleman, which means they had all day to trade down if they had wanted to. Beane, however, said he knew when he went to bed after the first day of the draft that he was going to keep the pick and draft Coleman unless the Bills had received some kind of extraordinary trade offer.
“When I went to bed that night it was like it’s Keon unless someone just blows us away. We didn’t feel anything was attractive enough for us to pass up on Keon,” Beane said.
Pegula and Beane may want to blame former head coach Sean McDermott for the decision to draft Coleman, which in hindsight looks like a mistake. But at the time, Beane couldn’t have been more clear that Coleman was the guy he wanted in Buffalo.
Bills owner Terry Pegula decided to fire coach Sean McDermott due to chronic inability to parlay playoff appearances into a Super Bowl win. During Wednesday’s press conference, Pegula was asked whether the attempt to upgrade carries risk.
“There is definitely risk,” Pegula said. “We’ve got to make the best decision. So that’s a fact.”
Does the job carry pressure, given the circumstances that led to McDermott’s termination after seven straight postseason berths?
“I don’t know about pressure right now, but there’s a lot of people that want to look at taking this job,” Pegula said. “There’s a lot of interest.”
Is the ultimate message to the next coach Super Bowl or bust?
“We can’t say that to somebody coming in,” Pegula said. “We’re making a change, and you know, it’s ‘do your best job.’”
Some things don’t need to be said. The sudden pivot (as Pegula explained it) after the playoff loss to the Broncos happened because Pegula wants to break through the playoff wall. Doing as well as McDermott has done is a given. Getting farther is the mandate.
So, no, there’s no pressure at all.
That doesn’t make it a bad job, relative to the various perennially dysfunctional teams still searching for coaches. The Buffalo job carries a high potential reward. It also carries high risk.
The fact that the Bills will have no shortage of candidates doesn’t change that. In the end, there are only 32 NFL head-coaching jobs.
Only one vacancy has Josh Allen. Along with strong urgency to get Allen to a Super Bowl. And to get the Bills their first ever Lombardi Trophy.
So, no, there’s no pressure at all.
