After nine years on the job, eight winning seasons, and eight playoff victories, the Buffalo Bills had enough. The team fired Sean McDermott on Monday, sending shockwaves throughout the NFL.
The Bills' Divisional Round collapse was a bad look, period. Not only did Josh Allen play poorly, but the team was in a position to win this game as the fourth quarter wound down.
The defense surrendered a go-ahead touchdown on a pass from Bo Nix to Marvin Mims Jr, and while Matt Prater tied it at the end of regulation, the overtime period was simply disastrous. McDermott was also quick to talk to the media after the game about his overall displeasure for how the game was officiated in the end.
That could have been the nail in the coffin, but after a near-decade of playoff failures and falling short, a change was needed. Here's the thing - Sean McDermott is, objectively speaking, a very good head coach in the NFL. He'll have a head coaching job when he wants one, but he was maxed out in Buffalo and was not going to be the one to get this team over the hump, and history suggests that the Bills could get a title here in the near future.
There is a lot of history indicating that this particular scenario could bode well for the Buffalo Bills
Sean McDermott won over 66% of his games with the Buffalo Bills, a stellar mark, but the playoffs is where things got rough. Former Colts and Buccaneers head coach Tony Dungy also kind of had the same fate, as Albert Breer notes:
This is Tony Dungy in Tampa. Sean McDermott, like Dungy, completely changed the face of a listless franchise. But eventually, pressure to capitalize on a championship window (created by the defense in Tampa, the QB in Buffalo) winds up costing the coach his job.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) January 19, 2026
The Buccaneers parted with Dungy after the 2001 NFL Season. That very next year, Tampa won it all. It was clear at the time, though, that Dungy was a good coach and got the franchise back on track, but he was not going to be the one to get this team over the hump.
A more recent example of this is actually with the Denver Broncos. The Broncos won the Super Bowl in 2015. Gary Kubiak was in his first year as the team's head coach, as they had parted ways with John Fox after another playoff stinker in 2014.
Fox had won nearly 72% of his games in Denver but also had four years of playoff disappointment in a row, including a loss in Super Bowl 48. The Buffalo Bills are going to be fine - this team is going to bring in a new head coach with fresh ideas and hopefully someone who can get the most out of this roster.
There is also history to indicate that the team could have a Super Bowl title coming. This isn't the end of the Bills by any means.