Sean McDermott Intends To Coach In 2026

McDermott, 51, has been in the NFL since 1999, but he has only worked for three teams. He will likely be seeking one of the league’s five remaining vacancies (not counting his former position in Buffalo). However, he has only been mentioned as a potential candidate for a few of those jobs with no official interviews scheduled or requested yet.

McDermott’s has a strong reputation around the league, as evidenced by the widespread confusion when he was fired. He consistently put together solid defenses in both Carolina and Buffalo and could receive consideration as a defensive coordinator candidate if a head coaching position does not work out. The Eagles and Panthers employed McDermott as a DC previously. He was at the helm for Carolina’s 15-1 2015 season that ended with a Super Bowl 50 loss.

This year’s HC cycle has featured two immediate bounce-back opportunities — John Harbaugh with the Giants, Kevin Stefanski with the Falcons — and Robert Saleh caught on as a retread (with the Titans). McDermott still joins a host of defensive-minded candidates on the market. The likes of Chris Shula, Jesse Minter and Vance Joseph have taken many interviews. Ditto Raheem Morris, who went two-and-done in Atlanta. The Dolphins also hired a defense-based leader, tabbing Jeff Hafley on Monday. McDermott should have a chance at interviews soon.

The Bills fielded four top-five scoring defenses during McDermott’s time at the helm. The longtime Buffalo leader vacillated between play-calling DC and a CEO head coach. While injuries regularly hurt McDermott’s defenses in the playoffs, with Tre’Davious White and Christian Benford‘s unavailability for Kansas City matchups in the past proving costly, his units ran into trouble in January. The Broncos put up 33 points on McDermott’s team Saturday. That came after the Chiefs scored 32 in the AFC championship game last year.

Still, McDermott went 98-50 as a head coach while reaching two AFC championship games. He won eight playoff games as Bills HC, capitalizing on Josh Allen‘s meteoric rise to the MVP tier. But the Bills fired him in large part for a failure to ride Allen’s top-level form to a Super Bowl. The Steelers and Ravens came up as potential suitors, though Pittsburgh’s famous three-coach/57-season run never included a hire of a head coach north of 40. The Browns, Cardinals and Raiders’ jobs also remain available.

McDermott will assuredly be taking a steep drop in QB quality with his next job — should he land one of the available positions. That represents an interesting component both for him and for hiring teams, considering how much Allen’s talent helped the HC during his nine Buffalo years.

Sam Robinson contributed to this post.