When the Buffalo Bills’ playoff journey ended, little did people know that it would be the start of something new that fans now see what it is. Two days after the Bills were eliminated by the Denver Broncos in the playoffs, the Sean McDermott era ended at One Bills Drive. Since then, a lot has changed.
Even though the Bills are still championship contenders, it was time for a shakeup within the organization. Stability has been key for Buffalo’s success, but what was happening clearly wasn’t working. The firing of McDermott caused a ton of reactions amongst fans and the NFL media, but what’s done is done.
Now, the Bills have gone through the first offseason without McDermott in the building and they made a ton of rosters moves, both good and potentially bad (and maybe more could be coming).
4 offseason moves Bills will prove was right (and 3 they may regret on)
Got Right: Drafting Skyler Bell
I’m an absolute huge fan of the Bills drafting Skyler Bell. To make it even better, they managed to steal him in the 4th round of the NFL Draft. He can play inside and he can play outside. He is reliable after the catch and he could very well open up the playbook for Joe Brady and this offense.
Even though the Bills traded for DJ Moore in March, they needed to draft another receiver and getting Bell in the 4th round with his production in college is a great setup for the Bills.
Might Regret: Letting Cam Lewis walk in free agency
Even though the roster was heading for a change now that Sean McDermott was out the door, there were some players that the Bills should have insisted on keeping and one those players was defensive back Cam Lewis. He started his career in Buffalo, after playing at the University at Buffalo and proved to be a great versatile player.
After six seasons with the Bills, Buffalo let him walk and now he is a member of the Chicago Bears. Lewis is a very underrated player and the Bears should be considered lucky to have him. Buffalo is going to miss his presence.
Got Right: Signing Bradley Chubb as big free agency splash
Make no mistake about it, Bradley Chubb can still produce at a high level. Not to mention, he has played in the AFC East since 2022 so he knows exactly what this division is about. Buffalo signed Chubb to a three-year deal after spending the last few seasons down in Miami.Â
Injuries are obviously a concern, having torn his ACL multiple times but in his last two healthy seasons (2023 and 2025), he has recorded 19.5 sacks. Coming in as an outside linebacker under Jim Leonhard’s defense should set him up for success. He may not have the biggest name but he surely is what Buffalo needs on defense.
Might Regret: Not solidifying left guard spot for the long-term
When it comes to protecting Josh Allen, you should never take any unnecessary risks. The Bills let David Edwards walk in free agency, and it wasn’t a surprise once they re-signed Connor McGovern. Buffalo brought back Alec Anderson, and also signed Austin Corbett and drafted Ar’Maj Reed-Adams.Â
Anderson and Corbett are both on just one-year deals and Reed-Adams was a 7th round pick. Right now, Buffalo doesn’t have a potential long-term solution. The rest of their offensive line is all set (but O’Cyrus Torrence does enter a contract year). At the same time, the left guard spot doesn’t have a long-term answer and the Bills will need to figure it out sooner than later.
Got Right: Spending that second round pick to acquire DJ Moore
When the news broke that the Bills were trading for DJ Moore, Bills Mafia was ecstatic. Once it was learned that they sent a second round pick to acquire him, there were mixed emotions about the decision. Well, the Bills ended up making multiple trade backs in the NFL Draft to where they drafted two players in the second round.
Overall, the big picture is that Buffalo took care of their biggest problem of not having a true WR1. With Moore coming into the picture, Josh Allen gets his No. 1 target and Moore not only gets Allen throwing him the ball, but he also gets Joe Brady back from when the two worked together in Carolina from 2020-2021.
Might Regret: Not getting another veteran linebacker
The switch from a 4-2-5 to a 3-4 on defense for the Bills meant they needed to add some more linebacker depth, especially in the middle. Instead, they only drafted Kaleb Elarms-Orr to go with Terrel Bernard, Dorian Williams, Joe Andreessen, and Jimmy Ciarlo as the notable players.
Buffalo should have been more aggressive to bring in another veteran linebacker in the middle to create more competition. Injuries do happen and with what Leonhard wants out of his defense, Buffalo still needs to address this issue by bringing in atleast one more linebacker that doesn’t line up on the outside.
Got Right: Hiring Joe Brady as the next head coach
Yes, Joe Brady getting promoted to head coach was the best decision the Bills could have made this offseason once Sean McDermott was fired. Buffalo has always been about continuity and even though changes needed to be made, they managed to keep Josh Allen’s play caller in the building and is now in charge of the whole operation.
Dion Dawkins has talked about what type of coach Brady is and why it’s important for the locker room to have it. Even outside of that, Brady has proven to be a solid play caller despite not having elite talent to work with. Yes, I know that the bubble screen passes create reactions, but no one can deny the fact that Brady elevated this offense from what it was with Ken Dorsey.
Now that Brady is in charge, it’s a new era. A fresh start. Buffalo needed it after nine seasons with Sean McDermott. It’s going to be tough for Brady to do more than McDermott did, but in the end, the hope is that Brady can do what McDermott couldn’t and that is bring a Super Bowl to Buffalo.
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