WGR Discussing McD's job security

[Buffalo Boy]

2 hours ago, Billsatlastin2018 said:

 

100% agreed! Most idiotic decision making in NFL history next to Pete Carroll not running the Beast! Beginning with the FUBARED pooch kick on the KO! The ONLY goal there was to eat time.

 

INEXCUSABLY STUPID!

 

However, McD is now #53 in Head Coaching Wins and he’ll be in the Top 30 in 4 if Allen is still going strong.

Marino/Shula called. They said, Atta Boy Sean

[thenorthremembers]

33 minutes ago, Buffalo Boy said:

You are what your record says you are:

Very good bit not good enough= Schottenheimer 

 

McDermott is a better regular season coach, and a substantially better post season coach.   Schottenheimer had a .278 win percentage in the playoffs.    Its fine if you dont like McDermott but he is a lot closer to Jim Harbaugh than he is Schottenheimer.  At least make a fair comparison to make your point.    I get he hasnt won the Superbowl, but its ignorant to discount how good he has been otherwise.  

[Mikie2times]

38 minutes ago, Royale with Cheese said:

 

So its clear as day that are WR have regressed since last year?  Because I think they have improved, hence, they progressed since last year.

 

BTW, we finished 19th in 2020 in 3rd down defense given up 41.6%. Last year was 44.54% given up.  Both are/were bad.

Last year we were at 21.6 ppg, 23.4 in 2020.  

 

https://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat/opponent-third-down-conversion-pct?date=2021-02-08

 

Allen was our QB in 2019-2022, so was McDermott, so they did have the tools.

 

Good enough to win 12-13 games but they regressed lol.  Coming off a year in which we broke a franchise record for most points and they have regressed every year since 2019....

You're are trying too hard.

 

You know who doesn't have a good roster?  The Bengals which is why they have missed the playoffs 2 straight seasons.

Burrow threw 43 TD's to 9 INT's and STILL didn't make the playoffs.

Before you bring up that he was hurt twice....well they were 5-5 before he went down in 2023.

The Bengals are 14-13 in Burrows last two seasons.  

 

Top 2 in every betting line to win the Super Bowl and we have been regressing lol.  Make it make sense.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brady's system is signifgantly better for Josh along with our offense than Dorsey's. We are getting more with less. I know that's a complicated to understand.

 

Our 3rd down defense by year

 

2019 9th

2020 19th

2021  1st

2022 6th

2023 18th

2024 30th

 

I know having all the information probably isn't as good as cherry picking. This isn't hard, you're serving lay ups. 

[RoscoeParrish]

7 minutes ago, Mikie2times said:

Brady's system is signifgantly better for Josh along with our offense than Dorsey's. We are getting more with less. I know that's a complicated to understand.

 

Our 3rd down defense by year

 

2019 9th

2020 19th

2021  1st

2022 6th

2023 18th

2024 30th

 

I know having all the information probably isn't as good as cherry picking. This isn't hard, you're serving lay ups. 

I think you are wrong to place this solely at Beane/McDs feet.

 

I think it’s impossible in the salary cap era to keep elite defenses together. 
 

Can you be effective over the years long term? Absolutely.

 

But can you be consistently great? I don’t think so.

 

on a fundamental level, to be a really great defense, you need next to no weak links and you need to stay outrageously healthy. And even then, it’s a lightning in the bottle outcome. 
 

Bill Belichick had several down years where he had to retool his defense. They were still good in some things, like TOs, but he had several bottom 10 finishes in a lot of categories.

 

To me, that’s par for the course. Elite CBs can quickly fall off at 28-29. It’s just how it goes.

 

Ultiamtely, I think it becomes an argument even more for positional value in the draft, and an argument for a less defensive focus. If the Bills hit on 50% of their defensive picks into plus starters, we may have another top 2-3 defense for a year or two before guys age out and fall off. Is that really worth the cost? 
 

I don’t know but there’s an argument there imo.

Edited August 11 by RoscoeParrish

[Buffalo Boy]

33 minutes ago, thenorthremembers said:

 

McDermott is a better regular season coach, and a substantially better post season coach.   Schottenheimer had a .278 win percentage in the playoffs.    Its fine if you dont like McDermott but he is a lot closer to Jim Harbaugh than he is Schottenheimer.  At least make a fair comparison to make your point.    I get he hasnt won the Superbowl, but its ignorant to discount how good he has been otherwise.  

What is ignorant is to attribute his winning percentage to his coaching acumen w/o an asterisk that says See Josh Allen

[TheFunPolice]

If the Bills lose in the playoffs again, regardless who the team is, and especially if the defense disappoints yet again, this will be the national conversation like it or not.

 

Allen is a superstar and the Bills are currently a team in the spotlight. All the national media will be saying "not even 1 SB appearance with Josh Allen at QB?" Allen has been one of the best QBs in recent playoff history, yet zero SB appearances. 

 

It isn't the same with the Ravens. Lamar's play has dipped significantly in the playoffs, so you can't just blame the coach. 

 

Here we have Allen elevating his game in the biggest moments, yet the coaching and defense do not step up. That's an issue. 

