The Buffalo Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs have been doing this dance ever since Patrick Mahomes came into the league. What many forget is that the Bills traded the 10th pick that became Mahomes to the Chiefs. Now, seven years later, he has sent them home for the fourth time in the playoffs, and alarm bells are beginning to sound in Buffalo.
This time, however, the finger of blame is shifting to Sean McDermott for some. Even though he led the Bills to a division title and the AFC Championship Game, McDermott’s game plan against Kansas City had fans, media analysts, and even commentators fuming. As a result, the proverbial coaching hot seat has come into question.
Yet, according to one former NFL quarterback turned media personality, the idea is beyond belief.
Dan Orlovsky Is Firmly on Team Sean McDermott
During the game, the Bills were all too reliant on the Tush Push to gain extra yardage. It got bad enough that Tony Romo on commentary called them out for the play, signaling Josh Allen’s tendency to go left on each attempt, something defensive genius Steve Spagnuolo was able to take advantage of.
Moreover, the non-usage of James Cook (who was averaging 8.6 yards per play) on the final drive, which ended with just 17 yards gained and a turnover on downs was perplexing.
But where Dan Orlovsky was concerned, McDermott had done a terrific job throughout. Appearing on “The Pat McAfee Show,” Orlovsky spoke about the situation in Buffalo and whether McDermott’s position should be in jeopardy.
“Changing the head coach is, I think, preposterous. This is a defense that, and they know this, they gotta add a difference-maker or two on their back end, their back seven. Outside of Taron [Johnson], Taron’s really good, Rasul Douglas pretty darn good player, but they don’t have a difference-maker in the back end.
"Changing the head coach is, I think, preposterous."@danorlovsky7 on Bills fans asking for a head coaching change 👀 pic.twitter.com/PQXMVxsp0B
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) January 28, 2025
“Kansas City’s got two of ’em — Justin Reid and Trent McDuffie, outside of two or three really good players. Obviously, Marlon Humphrey and Kyle Hamilton, [Nate] Wiggins looks good. I think Buffalo how they’re going to figure out — they gotta get a difference-maker or two on their back end that’s really gonna help them.”
Orlovsky wasn’t just talking about upgrading the defensive side of the ball either. Next, his focus shifted to the offense, where he wanted an upgrade over their current crop of skill-position guys.
“I think they need to add a perimeter piece that’s a game changer. I’m not saying Buffalo’s gotta go get Tee Higgins, like the No. 1 wide receiver, but I think adding a dynamic perimeter player enhances their offense even more.”
To put it into perspective, the Bills had the fourth-ranked offense in the NFL, according to PFN’s Offense+ metric. During the course of the regular season, they had an eight-game streak of scoring 30+ points, becoming only the fifth team to achieve the mark. In the midst of that streak, Buffalo added Amari Cooper to its wide receiver corps to alleviate some of the pressure off of Allen.
The defense, however, wasn’t one of Buffalo’s strong suits, finishing 18th in PFN’s Defense+ metric. But for a team desperately looking to reach the Super Bowl stage, there is an unfortunate statistic to consider.
No quarterback-coach combo has made it to the Super Bowl if they don’t make one in their first five years together. That timeline has passed by Allen and McDermott. With the quarterback a lock to remain in Buffalo, the clock on the head coach might be ticking.
It remains to be seen which way the Bills go heading into next season, but it should make for an interesting offseason nonetheless.
