Buffalo Bills’ 6 best head coaching options after Sean McDermott firing

Suddenly, and in something of a stunner, there is a new “most-appealing head coaching job” available in the NFL.

Days ago that title rested with the Baltimore Ravens, who fired John Harbaugh after nearly two decades at the helm at M&T Bank Stadium after the team failed to reach the playoffs. The chance to work with two-time league MVP Lamar Jackson made that opening the most appealing one in the league.

Until now.

After losing in heart-breaking fashion to the Denver Broncos in the AFC Divisional Round on Saturday, the Buffalo Bills have fired Sean McDermott after nine seasons in charge. The team won 98 regular season games under his leadership, and 106 games when you include the playoffs. But never advanced to a Super Bowl under McDermott’s guidance.

And perhaps critically, they have yet to reach a Super Bowl during the Josh Allen window.

That move also means that the last two league MVPs — Allen and Jackson — will have new coaches next year.

The list of coaches who would want to take over in Buffalo will be long, but here are the names that make the most sense.

Joe Brady, OC, Buffalo Bills

Again, the list of candidates who would love to coach Allen will be long.

But Buffalo’s search might not take them far.

Joe Brady has been listed as a future NFL head coach for as long as many can remember, dating back to the 2019 LSU season where he was the team’s passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach. That year, working with future NFL starts Joe Burrow, JaMarr Chase, and Justin Jefferson, Brady helped the Tigers win a national championship while crafting an explosive passing game.

Brady parlayed that into a two-year stint as the offensive coordinator with the Carolina Panthers, and while that did not pan out as Carolina fans hoped, he found a new home in Buffalo. After starting out as the team’s QB coach he was promoted to OC on an interim basis midway through the 2023 season after the team fired Ken Dorsey, and has been in that role ever since.

Since Buffalo’s loss, Brady has already conducted three head coaching interviews, including with the Ravens. But if the goal is to keep Allen happen and the offense on track, then keeping Brady in Western New York makes a great deal of sense. Sure, Buffalo could look elsewhere, but between his relationship with Allen — and the fear that Brady could depart to a rival like Baltimore — could make him the ideal candidate.

Mike McDaniel, former HC, Miami Dolphins

Let’s assume for a moment that Brady is not the answer in Buffalo.

And he may not be. I’ve been wrong before, I’ll be wrong again before lunchtime, and I’ll be wrong against before the Indiana-Miami game kicks off tonight.

We could then start thinking about the standard NFL hiring cycle. A team hires a candidate with a background on one side of the ball, and their next hire comes on the other side of the football.

Given McDermott’s background on the defensive side of the football, Buffalo might look at offensive-minded head coaches for their next hire. Again, this is in line with what people around the league have been telling me this offseason, that the “offensive-minded head coach with play-calling experience” archetype is what teams are looking for.

Enter Mike McDaniel.

There was a thought that McDaniel was going to keep his job in Miami, and that the Dolphins ownership would pin all the failures on both former general manager Chris Grier and/or the lack of development from Tua Tagovailoa. But apparently, that was not the case. So now McDaniel has become one of the more attractive offensive coordinator options out there, but he has also been meeting with teams for head coaching roles.

Imagine what McDaniel’s offense would look like in the hands of Allen instead of Tagovailoa.

Klint Kubiak, Offensive Coordinator, Seattle Seahawks

Klint Kubiak’s name has been rising to the top of lists like this one, given the work he did in San Francisco as the passing game coordinator under Kyle Shanahan and with Brock Purdy, and what he has done this past season as the offensive coordinator in Seattle working with Sam Darnold.

All of that is impressive, but again, imagine what he could do with Allen as his quarterback instead of Purdy and Darnold.

Whether Kubiak is ready to make the leap to the head role is an open question. But if the goal is to get the most out of Allen and the offense during this window, Kubiak is worth at least a look for Buffalo.

Davis Webb, QB coach, Denver Broncos

Davis Webb’s name has been flying up lists like these since the moment he hung up his cleats. When he was cut by the New York Giants after the 2022 preseason, it was written then that he was going to find a spot on a sideline with a clipboard sooner rather than later.

Has later arrived in Buffalo?

In early 2023 he started exploring coaching options more, and signed on as the quarterbacks coach with Sean Payton in Denver. After two years in that role, he was promoted this past season to the team’s offensive pass game coordinator & quarterbacks coach. What might work most in his favor is that he has earned the title of “QB whisperer,” which carries weight in NFL circles.

And that is not coming from a washed up D3 QB, but people like Kliff Kingsbury, who told Sports Illustrated that “If I had a son playing quarterback, I’d want him to play for Davis Webb.” Sam Ehlinger turned down a spot with the Indianapolis Colts to continue his development under Webb in Denver.

Webb’s background in quarterback development might not make him the best fit in Buffalo, because the issue is not developing a young quarterback but rather getting the most out of a QB that has already become a league MVP. But this could be a “forward-thinking” moment for Buffalo, hiring a young offensive coach on his way up and pairing him with Allen for the next decade.

Kliff Kingsbury, former OC, Washington Commanders

Could the Bills turn to a former offensive coordinator with some head coaching experience?

If so, that would make Kliff Kingsbury an option.

His tenure as the offensive coordinator in Washington came to an end when the Commanders fired both of their coordinators. But we are talking about an offensive-minded candidate with both play-calling experience, and time spent as a head coach. There are criticisms to be made regarding his offensive system, in that it is almost too gimmicky and once defenses start to figure things out, he is slow to adapt as a play-caller.

But what would make this work is the presence of Allen. When you have a quarterback of his caliber, you do not need the gimmicks.

Brian Daboll, former HC, New York Giants

“I love the guy,” said Josh Allen back in November.

The “guy” in question? None other than Brian Daboll.

Daboll was fired as the head coach of the New York Giants midway through the 2025 NFL season, but it is the time he spent in Buffalo with Allen that could make him an attractive option for the Bills. While much of Allen’s rise from “toosly prospect” to league MVP lies within himself, and what Allen did to improve his craft, you cannot underestimate what Daboll meant to his development.

After all, Daboll was Allen’s first NFL offensive coordinator. Overseeing a meteoric rise that propelled Allen from a QB who finished his rookie season with 10 touchdowns and 12 interceptions to a league MVP.

Getting the most out of Allen is the goal.

Hiring the coach who put him on this path could be the best bet.