The Buffalo Bills are making a major change following their latest playoff exit.
Sean McDermott has been fired as head coach after nine seasons, NFL Media reported Monday. The Bills will reportedly retain general manager Brandon Beane.
McDermott was Buffalo’s most successful coach since Marv Levy went 98-50 from 1986 to 1997 and led the team to four straight Super Bowl appearances in the early 1990s.
McDermott led the Bills to the postseason in eight of his nine seasons. However, despite Josh Allen emerging as one of the game’s top quarterbacks, Buffalo did not make a Super Bowl under McDermott, losing to the Kansas City Chiefs twice in the AFC Championship Game.
The Bills’ latest playoff disappointment came on Saturday, when they lost to the Denver Broncos in the divisional round 33-30. While the Bills lost in overtime, one of the turning points of the game came right before halftime, when Buffalo tried to push the ball downfield instead of kneeling the clock out. Allen fumbled with a few seconds left, allowing Denver to kick an easy field goal and go up 20-10.
[5 Takeaways From the Broncos’ Win Over the Bills]
Buffalo’s last three playoff losses have all been decided by three points. And three of McDermott’s playoff losses ended in overtime.
That includes a 42-36 loss to Kansas City in the 2021 divisional round that’s become dubbed “13 seconds” — the amount of time Patrick Mahomes had to complete two passes for 44 yards and set up Harrison Butker’s tying 49-yard field goal on the final play of regulation.
Despite Buffalo’s playoff failures, McDermott oversaw a team that won 10 or more regular-season games seven straight seasons, including two team record-matching 13-win seasons, in 2022 and ’24.
With the Bills firing McDermott, there have been 10 NFL head coaching changes this offseason. The New York Giants and Atlanta Falcons have since hired new coaches.
McDermott could be a candidate for any of the other seven head coach vacancies. He’s told his staff he plans to continue coaching, ESPN reported.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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