Spend more than three decades on a franchise’s radio broadcast, criticize its new head coach, and suddenly your seat in the press box disappears. That is the controversy surrounding longtime Buffalo Bills broadcaster John Murphy, who believes his criticism of Joe Brady may have cost him a credential at the team’s new $2.1 billion Highmark Stadium.
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“Long-time Bills radio voice John Murphy lost his press-box credential at the team’s new stadium,” Pro Football Talk posted on X. “He believes it’s tied to a column he wrote criticizing new coach Joe Brady.”
The controversy began in August, when Murphy wrote a WIVB column questioning whether Joe Brady was ready to become the Bills’ head coach.
Two days later, WIVB sports director Josh Reed told Murphy the station could not secure press-box credentials for him or his longtime photographer, citing a policy against credentialing part-time contributors.
That came after Bills vice president of marketing Chris Jenkins had reportedly assured Murphy in mid-July that his credential was secure and had even shown him where he would sit.
Murphy’s criticism focused on Brady’s lack of experience.
Brady was 36 when Murphy wrote the column, making him the youngest head coach in the NFL and the second-youngest in Bills history. Murphy compared him with Sean McVay, who won a Super Bowl at 36 after five seasons as the Rams’ head coach. He also cited Don McCafferty and George Seifert, the only two coaches to win a Super Bowl in their first seasons as head coaches, arguing that both had significantly more experience with their organizations before taking over.
Brady had spent the previous four seasons with Buffalo, including two-plus seasons as offensive coordinator and one year as quarterbacks coach. Before Buffalo, Brady spent two seasons with the New Orleans Saints, one season at LSU and nearly two seasons as the Carolina Panthers’ offensive coordinator.
Murphy summed up his concern bluntly: “It’s just too soon for Joe Brady.”
He also suggested Buffalo should “take a step back, rebuild their defense and then make a push for football’s ultimate game.”
Interestingly, Murphy was not criticizing Brady’s actual performance. In the same August column, he admitted Brady had been “flawless since becoming the new coach,” saying he had passed every test and handled every potential controversy. His concern was whether that would hold up once the regular-season pressure arrived.
So far, Brady has answered that question well. Buffalo has opened the season 2-0 with wins over Houston and Detroit, scoring more than 35 points in both games. Murphy’s warning was about Brady’s lack of experience, but through two weeks, that has yet to become a problem.
When Murphy was asked whether he believed the Brady column led to the credential denial, he said, “I think so, but I don’t know.”
Another detail added to his suspicion. Murphy later wrote a column predicting a 10-win season for Buffalo, but it was never published. He said a WIVB digital producer told him it was being held because of pressure from the Bills.
The Bills declined to comment when the Buffalo News asked about the situation.
The new Highmark Stadium also reportedly has a small press box, which could have affected credential availability. However, Murphy says he had already been assured of a credential before the Brady column was published.
John Murphy feels insulted at Bills’ decision after Joe Brady criticism
Murphy made it clear that the decision stung, especially after spending more than three decades as an analyst and radio voice for the Bills.
“I feel pretty bad,” Murphy said. “They didn’t fight for me. It (the column) wasn’t that bad. I am (insulted). But I don’t care anymore. I’ll watch on TV. That’s fine. I don’t want people feeling sorry for me.”
The contrast is hard to miss. When Murphy stepped away from the Bills’ radio booth, the franchise publicly celebrated his decades with the organization. General manager Brandon Beane told him, “You’ll always be a Buffalo legend and big in the community and big with the Buffalo Bills.”
Now, Murphy will not have a press-box seat inside the new Highmark Stadium. The press box is reportedly small, which may have limited available credentials, but Murphy says he had already been assured of a seat months earlier.
He also has no plans to challenge the decision. After more than three decades around the Bills, Murphy says he will simply watch the games from home.