A New Era in Buffalo
The Buffalo Bills enter the 2025 season with a new head coach and a familiar sense of urgency. After the team fired Sean McDermott following the 2024 season and promoted offensive coordinator Joe Brady, the message from the organization was clear, as reported by multiple outlets. The Bills are determined to get past the postseason hurdles that have defined the McDermott era.
McDermott led the Bills for nine seasons, and only once—in 2018—did the team miss the playoffs. But in every other campaign, the Bills' season ended in a Wildcard, Divisional, or AFC Championship loss, never reaching the Super Bowl. It is this pattern of regular-season success without ultimate payoff that led to the coaching change, according to reports.
A Reality Check from a Bills Legend
One prominent voice has expressed doubt about whether Brady is the right man to lead the team to the mountaintop. John Murphy, the long-time radio voice of the Bills for 35 years before stepping away in 2024, wrote in a column that the Bills appear ready for a strong season but not necessarily a championship-winning one.
Murphy praised the team's early preseason form, noting, "With two preseason games down, one to go, they're scoring plenty of points. Their re-fitted defense has looked solid against a couple of last year's also-rans. They're pretty healthy and they've got a brand-new playpen in which to frolic." But he quickly added, "Only one thing is missing. One thing will hold them back this year. Their head coach."
That headlineable criticism was nuanced by Murphy's acknowledgment that "Joe Brady has been flawless since becoming the new coach of the Bills. He's passed every test, answered every question, handled every potential controversy. He just hasn't done it enough."
Murphy's concern is rooted in Brady's lack of experience as a head coach, compared to the few coaches who have succeeded immediately. He noted that only two coaches in NFL history have won a Super Bowl in their first year as head coach: Don Minnefit with the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl V and George Seifert with the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XXIV. Murphy highlighted that both McCafferty and Seifert had at least a decade on the staffs of their teams before taking the top job, and Seifert inherited a Super Bowl champion from his predecessor, essentially referring to Bill Walsh's team.
Brady's Background and What It Says
Brady enters his new role with a comparatively thin resume for a head coach. His coaching career covers a one-year stint with the New Orleans Saints under Sean Payton, a year with the Carolina Panthers, and four years in Buffalo, where he spent more than two years as offensive coordinator and one year as quarterbacks coach before that. This gives him six years of league experience, which he comes into his first head-coaching job, as pointed out by Essentially Sports.
That inexperience is exactly what Murphy fears will catch up to Buffalo as the season wears on, particularly against the deeper competition.
Yet amid those doubts, Murphy's own counterpoints were also laid out. Heavy., the outlet that also covered Murphy's column, noted that Brady inherited one of the NFL's best quarterbacks in Josh Allen, and argued that the AFC may not be as intimidating as past years.
The outlet pointed to the New England team's surprising Super Bowl run a season ago after a 4-13 season, and mentioned that the Kansas City Chiefs had lost quarterback Patrick Mahomes to an ACL tear that may affect his performance this year. This suggests the conference is not as deep as some might think.
Allen's Support and a Dynamic Duo
Brady's relationship with Josh Allen has also been a major source of optimism. Allen, who has spent his entire NFL career in Buffalo as the seventh pick in 2018, has praise the offensive mind. Speaking on the Pat McAfee show, Allen said, "The best thing that Joe has done is being himself. He hasn't changed his mindset, his personality. Team meetings feel like exactly how they have felt in the offensive room the last three years. He uses a lot of authentic. He's got the respect of everybody in this building."
Allen's game has also become more dynamic under Brady's guidance as a coordinator, if the rushing stats from multiple sources are a reliable indication. Before Brady became quarterbacks coach in 2022, Allen had recorded 31 rushing touchdowns. By 2022, that number dropped to seven, but it rebounded to a career-best 15 in 2023, then 12 in 2024, and 14 in the most recent season.
How his run-heavy role translates to the national head coaching duties remains to be seen. Allen ows much of the Bills' offense, and presumabably his request for a more creative role has been part of the coaching consideration.
As the season begins, the bill opens at Houston against the Texans, a test that will provide an early look at whether the Brady-era in Buffalo can rise above the postseason disappointment of the past, or if Murphy's warnings prove to be the right one.