Brian Daboll: Five Reasons Why Buffalo Was Right To Hire Him

Less than 48 hours after terminating Rick Dennison’s contract, the Buffalo Bills named Brian Daboll as the new Offensive Coordinator.

Daboll comes to the Bills mere days after winning College Football’s National Championship with the Alabama Crimson Tide and he’s 11-months removed from a Super Bowl ring with the Patriots as the Tight Ends Coach. This marks the second offensive coordinator in as many years to leave Nick Saban’s College juggernaut for the NFL. Steve Sarkisian made the jump at the end of last season and had a successful transition with the Falcons.

Buffalo Bills beat reporter Sal Capaccio mentioned Sean McDermott may have been interested in a coach with play-calling experience and that is exactly what Daboll will bring to the coaching staff.

Daboll has plenty of experience coaching in the NFL despite spending the 2017 season coaching in the college ranks. Before going to Alabama, the 42-year old offensive coordinator spent 16-years coaching in the NFL as both an Offensive coordinator and various position coaching jobs.

Here are five reasons why Daboll was the right hire for Sean McDermott and the Buffalo Bills.

Experience is key

McDermott wanted a guy who has called plays before. Well, he got one.

His 16-year NFL coaching career was already acknowledged in this piece. But what was saved for this portion of the article was the “what’s and where’s”.

Daboll is another coach to add to Belichick’ long list of successful offsprings.

The Bills new coach broke into the league in 2000 with the New England Patriots as a defensive coaching assistant. He was later promoted to Wide Receivers Coach in 2002. During his first tour of duty with the AFC juggernauts, he won four Super Bowls. FOUR. He won his fifth championship in his second go-around with the Patriots last season.

Current Patriots Offensive Coordinator thinks highly of the former Patriots staff member. Here is a quote from Josh McDaniels regarding Daboll when he returned to the team in 2013.

After spending much of his career under the guidance of Belichick and the Pats he must be a firm believer in “The Patriot Way”.

Although he never obtained the reins Belichick’s offensive playbook in New England, Daboll has held the title as offensive coordinator three times in his NFL career. He spent two years as the OC in Cleveland and had the same job in Miami and Kansas City for one season. If there is a knock on the newly minted Bills coach, it’s that he hasn’t had much stability or consistency outside of New England. He has never spent more than two years with a team other than the Patriots. The Bills hope to change that.

With ten seasons in New England, one in Miami and two seasons as the New York Jets Quarterbacks Coach,  the Bills are the final team he needed to coach for the AFC East bingo— “BINGO!”

Home Sweet Home

It’s always a feel-good story when a hometown guy gets to play for the city he grew up in. Well, I’m sure it’s the same for coaches.

Daboll is a native of Welland, Ontario, which is just over a half an hour drive from Buffalo– border traffic aside, especially on game day.

Daboll didn’t stay in Canada long after realizing he wanted to make a career in football. Like most aspiring athletes, he made his way south of the border to play high school football at St. Francis High School. The private Catholic school is located in a Buffalo suburb, Athol Springs.

The Bills coach later went on to play NCAA football at the University of Rochester where he was a two-year starter for the Yellowjackets.

To get a coach who’s a hometown guy and has play-calling experience is a double whammy for the Buffalo Bills. You better believe he’ll be looking to bring home another Lombardi Trophy to Buffalo, but this time as a Bill. The Western New York ties run through Daboll’s veins like water in the Nile River.

Familiarity with college QB’s 

The first thought that ran through my mind when I saw this hire was the NFL draft. This hire all but ensures the Bills will be drafting a quarterback, right?

As mentioned previously, Daboll spent last season in the NCAA. This means Daboll should have a good idea of the talent pool coming into this year’s draft. More specifically, offensive talent. And if I need to get really specific, at the quarterback position given his expertise at the position.

Now, some could argue that Daboll is a coach and not a scout, therefore, isn’t an evaluator for the draft. Although this is true, it would be hard to be a coach for a top program in the NCAA and not be watching and analyzing other team’s best players. Especially as a quarterback’s coach.

Not to mention Daboll will have the ability to communicate with Saban and get his thoughts on the quarterback class.

Buffalo has two first-round picks that can be parlayed into a franchise quarterback should the Bills elect to move on from Tyrod Taylor. It remains to be seen what Daboll thinks about his inherited quarterback, but the team sure seems to think the offense needs an overhaul.

(Watch 3:46-4:16)

A Winning Pedigree

Daboll is a winner. Plain and simple. He has five Super Bowl rings in his jewelry box and is batting a thousand in the College ranks after last week’s overtime victory in the National Championship over the Georgia Bulldogs.

Think about this. If you include college, Daboll has more national titles than Tom Brady.

Daboll won back-to-back Super Bowls in 2001-2002 as a Patriots Defensive Assistant and Wide Receivers Coach. He won one more as a receiver’s coach in 2005 with a 24-21 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

After much success, Daboll was unable to get back to the big dance with any of the other organizations he coached for until finding his way back to New England in 2013. The decorated coach won two more world titles with the Pats as the tight ends coach before being swayed into the college world by Saban last season.

For those who didn’t watch Alabama’s national title game against the Bulldogs, firstly, shame on you— Because it was an instant classic.

Secondly, Daboll led the Alabama offense back from a 13-0 deficit at halftime with freshman Phenom Tua Tagovailoa. Alabama scored 20 points in the second half to take the game into overtime where a Daboll drawn play allowed the Crimson Tide to claim their fifth championship in eight years.

That’s six national championships compared to Brady’s five.

Needless to say, he’s a winner.

McDermott Connection

Many suspected McDermott to hire an offensive coordinator from within the NFL. With experienced play callers like Rob Chudzinski, Mike McCoy, and Jim Caldwell available, McDermott opted to dip into the college system and link up with an old pal from College.

Like McDermott, Daboll’s first taste of off-the-field football came at the College of William and Mary in Williamsville, West Virginia. After graduating with an economics degree at the University of Rochester, Daboll got a job with the Tribe as their Restricted Earnings Coach in 1997.

William and Mary’s is where Daboll and McDermott first met. Before becoming a graduate assistant for the Tribe, McDermott was an All-Conference safety for the school during Dabolls tenure.

Once a coach becomes the head honcho somewhere they bring colleagues from previous landing spots. Football is funny that way. McDermott earned his first coordinator job this way too. Ron Rivera brought McDermott with him to Carolina after coaching together in Philadelphia from 2001-2003.

Connections are key and this was a reason why people thought former Panthers Offensive Coordinator Mike Shula was a strong candidate for the Bills job. But nonetheless, McDermott went way back into his Rolodex from the 90’s to find the guy he really wanted to lead his offense. Brian Daboll.

Next: Naming Buffalo's Team MVP's For 2017

Do you think the Bills hired the right man to run things on the offensive side of the football?