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Buffalo Bills 2026 Offseason Outlook

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Craig Ellenport | Last updated Feb 12, 2026 7:00 AM ET

When the 2025 season was declared “Super Bowl or bust” for the Buffalo Bills, it turns out the “bust” part really only applied to head coach Sean McDermott. The Bills got as far as overtime in the AFC divisional playoff round, but losing that game — on the road against the conference’s No. 1 seed — was enough for Bills owner Terry Pegula to fire McDermott after after nine years and a record of 98-50.

Joe Brady, who joined the Bills’ staff in 2022 and has been offensive coordinator the last two seasons, was promoted to his first head coaching job. The fact that he’s alreadybeen with the team for four years should make the transition smoother than it would have been with a new head coach from the outside, but it remains to be seen how comfortable Brady will be as the team’s CEO.

The other new addition who will have his hands full is defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard, who joins the staff after earning praise the last two seasons as a defensive assistant with the Broncos. While the offendse is always in good hands with Josh Allen under center, Leonhard will be charged with getting Buffalo’s defense in position to make a run.

2025 recap

Going 12-5 and winning a wild-card game would be a success for most teams, but the 2025 Bills were victims of expectation. They finished second in the division — snapping a string of five straight AFC East titles. Even with a receiving corps that was subpar, the offense ranked fourth in the NFL in scoring. Josh Allen might have been a step below his MVP level of 2024, but he still accounted for 39 touchdowns (25 passing, 14 rushing). James Cook led the NFL with 1,621 rushing yards. The defense was middle-of-the-pack statistically, but they couldn’t close games out. Including the playoff loss in Denver, the Bills allowed 30 or more points six times.

Key free agents

DE Joey Bosa
DL DaQuan Jones
C Connor McGovern
G David Edwards
LB Matt Milano
DE A.J. Epenesa
CB Tre’Davious White
LB Shaq Thompson
S Jordan Poyer
DL Jordan Phillips
S Darnell Savage

Bills salary cap space

($7,449,001)

2026 draft needs

According to Athlon Sports draft guru Luke Easterling, the Bills have decent rotational players on the defensive edge, “but they need an every-down edge rusher who can take over games as a pass-rusher and set a strong edge against the run.” And while there are other key needs throughout the defense, finding a potential No. 1 receiver is also important. Buffalo drafted Keon Coleman at the end of the first round just two years ago, but owner Terry Pegula threw Coleman under the bus when McDermott was fired, and it seems clear the team is still looking for new talent at the position.