Bills QB Josh Allen shares how he reacted to firing of Sean McDermott

Fair or not, the perception has existed that Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen at the very least understood why Bills owner Terry Pegula fired head coach Sean McDermott shortly after the club suffered a 33-30 overtime loss to the Denver Broncos in the divisional round of the playoffs. 

On Thursday, the Bills held a news conference related to the promotion of offensive coordinator Joe Brady to the role of head coach. During the media event, Allen shared how he immediately reacted once he heard the news about McDermott's dismissal via a call from Pegula.

Josh Allen has "nothing but love" for Sean McDermott

"I called Coach McDermott immediately, and I’ve got nothing but love and respect for Coach McDermott," Allen explained, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. "The last eight seasons, eight years of my life, he’s been through ups and downs of me as a player, as a person. He’s seen me grow up in a sense."

Over those seasons, McDermott guided Allen to zero Super Bowl appearances. Additionally, Allen holds a career postseason record of 0-4 against the Kansas City Chiefs. 

Allen previously acknowledged that he felt he let his teammates down during the loss to Denver, a game that included a controversial interception ruling. On Thursday, he indicated he also regrets not doing more to keep McDermott employed. 

"...I’d be lying to you if — I’m sitting here saying that, you know, I feel like I had part in it, because if we made — if I make one more play [during] that game in Denver, we’re probably not having this press conference right now," Allen continued. "We’re probably not making a change, and honestly, we’re probably getting ready to play another game. And that’s the hard part to take in from my perspective. But that’s reality; it is what it is now. And I am very, again, very fortunate and thankful for Coach McDermott and everything that he’s done and the trajectory that he set here for our players." 

Josh Allen thinks Bills "will respond positively" after promotion of Joe Brady

Much has been made about the fact that Allen was involved in the hiring process that resulted in the Bills promoting Brady. While Allen said he became "very, very emotional" upon learning that McDermott had been fired, the signal-caller also seems excited over the fact that he won't have to learn a new offense. 

"I’m very looking forward to Joe and everything that entails with him becoming the head coach, and guys getting behind him and rallying behind him and understanding his vision, because I do believe in it," Allen added. "I do believe in what he had talked about in his meetings, what he’s talked about really the last few years that he’s been in the quarterback room with just the mindset that he has, the togetherness being ‘you with us.’ I can go on and on about how good of a coach I think Joe is, but he’s also a great human being. He’s a family man, he’s a leader. And I think that our guys will respond positively to this." 

Brady allegedly won't have a Super Bowl mandate hovering over his head later this year. If nothing else, having Allen's support should be a positive for Brady as he begins the task of serving as McDermott's replacement.