Offensive coordinator promoted from within after revolutionary offensive success with Josh Allen
The Buffalo Bills just promoted their way to the future. Joe Brady, the architect of the NFL’s most explosive offense, is becoming the Bills’ next head coach on a five-year deal. The team announced the promotion Tuesday, moving Brady up from offensive coordinator to the top job. This isn’t a hire from outside. This isn’t bringing in a veteran coordinator from another team. This is the Bills saying: the guy who’s already won here gets to lead here. Josh Allen, presumably, is very happy about this decision.
Brady, 36, has been building something special in Buffalo since taking over as interim offensive coordinator in November 2023. Since that promotion, the Bills rank first in EPA per play (0.14) and second in points per game (29.1). Those aren’t flashy numbers that mean nothing. Those are the metrics that actually separate good offenses from great ones. EPA expected points added measures how much each play improves a team’s expected point total. The Bills, under Brady, are the most efficient offense in football. That’s not opinion. That’s data.
This past season alone, the Bills had nine games with 30-plus points, tied with the Rams for the most in the NFL. Last year, they broke franchise records with 525 points and 65 touchdowns in a single season. Josh Allen won his first MVP award in 2024. Running back James Cook III won the rushing title in 2025. The offense under Brady doesn’t just produce yards and points. It produces individual awards and historic performances.
So when Sean McDermott got fired last week following the Denver playoff loss, the logical move was obvious: promote the guy who’s made the offense unstoppable.
When continuity is actually the smart play
Here’s what makes this decision brilliant: it maintains continuity with the player who matters most. Josh Allen didn’t have to learn a new system under a new coach. He didn’t have to build chemistry with a stranger. The quarterback who’s thriving under Brady’s system just got his coach extended. Allen was involved in the coaching search, sitting in on interviews alongside general manager Brandon Beane and owner Terry Pegula. That involvement mattered. Allen made his preferences known. The Bills listened.
Allen has publicly praised Brady before: “He’s one of the most positive guys in the building. He’s always got juice and energy for the guys. That’s something we love and appreciate about him, and he’s as real as they come.” That’s not just teammate respect. That’s a quarterback endorsing his play-caller for the top job. The Bills organization clearly agreed.
Brady interviewed with five teams this offseason for head coaching positions. But the Bills got him first. That’s leverage. That’s organizational efficiency. Instead of losing him to Denver or some other team, Buffalo just promoted him and locked him down for five more years. That’s how you keep an offensive system intact.
From LSU national champion coordinator to NFL head coach
Brady’s path to this moment spans some impressive stops. He was a wide receiver at William & Mary, then worked his way into coaching. His resume includes a stint on Sean Payton’s New Orleans Saints staff (2017-18), LSU’s passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach during their 2019 national championship season, and offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers (2020-21). Then he landed in Buffalo as quarterbacks coach in 2022.
That progression shows a guy who’s worked for respected offensive minds and earned promotions through performance. The 2019 LSU championship team had Joe Burrow at quarterback and won it all. Brady was part of that infrastructure. He’s not some surprise hire. He’s a proven offensive developer with championship pedigree.
The leadership question beyond play calling
What’s interesting is how general manager Brandon Beane framed the search. He said they weren’t necessarily looking for an offensive-minded coach, yet seven of nine interviewed candidates had primarily offensive backgrounds. That suggests the organization was smart about understanding what they needed: not just a brilliant play caller, but a CEO who could handle “adversity, conflict management” and actually lead the organization.
Brady, by all accounts, has those intangibles. Allen’s endorsement speaks to his leadership qualities beyond just scheme and play calling. Owner Terry Pegula said the decision to move on from McDermott became clear after seeing the devastation in the locker room following the Denver loss. Pegula saw an organization that needed a reset. Brady represents that reset while maintaining the offensive excellence that’s already established.
