Throughout the course of the history of the NFL, we have seen some of the greatest and worst head coaches to ever step onto the field. Some coaches have been with teams for 10-20 seasons, while some don’t even make it out of their first season. When it comes to the Buffalo Bills, Sean McDermott has established himself as the best head coach behind Marv Levy in franchise history.
Without McDermott, who knows how much longer Buffalo’s playoff drought would have continued. Coming to Buffalo from Carolina in 2017, McDermott was taking on a huge mess that Rex Ryan created prior. How did he follow up with that task? He, along with Brandon Beane, changed the culture for the better and helped lead the Bills to the playoffs for the first time since 1999.
In eight seasons, McDermott has posted an 86-45 regular season record (.656) which is fantastic but his playoff record of 7-7 is what stands out the most, especially since he has Josh Allen as his quarterback. Since the 2020 season when the Bills truly became a championship contender, the Bills have fallen short every single year in the playoffs including twice in the AFC championship game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Let’s be honest, Allen is not the reason why the Bills haven’t made the Super Bowl. It has been the defense that has given up no less than 27 points in every playoff loss since 2020 and with McDermott being a defensive guy, this is not a good look for him.
Sean McDermott listed as a head coach on hot seat for 2025 (and it makes sense)
Tyler Sullivan of CBS Sports listed the head coaches high on the hot seat list for the 2025 season and McDermott was listed at No. 5 behind coaches like Shane Steichen, Zac Taylor, Mike McDaniel, and Brian Daboll. Here’s a bit on what Sullivan said about McDermott being on the hot seat:
"With a loaded roster headlined by NFL MVP Josh Allen, McDermott has been under scrutiny for not being able to get his team to that next level. If he cannot break through that ceiling yet again in 2025, it may force the Buffalo brass to seriously consider finding a new leader who may have a better chance to take the franchise up a notch. "Tyler Sullivan, CBS Sports
Being a defensive-minded coach and having the best quarterback in the NFL on your roster, and not making a Super Bowl is a very bad look. McDermott has proven that he can come into a franchise and clean up a mess. While he has some signature wins, they aren’t ones that get the Bills to the Super Bowl and that’s his biggest fault right now as the Bills head coach.
Now, unless the Bills have an ultimate collapse in 2025, McDermott is not going anywhere as the Bills love to keep as much continuity as possible. However, if the Bills come up short again due to the defense falling apart, there is going to be a lot of chatter about the Bills possibly moving on from McDermott sooner than later.