 

At some point, what is the value of a defensive HC whose defense always lets the team down in the playoffs? That will 100% be the discussion. 

 

Hopefully, it's all moot and we get to and win the SB! 

Edited August 11 by TheFunPolice

[Augie]

12 hours ago, Royale with Cheese said:

The roster is regressing when we are favored to win all 17 games?  

We weren’t favored to win all 17 last year and we regressed? 
 

Our current over under is 11.5 wins compared to 10 last year at this time.

DraftKings has us favored to win the Super Bowl and second in the others.  We were what 5th/6th last year?

 

Regressed?

 

I’m afraid you are wasting your time. There is too much hostility built up in some people to get anything other than what we are seeing here. They will carry this thread out of sheer hatred. We have to ignore the things they tell us to ignore, and just look where they point. They point to everything negative about the past, and tell us Josh is the only reason for anything good. They don’t see the bright side which I (and others, including Vegas) find so encouraging. 

[TheFunPolice]

McDermott could also completely hand over the defense to one of the top available former defensive head coaches and carry on as the leader of the team. 

 

He doesn't coach special teams, why does he need to coach defense? 

 

Be the younger Pete Carroll, who I bet 90% of NFL fans don't see as a "defensive HC" or "offensive HC" just a HC. Great leader, sets the tone, etc. 

[thenorthremembers]

19 minutes ago, Buffalo Boy said:

What is ignorant is to attribute his winning percentage to his coaching acumen w/o an asterisk that says See Josh Allen

 

You really think a coach in the NFL who wins 65% of his games has a low coaching acumen?  You think if Josh Allen went to Cleveland or the Jets, Hue Jackson would still have his job or Todd Bowles would still be coaching in New York?   C'mon man.

[Buffalo Boy]

2 minutes ago, thenorthremembers said:

 

You really think a coach in the NFL who wins 65% of his games has a low coaching acumen?  You think if Josh Allen went to Cleveland or the Jets, Hue Jackson would still have his job or Todd Bowles would still be coaching in New York?   C'mon man.

I never said he had a low coaching acumen. 
I’m on the record many times stating very good but not good enough.
 

If you want to talk winning percentage between the two you have to account for:

What percentage of HC games has McD had Josh as a starter.

What percentage had Schottenheimer had a QB of equal talent as Josh.

It matters

[Mikie2times]

31 minutes ago, Buffalo Boy said:

What is ignorant is to attribute his winning percentage to his coaching acumen w/o an asterisk that says See Josh Allen

Or not taking in the context of those wins. Phillip Rivers on his death bed, Skyler Thompson, Mason Rudolph, Mac Jones, Bo Nix.....We got the two Baltimore wins as mother nature was in his corner. Otherwise we have beat vastly inferior teams, often too close for comfort then lost to anybody with a pulse. 

[GoBills808]

18 minutes ago, thenorthremembers said:

 

You really think a coach in the NFL who wins 65% of his games has a low coaching acumen?  You think if Josh Allen went to Cleveland or the Jets, Hue Jackson would still have his job or Todd Bowles would still be coaching in New York?   C'mon man.

no because most teams move off from suboptimal coaches in their Super Bowl window

[eball]

When I look at Sean McDermott I see a guy who cares passionately about his job, has fully embraced WNY and Buffalo, respects and honors the responsibility he has been given, and works tirelessly to change and improve himself along the way.  Aside from a b.s. hack job by a reporter the season after "13 seconds," there has been absolutely no evidence that players don't believe he is putting them in the best position to thrive and become the "best versions of themselves."  There is also no evidence that the Bills will suddenly fall off a cliff and cease to be one of the elite teams in the NFL.

 

I was frustrated with McDermott a couple of seasons ago when I feared perhaps he was "losing the room" but my fears were quickly assuaged once I heard the way players talk about him.

 

It is inconceivable to me that anyone believes McD will ever be on a "hot seat" in Buffalo if he continues doing what he has been doing.

 

[uticaclub]

1 hour ago, thenorthremembers said:

 

McDermott is a better regular season coach, and a substantially better post season coach.   Schottenheimer had a .278 win percentage in the playoffs.    Its fine if you dont like McDermott but he is a lot closer to Jim Harbaugh than he is Schottenheimer.  At least make a fair comparison to make your point.    I get he hasnt won the Superbowl, but its ignorant to discount how good he has been otherwise.  

Schottenheimer never played against #7 seeds in the playoffs. If you look at McDermott’s record against non-#7 seeds, it's 3-7; a .300 winning percentage.

31 minutes ago, thenorthremembers said:

 

You really think a coach in the NFL who wins 65% of his games has a low coaching acumen?  You think if Josh Allen went to Cleveland or the Jets, Hue Jackson would still have his job or Todd Bowles would still be coaching in New York?   C'mon man.

Yes, Josh would have kept Bowles or Jackson employed, especially if they were competing in this division.

 

If you put McDermott on this year's Saints, they wouldn't make the playoffs. If Josh were their quarterback, they would at least clinch a wild card.

