Bills Mafia has had a full 48 hours and change to digest the Buffalo Bills’ hiring and promoting of offensive coordinator Joe Brady as head coach.
Certainly, not everyone was ready to welcome the ‘new’ coach with open arms. After all, how new can a voice be in the locker room if he’s been there for the past four years?
Of course, like it or not, Brady will be introduced as the new head coach by owner Terry Pegula and general manager Brandon Beane on Thursday. He’ll be the man leading the Bills out of the tunnel at New Highmark Stadium next season, and if all goes well, the next five seasons and beyond.
Still, we’re months away from that first run out of the tunnel. In the meantime, Brady and the Bills are tasked with making believers out of Bills Mafia before they take the field.
Defensive coordinator hire will define Bills Mafia’s early verdict on Joe Brady
There’s one sure way to ensure that Bills Mafia can get behind Brady as the head coach, and it comes down to how he builds his staff, particularly on the defensive side. With former defensive coordinatorBobby Babich taking a position under new Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, the Bills' defense will get a fresh start in 2026.
Regardless of how anyone feels about the Brady hire, it was his unit that held up its end of the bargain despite its shortcomings at wide receiver. The same can’t be said for Sean McDermott’s defense, which was the top pass defense in terms of yards allowed, but was closer to average in most other categories, and among the worst in stopping the run.
Short of personnel changes, the Bills’ offense won’t look much different, so fans know what to expect – and they expect improvement, too. But defensively, it’s wide open until Brady settles on his defensive staff.
Of course, the news of Jim Schwartz wanting out in Cleveland after he was passed over for the head coaching job for former Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken has Bills Mafia’s attention. Bringing Schwartz back to Buffalo would instantly put more faith in the decision to promote.
Another option, which surfaced well before Schwartz became a legitimate option, is Wisconsin defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard. He’s been considered one of the brightest young defensive minds in college football for a few years now, and he’s flirted with quality jobs around the country and in the NFL over the years.
Those are the two most attractive options currently available to Brady, though more could come as head coaching jobs continue to be filled. For example, if Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver doesn’t land the Arizona Cardinals or Las Vegas Raiders job, his name would join the list.
But just because there are attractive coaches out there for Brady to choose from doesn’t mean that fans will be happy with just anyone taking the job. For example, former Bills DC Leslie Frazier is a veteran defensive mind in the NFL with plenty of ties back to Buffalo. He may be looking for a coordinator position after helping out in Seattle as an assistant head coach, but such a hire wouldn’t necessarily sit well with many Bills fans.
The final few weeks of the NFL’s coaching carousel, and how it shapes Brady’s first coaching staff, will give Bills Mafia a better starting point to measure their expectations of the next era of Bills football. If Brady can lure in a great defensive coordinator to complement his offense, it’ll go a long way in proving to the fanbase that the 36-year-old is ready to lead the Bills into the future.