For all the Penn State fans… Trace McSorley joins the Bills staff

[BigAl2526]

1 hour ago, blacklabel said:

For those wondering...

 

McSorley was drafted in the sixth round by Baltimore in 2019. Saw some action during a 2020 game, later bounced around practice squads with Arizona, New England, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and finally Washington in 2024.

 

Hired at Penn State as an assistant QB coach for 2025 and was set to be retained by the new head coach for 2026 but is now on his way to Buffalo to work under Joe Brady. 

There are shorter QBs who have succeeded in the NFL, but McSorley didn't have any really elite traits to make up for his lack of size.  There are multiple coaches in the NFL who didn't quite have what it takes to succeed as quarterbacks in the NFL, but make very good coaches because they tend to be smart and have good leadership qualities.

[Ed_Formerly_of_Roch]

1 hour ago, YoloinOhio said:

Brady was on the staff at PSU when McSorley was QB and he probably has followed his career to the nfl and then to coaching - while I wouldn’t say that he’s hiring a friend I would say he’s hiring a known commodity and that’s pretty standard and encouraged in most any situation. 

 

Exactly, like it or not, that's the way the NFL works as does much of the outside world.   Kind of funny when you go to Wiki, it doesn't even mention Penn State as part of Brady's coaching career, starts with LSU.

[jkeerie]

45 minutes ago, Ed_Formerly_of_Roch said:

 

Exactly, like it or not, that's the way the NFL works as does much of the outside world.   Kind of funny when you go to Wiki, it doesn't even mention Penn State as part of Brady's coaching career, starts with LSU.

I believe he was a graduate assistant at Penn State.

[pennstate10]

1 hour ago, jkeerie said:

I believe he was a graduate assistant at Penn State.

Yup. Prior to his stint at LSU, Brady was a GA at PSU, circa 2016-2017. McSorely was the starting QB. 
 

Mc Sorely was a 6-7 round pick, and bounced around the NFL. He took a consultant assistant type position at PSU in 2025 under Franklin, and was then retained by new HC Matt Campbell as an assistant WB coach. 
 

Without stereotyping too much, McSorely was the sneaky athletic, gym rat, lunch pail, student of the game type as a player. It’s not surprising that he’s a coach now. I’m pretty sure that his dad was a coach in NoVa. 

[Billy Claude]

McSorley made his living at Penn State with his legs and throwing 50/50 balls to Allen Robinson. To me he was a less talented Johnny Manziel without the drugs and alcohol issues.

Edited February 27 by Billy Claude

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

Just for that f****** song, he starts off on latrine duty. 🤨

[JustAnotherBillsFan]

My age is showing. First thing that came to mind when I saw the name McSorley was I guess the Bills want to improve their toughness 🙂.

 

[Pete]

29 minutes ago, JustAnotherBillsFan said:

My age is showing. First thing that came to mind when I saw the name McSorley was I guess the Bills want to improve their toughness 🙂.

 

Gretzkys Bodyguard 

[JakeFrommStateFarm]

13 hours ago, dayman said:

It’s Brady just hiring a bunch of friends?

I've got a bad feeling about this....

[Psautcsk]

22 hours ago, TheyCallMeAndy said:

At Penn State, he will McSorley be missed. 

you are not lion.

[CoudyBills]

On 2/26/2026 at 8:25 PM, YoloinOhio said:

Every time I hear his name I think of the home run celly. Was he the last good psu QB when you think about it. 

Good is used very loosely here.  

[YoloinOhio]

1 hour ago, CoudyBills said:

Good is used very loosely here.  

I know but Sean Clifford. Drew Allar. It’s been interesting up there. 

[Simon]

23 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

I know but Sean Clifford. Drew Allar. It’s been interesting up there. 

 

That's a word for it.

imo, if McSorley had been on that team for the last couple years, PSU would probably have at least one title right now.

[Buffalo716]

13 minutes ago, Simon said:

 

That's a word for it.

imo, if McSorley had been on that team for the last couple years, PSU would probably have at least one title right now.

He played a lot of college ball

 

I think his peak was reached in college but he was very good for what he did so I think he reached his limits 

 

Definitely the kind of guy that goes into coaching

Edited February 28 by Buffalo716

[Sierra Foothills]

On 2/26/2026 at 5:46 PM, dayman said:

It’s Brady just hiring a bunch of friends?

 

Because of the weekend, the background check won't be returned until next week but I can tell you we're investigating a Carolina angle.

 

On 2/26/2026 at 5:26 PM, TheyCallMeAndy said:

At Penn State, he will McSorley be missed. 

 

4 hours ago, Psautcsk said:

you are not lion.

 

The Valley will be a little less Happy.

 

[TheyCallMeAndy]

6 hours ago, Psautcsk said:

you are not lion.

No, not even a Trace

[T master]

On 2/26/2026 at 7:14 PM, YoloinOhio said:

 

I was looking at pictures on the Bills app yesterday from the combine, all of the new staff were in the Bills booth . I found it very frustrating because although we know who Brady, Beane, & Pegs are we are not that familiar with the new coaches & they don't put their names at the bottom of the pictures so we can get familiar with who's who .

 

I know you are a guy here that has connections that seem to run pretty deep, if you could pass that on I would gladly buy you a hamburger on a Tuesday in the not to distant future  . 

 

 

Edited March 2 by T master

[pennstate10]

On 2/27/2026 at 11:03 PM, Simon said:

 

That's a word for it.

imo, if McSorley had been on that team for the last couple years, PSU would probably have at least one title right now.

Not sure about 2025, but I think PSU beats NotreDame in semis if McSorely was QB. 
 

McSorely and Clifford both made the most of their talent. Their respective careers were limited by thei natural abilities. 
 

Allar is a different story. He has all the physical tools you could ask for. It seems to me that his innate personality is reserved and cautious, and these traits were amplified by the coaching he received from Franklin, Yurcich, etc. That was the exact opposite of what he needed to advance his career. He needs a coach and mindset that it’s OK to take chances. That’s the only way to figure out your limits. 
 

Im fascinated to see what Allar does in the nfl. 

[Simon]

1 hour ago, pennstate10 said:

McSorely and Clifford both made the most of their talent. Their respective careers were limited by thei natural abilities. 

 

Even with the limited physical tools, I think he still might have carved out a respectable NFL career as a backup if it hadn't been for the knee and back injuries.

I loved that kid; his brains and balls carried a very average team for a couple years and I am thrilled he is here on staff now.

You're way more diplomatic re: Allar than I am. I also thought for a while that Franklin was making him overcautious, but I eventually came to the conclusion that he's just permanently immature and inexcusably scared, and almost as bad, he's also dumber than a bag of hammers.

I think anybody who makes the mistake of spending anything but a Day 3 pick on him is going to quickly regret it.