Even a 98-50 record and nine seasons of history weren’t enough for Buffalo Bills owner Terry Pegula to retain Sean McDermott. The former head coach couldn’t get over what Terry called the “playoff wall,” and that paved the way for offensive coordinator Joe Brady to take over. Brady took the job, but not without a heavy heart.

“I’m only in Buffalo because of Sean and the opportunities that he gave me. And to see that is, there’s nothing – I didn’t sit there and think that, and I was like, ‘Oh, I want to go be the head coach,” Brady said on the Shout! A Buffalo Podcast with Matt Parrino. “I was broken, you know, because I was broken for a guy that I worked for. I was also broken for the rest of the coaching staff that is sitting there like, we’re all out of jobs right now, and so there was a lot of emotion going on.

“It also dawned on me that the only thing I won’t be is the offensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills, and so that was not a fun day,” Brady went on. “There was nothing exciting about that day. And so much happened through that, but I’ll never forget that moment when that happened, and just the emotion that goes through it. … The reality is this job isn’t permanent, no matter how much success we have at some point.”

McDermott brought Brady on in 2022 as his quarterbacks coach. After the Bills went 5-5, McDermott fired Ken Dorsey and made Brady the interim OC. Brady unlocked Buffalo’s run game and secured his job. As for McDermott, in his nine years of head coaching the Bills, he took them to the playoffs eight times – a remarkable feat that always stopped short of a Super Bowl trip.

When the Bills were knocked out of the divisional rounds by the Denver Broncos this January, quarterback Josh Allen faced the press with tears in his eyes and admitted that he let his team down. Terry Pegula, conversing with general manager Brandon Beane, decided that something had to change and fired McDermott.

“It’s not an easy decision,” Pegula said in a press conference. “Trust me. But what is success? Is success being in the playoffs seven years in a row with no Super Bowl appearance?”

So McDermott was out, and Brady was brought in to climb the playoff wall. But the new head coach wasn’t happy replacing the man who had brought him to Buffalo in the first place. In his introductory presser, Brady spoke about the impact McDermott had had on him and the team.

“I want to thank and recognize Sean McDermott,” Brady said. “In 2022, four years ago, Coach McDermott gave me an opportunity of a lifetime. I had an opportunity to come here, coach for the Buffalo Bills, and coach Josh Allen. I took immense pride in that.

‘Over the past four years, I’ve learned a tremendous amount of things from Coach McDermott,” Brady continued. “How to lead, resilience, standards. The past nine years in this organization matter. I’m understanding of that, and I’m appreciative of the opportunity to be a part of it. They matter deeply and they deserve respect. I’m so grateful for Coach McDermott, I love Coach McDermott, and I’m going to do everything I can to continue to build upon the things he laid and the foundation he laid.”

McDermott, for his part, is also rooting for Brady. He has taken a year off from coaching and expects to return in 2027, but for now, he’s kept the lines open for Brady in case he needs any help.

“Joe is a very talented coach,” McDermott said back in April. “He’s a very talented play-caller. Listen, what I saw in Joe in the four seasons, I think, he was with us, he’s going to do a good job, and I’m looking forward to watching him. I think he knows, and I hope he knows, that I’m always here if he needs anything.”

This difference in their coaching philosophies has already come front and center for Buffalo. For years, Sean McDermott had only drafted players he thought would fit perfectly within the team’s culture. The term for these stars was “Bills blue.” At the NFL Scouting Combine this offseason, Brady offered a new term: “Bills red.” This referred to the players “that have an edge, a little bit of personality to them.”

Translation: Brady is leaning into playmakers who can stand out on the field and do whatever is needed to win games.

Figuring out the final 53-man roster before the season begins is the biggest task at hand for Brady right now. But he’s clearly doing something right. NFL insider Albert Breer, who recently broke down Joe Brady’s hiring, came away impressed.

“I do think Joe Brady’s perspective could give a Bills team that’s become a perennial contender a little added jolt,” Breer said. “Brady interviewed exceptionally well with other teams over the years, and the step back he took in Carolina, after leaving LSU, was more circumstantial than anything. He’s bright, has good vision for an offense and a team, and I think he has the swagger to energize the group.”

Joe Brady called himself broken after Sean McDermott’s exit – the language of a man who never wanted the job this way. Regardless, the Bills got their boost with a new culture, and Brady is now honoring Sean’s foundation by building something new on it. Whether that’s possible without breaking something else is the question no one’s answering.