At the very least, when Buffalo Bills owner Terry Pegula decided to fire Sean McDermott following another heartbreaking and abrupt end in the postseason, he and Bills Mafia could at least rest easy on the idea that the open position would instantly become one of the most favorable spots in the league.
After all, the Bills have what no one else does: Josh Allen. Of course, the Baltimore Ravens have an opening with Lamar Jackson at quarterback, and the Pittsburgh Steelers have an opening, which only happens every 15-20 years. Still, Buffalo’s string of success was greater than either of those teams, so it’d be understandable to slot the Bills’ position above them both.
But after a chaotic couple of days in the wake of the decision to part ways with McDermott, the coin on that idea has flipped.
ESPN's Mike Greenberg captures the unease surrounding the Bills’ leadership
Long-time ESPN voice Mike Greenberg said it best following Pegula and general manager Brandon Beane’s joint press conference on Wednesday, posting on X that the Bills' job doesn’t look quite as appealing now.
“The leadership of the Buffalo Bills has done the impossible this morning,” Greenberg wrote. “They’ve made the opportunity to coach a team with Josh Allen as the quarterback less appealing.”
The leadership of the Buffalo #Bills has done the impossible this morning. They’ve made the opportunity to coach a team with Josh Allen as the quarterback less appealing.
— Mike Greenberg (@Espngreeny) January 21, 2026
It should be the opportunity of a lifetime to know that you’re stepping into a head coaching job with Allen in his prime heading into his age-30 season next Fall. Sure, there are things to fix on the roster, but as long as 17 is under center, the next head coach would know beyond a shadow of a doubt that he has every chance to be successful.
But now prospective candidates have to weigh the chaos with the front office against the opportunity to coach Allen and the Bills past the brick wall they crash into every January.
Pegula and Beane’s press conference was a doozy. It left many impartial minds around the league worried about the future of the franchise, which pales in comparison to the collective worry embedded in the minds of Bills fans everywhere.
During the press conference, Pegula tried to quell any notion of a power struggle with McDermott, but it certainly seems as though no one bought it. Regardless, it has to plant a seed of concern for prospective candidates about the likelihood that they could find themselves in a similar situation.
Of course, Buffalo didn’t become the worst job-opening during the course of that one-hour press conference on Wednesday. Buffalo is still near the top of the list of the best places for any coach looking for a head coaching job. But Greeny’s point stands – the job looks less desirable now than it did only a few days ago.
Hopefully, that doesn’t deter Pegula and Beane, with the help of Allen, from hiring the best candidate possible.