ORCHARD PARK – While Brandon Beane denied that there was a growing disconnect between him and former Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott, there were certainly indications that the two men who once walked in lockstep were out of sync at the end of their nine-year partnership.
In the months leading up to McDermott’s firing on Monday, the bread crumbs were there to follow.
Buffalo Bills inactivity at trade deadline
On the afternoon of Nov. 9 in Miami, right after the Bills had gotten their brains beaten in 30-13 by the lowly Dolphins just days after Beane was unable to make a deal at the NFL trade deadline, something everyone felt was needed, especially at wide receiver, a reporter posed the following question to McDermott: “Brandon Beane said he believed that the roster was of championship quality or championship caliber. After a performance like that, what is your confidence level that that is indeed the case?”
Already aggravated by what would stand as his team’s worst performance of the season, McDermott replied tersely: “I love these players. I love these players. I love the guys in that locker room.”
That was McDermott biting his tongue, because you didn’t hear him concurring with the GM that he was operating with a championship caliber roster. Outside of superstar quarterback Josh Allen, league rushing champion James Cook, and a few very good players, it was plainly obvious that this was not a championship-level roster in any way.
McDermott was clearly disappointed that Beane could not find a way to improve a team that was already devoid of star-level talent, an issue further exacerbated by the fact that it was also decimated by injuries and needed an infusion, especially at wide receiver.
It was widely known that the New Orleans Saints were open for business at the deadline and three of their wide receivers – Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, and Brandin Cooks – were all available. The price was hefty for the best of that threesome, Olave, and he stayed put.
However, the 27-year-old Shaheed, in the last year of his contract, was perhaps an even better fit for Buffalo because he brought dynamic speed to the table, exactly what the Bills’ wide receiver room needed. I’m sure Beane tried to get him, but the Seahawks made the deal by sending a fourth- and fifth-round pick to New Orleans.
Why Beane couldn’t make a similar deal for Shaheed is unknown. We know Beane loves his draft picks, but for a win-now team like Buffalo, Shaheed seemed like a perfect fit for what the Bills were desperate for. Ultimately, the Saints did Cooks a favor and waived him so that he might get scooped up by a playoff team, and that’s when Beane acted.
Shaheed didn’t have a huge impact statistically on Seattle’s offense – 15 catches for 188 yards – but the deep threat he posed fit perfectly in an offense that featured the league-leader in receiving yards, Jaxon Smith-Njigba who thrives in the intermediate range, and slot man Cooper Kupp. Oh, and Shaheed also returned a punt for a touchdown that helped spur a huge comeback win over the Rams, the game that ultimately decided the NFC West and the No. 1 seed, and then he returned the opening kickoff for a TD last week to start the Seahawks’ divisional round rout of the 49ers.
Cooks played in seven games counting the playoffs and he produced just 10 catches for 192 yards while also dropping several passes that cost the Bills big plays, none bigger than the controversial interception in Denver. Argue with the call all you want, but had Cooks not allowed the ball to be stolen away, McDermott is still the coach and the Bills are preparing to play the Patriots Sunday in the AFC Championship Game.
Darius Slay was claimed but never reported
Then there was the whole Darius Slay screw-up which further dug into the McDermott-Beane relationship. In order to claim Slay, Beane had to cut someone and that would up being cornerback Ja’Marcus Ingram, a player Beane probably felt he’d be able to get back on the practice squad the next day.
Well, the Texans claimed Ingram while Slay said thanks but no thanks to Buffalo and never reported. Would Ingram have been a better option than Dane Jackson in Denver when Tre’Davious White had to leave the game for that one fateful play where Jackson was burned by Marvin Mims for the go-ahead TD with a minute left in regulation?
Look, Ingram was nothing more than a practice squad player like Jackson so who knows, but I would think McDermott would have preferred him to Jackson in that spot.
Bills roster disagreements
When Beane and owner Terry Pegula were asked to comment on a report that McDermott had expressed dissatisfaction with the roster in a meeting more than a month ago, Pegula said that never happened.
“I don’t know where that came from, but we met all the time, talked to Sean every day,” Pegula said. “Yeah, we talk about being dissatisfied with this, being happy with that and whatnot. We communicated all the time.”
Beane didn’t deny this happened, saying only, “There’s disagreements all throughout, way before this year. It’s not like we were 100% always in agreement on every decision that he made or I made, that just comes with the territory.”
Pegula went out of his way Wednesday to praise Beane for the roster he compiled in 2025 which was all part of a clear strategy to defend his firing of McDermott and promoting of Beane.
“You see teams in the league, I’m not going to mention team names, but they have a great year, good year, and the next year the success doesn’t continue,” Pegula said. “You don’t get in the playoffs seven straight years in this National Football League – where there are very few blowouts and dozens and dozens of close games every year – you don’t get there without having talent and a great organization, and Brandon and his staff have brought in, regularly, players. I mean, look at the injuries we had this year. We’re down, guys on the practice squad contributing in big games. You don’t do that without talent in the front office.”
And to the end, Beane defended himself regarding the roster.
“Any issues we have, put it on my shoulders,” he said. “I own it all. … I bear guilt, blame, responsibility. There’s no finger-pointing. I understand there are things I could have done better. I would say, we went to Jacksonville, and we won – a good team. And then we went to Denver, who was the No. 1 seed, and we obviously had turnovers in the game, but I would say we had every chance to win that game. We didn’t get it done, but it doesn’t mean that we didn’t have the opportunity or have a team that could have gotten it done.”
Sal Maiorana has covered the Buffalo Bills for more than four decades including 36 years as the full-time beat writer/columnist for the D&C. He has written numerous books about the history of the team, and he is also co-host of the BLEAV in Bills podcast/YouTube show. He can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com, and you can follow him on X @salmaiorana and on Bluesky @salmaiorana.bsky.social.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Bills rift was apparent well before McDermott’s firing as key moments showed
Reporting by Sal Maiorana, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
