Bills Mafia is officially down one head coach.
The Bills fired Sean McDermott on Monday after nine seasons, the final of which ended Saturday with an overtime divisional round playoff loss to the Broncos in Denver.
McDermott finishes his time in Buffalo with a regular-season record of 98-50 and a postseason mark of 8-8.
Of course, Saturday’s crushing 33-30 loss to the Broncos in extra minutes wasn’t without controversy.
When quarterback Josh Allen tossed a pass to wide receiver Brandin Cooks on the Bills’ first overtime possession, the ball was ripped away by Denver cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian. The play was ruled an interception, although it was speculated Cooks was already down.
“It’s hard for me to understand why it was ruled the way it was ruled,” McDermott said, per NFL.com. “In my eyes, it was [a catch by Cooks], yes. In my eyes, it was. But even if it wasn’t, OK. Let’s just say that, and I’m being objective. Even if it wasn’t, the players are owed, to me, ‘Hey, let’s stop it. Let’s slow it down.’ Let’s put the head referee and give him a chance to look at the monitor just to make sure. Just to make sure.”
McDermott, 51, was hired by the Bills in 2017 after six seasons as the Panthers’ defensive coordinator.
A year after McDermott’s hiring, the Bills made the franchise-altering decision to select eventual league MVP Allen with the seventh overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.
Allen, 29, and McDermott reached the playoffs in seven of their eight seasons together.
The closest the duo came to a Super Bowl berth was in the 2020 and 2024 seasons, when they fell to the Chiefs in the AFC Championship games.
Long regarded as the AFC East powerhouse, the Bills saw a sudden shift in dynamics this season, due in part to a resurgent Patriots squad under first-year coach Mike Vrabel.
New England (14-3) went on to claim its first AFC East title since 2019, while the Bills, winners of five straight, finished second in the division at 12-5.
The move to split from McDermott comes days after longtime Steelers coach Mike Tomlin resigned and the Ravens fired their 18-year coach, John Harbaugh.
Harbaugh has since been named the next head coach of the Giants.
The Bills are now one of eight current vacancies, joining the Ravens, Steelers, Dolphins, Browns, Titans, Cardinals and Raiders.
The Falcons, also searching for a new coach, hired ex-Browns coach Kevin Stefanski on Saturday.
