After the debacle on Monday night against the Denver Broncos, the Buffalo Bills had to do something drastic. I could almost feel what was coming too. For weeks the Bills fan base has been calling for Dorsey to be let go and the brass finally made the move this week. Will it help, will the offense be better under the interim offensive coordinator Joe Brady?
No one knows for sure but this weekend we'll begin to get at least a hint of what we might expect but I can't imagine there will be too many changes as far as scheme, if any. We may see more motion and Josh Allen under center, since this is what Brady was previously known for during his two-year stint with the Carolina Panthers. Just please keep Dalton Kincaid involved in the offense, which I believe he will.
Regardless of what happens, the Buffalo Bills will be in the market for a permanent offensive coordinator in 2024. I do not doubt that Joe Brady will be in the running, especially if things go well over the rest of the season. If the Bills offense returns to form and points become plentiful, they could simply remove the "interim" from his title and move forward.
If Buffalo decides to conduct a search and interviews, I've looked across the NFL landscape for some possibilities. This list does not include college coaches and focuses strictly on coaches who are not currently offensive coordinators. Guys like Kellen Moore would be a solid hire, but I don't see him leaving Los Angeles unless head coach Brandon Staley is fired or another team hires Moore as their next head coach. I just wrote about the possibility of Moore as the next Bills head coach, should he too be fired at season's end.
Let's get into my five offensive coordinators for the Buffalo Bills in 2024
Duce Staley - Carolina Panthers
Duce Staley first entered the NFL in 1997, when he was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round. He played ten seasons with the Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers, winning a Super Bowl with the Steelers. During his ten seasons, he rushed for over 1,000 yards three times in his career.
Staley began his coaching career as an intern with the Philadelphia Eagles midway into the 2010 season. During his tenure with the Eagles, he worked with Andy Reid, Chip Kelly, and Doug Pederson. All three are considered bright offensive minds throughout the coaching world. He was part of the coaching staff when the Eagles won the Super Bowl in 2018.
In 2021 Staley was hired by the Detroit Lions as assistant head coach and running backs, working under Lions' head coach Dan Campbell. In January of this year, he joined Frank Reich in Carolina, holding the same positions.
Brian Johnson - Philadelphia Eagles
Brian Johnson had an unusual start to his coaching career; in that he started very young. At 22 years old, he was hired as the Utah Utes quarterbacks coach by Kyle Whittingham and two years later was named by Coach Whittingham as Utah's offensive coordinator. He would later join Coach Dan Mullen at Mississippi State as their quarterbacks coach, where he would remain for two seasons.
In 2016, he joined the Houston Cougars as the offensive coordinator. His final stop in the collegiate ranks was in 2017 with the Florida Gators, where he served as the quarterbacks coach, and was promoted to offensive coordinator in 2020.
In 2021, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni hired Johnson as the team's quarterbacks coach to help develop Jalen Hurts, Last season Eagles offensive coordinator Shane Steichen was hired as the Indianapolis Colts head coach, opening the door for Johnson to become the team's new coordinator this season.
Joe Brady - Buffalo Bills
We've talked about Joe Brady a great deal all this week. Since the Bills let Ken Dorsey go, Brady was named the interim offensive coordinator. What takes place over the next two months with the Bills offense is going to say a lot about Brady. He was formerly an offensive coordinator of the Carolina Panthers and as we previously discussed, it didn't go well for whatever reason. He was ultimately let go late in his second season.
Brady didn't have much to work with in Carolina. In two seasons with the Panthers, he had either Teddy Bridgewater or Sam Darnold running his offenses. Now that he has one of the best quarterbacks in the league in Josh Allen, this is his opportunity to show what he's learned over the years and during his time as the Panthers coordinator.
Jake Peetz - Los Angeles Rams
Jake Peetz's early days began with the Alabama Crimson Tide as the quarterbacks coach and later joined the Washington Redskins coaching staff, where he first met and began working alongside Sean McVay. Peetz later joined the Oakland Raiders in 2017, where he spent three years as the offensive assistant and quarterbacks coach. During his time there, he helped Derek Carr become a Pro Bowl player.
After the Raiders, he spent time on the Carolina Panthers staff as running backs coach, where he worked with Christian McCaffrey. Under Peetz's tutelage, McCaffrey led the league in touches, touchdowns, receptions, and points scored by an RB, and all-purpose yards. In 2021, Peetz was hired as the LSU Tigers' offensive coordinator under head coach Ed Orgeron.
Peetz rejoined Coach Sean McVay in Los Angeles in 2022. He was appointed as the pass game specialist, where he remains today. It was also reported that Peetz was offered the quarterbacks coaching position with the Nebraska Cornhuskers; however, he declined, preferring to stay with the McVay and the Rams.
Joe Bleymaier - Kansas City Chiefs
In 2016 Chiefs former offensive coordinator Matt Nagy recommended Joe Bleymaier join the Kansas City Chiefs coaching staff as a quality control coach. In 2018, he was promoted to the Chiefs' pass game analyst and assistant quarterbacks coach, the same year that the Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl.
Apparently, Bleymaier had a significant role in the play that was called on a fourth and one in the Chiefs 2020 AFC Divisional game that helped the Chiefs win the game and advance in the NFL playoffs. In 2021, Bleymaier was promoted to the Chiefs' wide receivers coach and last season was promoted again, this time as the team's pass game coordinator. Coach Andy Reid has praised Bleymaier's work on the Chiefs' innovative and creative concepts.