What Joe Brady promotion means for Josh Allen, Brian Daboll, more Bills questions for 2026

Daniel Mader

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What Joe Brady promotion means for Josh Allen, Brian Daboll, more Bills questions for 2026 image

The Buffalo Bills have found their new head coach, and he won't be an unfamiliar one to Josh Allen.

Joe Brady, the team's former quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator, is being promoted to head coach in Buffalo, per Adam Schefter. Brady is set to replace Sean McDermott for the Bills after the longtime coach was fired in the days following a AFC divisional round exit against the Denver Broncos.

Buffalo’s hire can’t be considered flashy, as Terry Pegula and Brandon Beane didn’t seek an external voice to lead Josh Allen. Still, it will carry significant implications for the franchise and around the NFL. From Allen to Brian Daboll, there will be ripple effects from the move.

Here’s how the Bills’ hiring of Joe Brady will impact Allen, Daboll and more.

MORE: Everything to know about new Bills head coach Joe Brady

What Joe Brady promotion means for Josh Allen

Josh Allen and Joe Brady share a strong relationship, which was likely a major factor in Buffalo’s decision to promote Brady. Considering the Bills’ Super Bowl hopes largely revolve around Allen, the thinking behind the hire is to allow Brady to continue leading his star quarterback, keeping him satisfied with the franchise as it attempts to break through.

Regarding Allen and the rest of the Bills’ offense, not many changes are expected, as Brady has already been calling plays for the team since 2023. The Bills’ offense ranked 10th in yards per game in 2024 (359.1) and fourth in 2025 (376.3). Moving forward, there’s every reason to expect Buffalo to remain an elite offensive team under Brady, likely continuing to call plays.

While Allen’s relationship with McDermott never appeared to have issues, he will likely become even more involved in team decisions with Brady as head coach. Over the years, both Allen and Brady have consistently praised each other publicly.

When Brady was officially retained as a full-time OC in 2024, Allen said he "brings life and energy to our offense."

Brady also challenged Allen to self-scout throughout the 2025 season.

When Brady was reportedly getting interviews for head-coaching roles recently, outside of the Bills' organization, Allen joked that Brady "hasn't done anything for us" and "teams should stay away from him."

Allen will be getting his wish, with Brady providing offensive continuity heading into 2026 for Buffalo — and offense hasn't been the issue for the squad in the playoffs anyway. Defense has consistently hurt the Bills once they reach the postseason, making Brady's defensive coordinator hire a significant next decision.

With Allen expected to remain with the Bills for years to come, he'll now have one of his closest coaches and mentors guiding the team's decisions. While that means not much will be changing for the quarterback, that certainly won't be a bad thing, with Buffalo's offense becoming one of the NFL's best under Brady.

It's clear that Allen's voice had significant pull in the hiring decision for Pegula and Beane. Now, a bit more pressure will be on the star quarterback and his OC-turned-head-coach to lift Buffalo to a Super Bowl title.

What Joe Brady promotion means for Brian Daboll

There were two leading candidates to replace McDermott in Buffalo: Brady and Brian Daboll, the former New York Giants head coach. Daboll was the odd man out, but he could be expected to find a new job soon.

That was the case, as the Tennessee Titans are set to hire Daboll as their offensive coordinator if he does not land the Las Vegas Raiders' head coaching job, per Adam Schefter.

Daboll has gotten looks as both a head coach and an offensive coordinator this offseason. Outside of Buffalo's vacancy, he also interviewed twice for the Raiders head coaching job, per Schefter.

Now, if Daboll officially strikes out on Las Vegas' position, he will be heading to Tennessee. The Athletic's Dianna Russini first reported on Jan. 21 that if Daboll didn't get the Bills' head coaching job, he was expected to land in Tennessee as OC.

Most likely, Daboll will be coaching Cam Ward in 2026 after making a run for Josh Allen.

MORE: Latest rumors on Eagles' offensive coordinator search

What Joe Brady promotion means for Brandon Beane 

When the Bills fired Sean McDermott, which was a fairly stunning decision around the NFL considering their consistent success under him, owner Terry Pegula quietly made another move in the process: promoting Brandon Beane to President of Football Operations. That promotion already put more pressure on Beane to get Buffalo onto a Super Bowl track, but the Brady hire only created more.

The Bills have already been a “Super Bowl or bust” team annually with Josh Allen, hoping they don’t waste the quarterback’s elite play each season by never even making it to the big game. By promoting Joe Brady to head coach, Beane is partially aiming to keep Allen happy, but promoting a coordinator has historically not led to much playoff success. Had Beane swung for an external hire, there may have been slightly less pressure on the Bills as they navigated entirely new leadership.

Instead, hiring Brady means Buffalo will be expected to make a Super Bowl push again in 2026. That puts more pressure on Beane to push the right buttons this offseason, including landing a potential No. 1 wide receiver — and if the Bills can’t break through behind Brady in the next year or two, it could eventually cost Beane his job.

MORE: Ranking every NFL head coaching hire in 2026