Orchard Park, N.Y. — When Buffalo Bills owner Terry Pegula appeared before a microphone last week for the first time in nearly six years to announce why he fired longtime head coach Sean McDermott, the prevailing thought was the team was looking for a new vision.
“Great roster, good coaching, no Super Bowl appearance,” Pegula said.
So when the news broke on Tuesday that the Bills are promoting offensive coordinator Joe Brady to be the 17th coach in franchise history, Bills fans’ skepticism overflowed on nearly every social media platform.
Bills general manager and president of football operations Brandon Beane said there was no frontrunner when the search began last Thursday.
“Old, young, former coach, first-time coach,” Beane said. “We’re opening every door. We got to find the right guy for this team to help get us over the hump.”
It must have been an impressive sell job from Brady, considering he’s part of the coaching staff that hasn’t been able to get the Bills over the hump the past three playoffs.
How did Brady convince Beane and Pegula to turn over the Bills’ operation to him at 36 years old? He reportedly sold them on his vision.
“The CEO portion of the interview stood out the most,” wrote NFL insider Jordan Schultz. “His vision for how everything would be structured from the HC seat was viewed as a ‘home run.’ He also nailed the importance of alignment between coaching and player personnel.”
Buffalo Bills interim offensive coordinator Joe Brady, left, participates in warmups before the team’s NFL football game against the New York Jets in Orchard Park, N.Y., Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes )AP
Beane spoke specifically about seeking a head coach who could run the team like a CEO. He said the decision couldn’t simply sway toward an offensive-minded coach for offense’s sake.
“This is a bigger job than just a play caller and schemer,” he said. “I think we’ve seen where guys have been excellent play callers, but they’ve got to the head coach seat, and they couldn’t handle the adversity, the conflict management, all the things that … it’s a CEO job. It really is.”
Brady, the play caller, has led the Bills’ offense to success over the past two seasons. Quarterback Josh Allen was the NFL MVP in 2024, and running back James Cook finished as the league’s rushing champion this season. Under Brady’s watch, the Bills finished as a top 5 scoring offense the last two seasons and ranked first in EPA/play, scoring drive rate, and points scored.
Brady isn’t just running the offense now, however. He’ll be asked to maintain the culture that McDermott built and get the Bills over the “proverbial playoff wall” that forced Pegula to make the change in the first place.
Alignment between Brady’s coaching staff and Beane’s scouting staff is the most critical piece of this new relationship. Some of the high-end draft picks who haven’t worked out over McDermott’s tenure seem like a symptom of the disconnect between the two sides on player evaluation and the vision for the field. Offensive lineman Cody Ford, cornerback Kaiir Elam, and receiver Keon Coleman are a few examples.
Complicating the Brady decision are Pegula’s comments from last week regarding Coleman. Pegula said that the coaching staff – presumably that includes Brady as the OC – pushed for the Bills to draft Coleman despite Beane having him lower on his draft board.
“I’m not saying Brandon wouldn’t have drafted him, but he wasn’t his next choice,” Pegula revealed. “That was Brandon being a team player and taking advice of his coaching staff, who felt strongly about the player. And he’s taken–for some reason–heat over it, and not saying a word about it. But I’m here to tell you the true story.”
Brady is selling Beane on a shared vision for the roster and specifically the offense, which should include plans to improve the wide receiver position. Fans grew frustrated at the persistence of bubble screens to receivers at critical moments of games. Adding more dynamic pass catchers could be how Brady helps take his offense to the next level.
Brady will have to juggle more in his new seat.
“A lot of your time as a head coach or a GM get taken away from scouting, watching players- or a coach in their scheming Xs and Os,” Beane said. “So we’ve got to make sure we get the leadership, the CEO part.”