The Buffalo Bills suffered another devastating loss on Monday night, and Ken Dorsey is taking the fall. The Bills fired their second-year offensive coordinator on Tuesday morning and named quarterbacks coach Joe Brady their interim offensive play-caller.
Why the Buffalo Bills Fired Ken Dorsey
While the Bills were expected to be Super Bowl contenders again in 2023, the club dropped another game on MNF, losing to the Denver Broncos on a last-second field goal. Buffalo, which gave extensions to head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane, is now 5-5 and outside the AFC playoff picture.
But whether Dorsey should have taken the fall for the club’s struggles is an open question. Although the Bills’ offense has struggled with consistency and ranks second in the NFL in turnover rate, Buffalo hasn’t had any trouble scoring points.
Through 10 games, the Bills rank first in success rate, third in yards and EPA per play, fifth in points per drive, and seventh in points per game.
Josh Allen leads the NFL with 11 interceptions, but he’s also third in EPA per play, fourth in QBR, and has the ninth-best turnover-worthy play rate among quarterbacks, per PFF.
Although there may have been interpersonal or relationship conflicts behind the scenes, Dorsey probably didn’t deserve to lose his job based purely on merit. He certainly didn’t cause the primary issues during Monday night’s loss, when Buffalo had 12 men on the field for Broncos kicker Wil Lutz’s initial game-winning miss, allowing him to retry for the win.
Dorsey began his NFL coaching career as the Carolina Panthers quarterbacks coach from 2013-17. He joined the Bills in the same role in 2019, helping to mold Allen after the first-round pick’s disastrous rookie season.
MORE: Should the Bills Fire Sean McDermott?
When former Buffalo OC Brian Daboll accepted the New York Giants’ head coaching job in 2022, Dorsey became the Bills’ play-caller. For the most part, he’s maintained the success that Daboll started, keeping Buffalo’s offense near the top in almost every metric.
Brady, 34, is also an ex-Panthers coach, having served as their OC during the Matt Rhule era before being fired during the 2021 campaign. Brady, LSU’s play-caller during their 2019 national championship run, took Dorsey’s role as the Bills’ QBs coach in 2022.
Can Brady make a difference? Clearly, he can’t do anything about the season-ending injuries to LB Matt Milano, CB Tre’Davious White, and DT DaQuan Jones, which have wrecked Buffalo’s defense.
And the Bills’ schedule won’t get easier. With remaining games against the Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys, and Miami Dolphins, Buffalo has the NFL’s third-hardest slate over the final eight weeks.
Dorsey is gone. Defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier left at the end of the 2022 campaign. Scrutiny is now squarely aimed at McDermott and Beane — if it wasn’t already.
If the Bills don’t turn things around to close the season, further changes could be on the table at the end of the year.
Fantasy Fallout From Dorsey’s Firing
The Bills have routinely been a top-five offense in terms of pass rate over expectation, operating at one of the most fantasy-friendly styles in the league.
Does that change? It’s worth tracking after another disappointing performance, but there is one thing for sure — this offense only stands to lose value with a shift in play-calling.
In terms of ranks moving forward, the impact is minimal. You’re starting Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs, and Dalton Kincaid weekly with confidence. Gabe Davis is a matchup play that you can Flex at your own risk.
James Cook could gain value in volume, though he was a player you were already playing weekly. Keep an eye on the neutral script play-calling and red-zone usage — the changes may seem minor but could prove impactful during the most critical time of the fantasy football season.
— PFN Fantasy Analyst Kyle Soppe