[GoBills808]

4 minutes ago, uticaclub said:

Schottenheimer never played against #7 seeds in the playoffs. If you look at McDermott’s record against non-#7 seeds, it's 3-7; a .300 winning percentage.

Yes, Josh would have kept Bowles or Jackson employed, especially if they were competing in this division.

 

If you put McDermott on this year's Saints, they wouldn't make the playoffs. If Josh were their quarterback, they would at least clinch a wild card.

get to play a lot of low seeds in the playoffs if you're never the 1 seed

[inkman]

On 8/8/2025 at 11:55 AM, Virgil said:

Was listening to WGR yesterday and someone called into ask what Schoop and Bulldog would need to see happen for McD to get fired after this season.  There answer and reasoning honestly surprised me, and also seemed like a course correction from prior years from them.

 

They both stated that the Bills switching to the new stadium next year should prevent McD from being fired under most circumstances, even missing the playoffs.  They both stated that a catastrophic PR issue or the entire team falling off a cliff could change things, but that's about it.

 

I know we have a thread about McD every year,  and even I've been thinking about this more since last years playoff exit.  To me, if we get knocked out of the playoffs again and the defense is the main reason why (giving up 25+ points again), then I think it's time to move on from McD.  I'm not a McD hater by any means.  I will always be grateful for the culture he's brought to this team and the winning we've experienced since pulling us from the drought.  However, if our D (his specialty) fails us again, then I feel very confident to say that McD has taken us as far as he can as a coach.  It doesn't mean he's a bad coach, just means he's not a Superbowl caliber coach.  I know McD would get hired almost immediately by another team that is looking to recreate the Buffalo success and we would be taking a chance on anyone else.  But I also believe we would have our choice of HC candidates.  

 

I guess I'm just at the point where these playoffs losses haven't been talent related so much as they've been outcoached and outschemed.  We put so much focus on the defensive roster over the years, especially this year, that it's time to put up or shut up.  If not, then we are just defining insanity by running it back.

 

The stadium excuse was just strange to me.  Why would that be a factor as the stadium is new to McD too.  

I find it interesting most responses in this thread pertain to everyone’s opinion of McDermott.  What’s not being talked about and what matters most is what is Terry Pegula’s thinking on the matter. Hence the stadium discussion. The WGR hosts are probably right to point out that the new stadium does give McDermott extra time.  Terry is going to be basking in the glow of his shiny new toy, likely distracting him from scrutinizing his employees. 

[DrDawkinstein]

12 minutes ago, uticaclub said:

If you put McDermott on this year's Saints, they wouldn't make the playoffs. If Josh were their quarterback, they would at least clinch a wild card.

 

I'm a McDoubter as well, but slightly disagree here.

 

I think both/either would take the Saints to the playoffs in that Division. The best saying I've read about McDermott is "He's the type of coach that can take a 4-13 team to the Wild Card round. And also the type of coach that will take a 14-3 team to the Wild Card round"

 

He'd do very well in current situations like New Orleans or Carolina. With "very well" being relative. But would likely disappoint in KC, Philly, Detroit...

[GoBills808]

1 minute ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

I'm a McDoubter as well, but slightly disagree here.

 

I think both/either would take the Saints to the playoffs in that Division. The best saying I've read about McDermott is "He's the type of coach that can take a 4-13 team to the Wild Card round. And also the type of coach that will take a 14-3 team to the Wild Card round"

 

He'd do very well in current situations like New Orleans or Carolina. With "very well" being relative. But would likely disappoint in KC, Philly, Detroit...

yup lacking another gear is how i usually describe him

[Royale with Cheese]

1 hour ago, Mikie2times said:

Brady's system is signifgantly better for Josh along with our offense than Dorsey's. We are getting more with less. I know that's a complicated to understand.

 

Our 3rd down defense by year

 

2019 9th

2020 19th

2021  1st

2022 6th

2023 18th

2024 30th

 

I know having all the information probably isn't as good as cherry picking. This isn't hard, you're serving lay ups. 

You know it was McDermott that gave the keys to Brady to run the offense….

And no mention of Dabell since he was our OC in 2020?  I mean aren’t we talking about 2020 specifically and now you’re bringing up Dorsey?  😂 

 

Doing more with less 😂 

We break a franchise record and Josh gets his MVP with a depleted offensive roster…Brady must be that good wear he turned water into wine.  

 

Wait, you criticize me for cherry picking stats and you proceed with one cherry picked stat? 

Edited August 11 by Royale with Cheese

[Mikie2times]

32 minutes ago, Royale with Cheese said:

You know it was McDermott that gave the keys to Brady to run the offense….

And no mention of Dabell since he was our OC in 2020?  I mean aren’t we talking about 2020 specifically and now you’re bringing up Dorsey?  😂 

 

Doing more with less 😂 

We break a franchise record and Josh gets his MVP with a depleted offensive roster…Brady must be that good wear he turned water into wine.  

 

Wait, you criticize me for cherry picking stats and you proceed with one cherry picked stat? 

Both OC's ran systems that were dependent on more WR talent. McD does get credit for Brady. What does that change as far as our talent level in the first build vs the second?