'What is success?' The truth hurts...
With one simple question, Terry Pegula asks fans what's most important. Go Long attended the press conference that set the sports world ablaze. Here's our column on the state of the Buffalo Bills.
Miss our three-part series in December 2023? All stories are unlocked to read, icymi:
Also, icymi, here’s our story on the firing:
Pro football is not a Hallmark movie. Sad and true. Everyone does not congregate at the 50-yard line for cheesy one-liners and a scripted series of hugs and kisses in front of 70,000 adoring fans.
Pro football is cutthroat. The bottom line — Super Bowls — takes precedence when a team is in possession of a future Hall of Fame quarterback. Breakups are never easy… especially when the public feels such an emotional attachment to the coach.
So, there sat the two men in charge of charting a new direction for the Buffalo Bills: Terry Pegula and Brandon Beane.
The owner wasted no time in explaining why he fired McDermott after nine seasons.
Pegula cited all raw emotion inside the locker room after Buffalo’s 33-30 overtime loss to Denver. He supplied vivid detail. Quarterback Josh Allen, the center of this team’s universe, couldn’t even acknowledge him. “He just sat there sobbing,” Pegula said. “He was listless. He had given everything he had to try to win that game.” This was no kneejerk reaction. The owner correctly stated Buffalo had slammed into the “proverbial playoff wall.” Multiple times, Pegula referenced the fact that enough was enough.
He brought up “13 Seconds” and “missed field goals.” All heartbreak needed to end.
In real time, this press conference set the world ablaze. All viewers in a possession of a thumb shared their opinion on social media — we’ll get to those hysterics. But the most striking moment came in the form of a question, not an answer, at the 40-minute mark. Technically, Pegula was speaking to a packed media auditorium. In reality, he was being real with the entire city of Buffalo.
“It’s not an easy decision,” Pegula said. “Trust me. But what is success? Is success being in the playoffs seven years in a row with no Super Bowl appearance?”
He let those words hang in the air, as if to allow everyone watching to decide for themselves.
Hand it to McDermott. He did a masterful job of connecting with the fan base, right down to “standing up for Buffalo damn it.” His emotion mirrored your emotion. Obviously the organization could’ve done a much better job of ripping off the Band-Aid. But it’s obvious that this coach took this team as far as he could and it’s obvious that time is of the essence. Unicorn quarterbacks do not last forever. With three words — “What is success?” — Pegula was asking his constituents a very simple, very honest question. He knows you’re all paying PSLs, all filling his new stadium across Abbott Road.
Is making the playoffs enough? Or do you want a Super Bowl?
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He’s seen this group shattered in a million pieces too many times.
If Pegula deserves any criticism, it’s for not firing the coach sooner. Back to that night at Arrowhead.
Who deserves more blame for this 2025 season falling short — McDermott or Beane? Valid arguments exist on both sides. What’s not up for debate is the fact that McDermott is the one with his hands all over the roster in those surreal playoff defeats. Dismissing a coach after nine seasons does not signal the End of Days. Since the 1960s, owners have been firing coaches incapable of getting their team to a Super Bowl.
No coach has won more playoff games without a Super Bowl appearance than McDermott.
This franchise has been in desperate need of a psychological reset.
Pegula could’ve used the controversial “interception” in Denver as justification for Year 10. Pegula could’ve chosen a fairy-tale simulation where McDermott breaks through in Year 10… or 11… or 12… or 13. Instead, he made the unpopular decision to move on and faced the music. This was the first time Pegula has taken questions on the Bills since 2019. These 53 minutes were a wild ride. Obviously, the No. 1 headline generated concerned a wide receiver who’s still on the team.
There’s no need for Keon Coleman to catch strays in this setting. But perhaps the Bills’ 22-year-old receiver wouldn’t catch strays if he was catching the ball on the field and setting his alarm off it. He missed meetings, got benched and was banished to his head coach’s doghouse most of Year 2. The only reason Coleman was framed as a bust is because — hold on, running some numbers — he has been a bust! In an off-the-cuff burst of brash honesty, Pegula felt the urge to defend his GM.
Words should not offend Coleman. His career was already on the line. Instead, this ought to serve as the ultimate wake-up call.
The real theme of this press conference? Truth hurts. We’ll see if Coleman can handle it.
After posing that “success” question aloud, Pegula was asked an excellent follow-up question.
For nine years, McDermott and Beane have been intertwined. Why promote Beane to president of football operations and GM, while firing the head coach? Pegula began by saying he could’ve picked wrong. Time will tell. Then, he tried to bring everyone lost in the wide-receiver weeds back to the main plot in saying there’s been enough talent on this roster to consistently win. Above all, Josh Allen would not be in Buffalo if not for the GM.
“If it wasn’t for this guy,” Pegula said, “pushing and pushing and pulling a Houdini in that draft to get to the position where we could pick him. So that was my decision.”
He didn’t bring up what happened one year prior. I’m guessing everyone in Pegula’s circle knows this topic is off limits, but yes. One year prior, Pegula wanted Patrick Mahomes. Hell, he believed in the Texas Tech quarterback far back as October of the QB’s final collegiate season. McDermott did not want a quarterback out of the chute, as chronicled in 2020, and Pegula refused to go full Jerry Jones on a first-year coach.
Buffalo traded down. McDermott supplanted Doug Whaley with Beane 10 days later.
No franchise could’ve asked for a better consolation prize.
Take a moment to put yourself in Pegula’s chair. You never forget whiplash like this at the most important position in sports the rest of your life.
There have been several instances the last 72 hours where I can’t help but wonder if we’ve all spiraled into a twilight zone. Our kiddos watched H.R. Pufnstuf for the first time this week and I’m pretty sure this psychedelic adventure from the 1970s is based in more reality than much of the reaction to McDermott’s firing. Petitions are spamming the Internet for the Bills to “reinstate” McDermott as coach. One local news station here in Buffalo, I shit you not, ran a segment Thursday morning featuring a sports psychologist discussing how players can cope with the “grief” of losing McDermott. “Grief is weird,” the noted Sports Psychologist/Bills fan told us. “There’s no blueprint for it. It’s different for everyone. What we can say confidently as a collective is that we’re all feeling it right now.”
McDermott was paid handsomely these last nine years. McDermott is also an incredibly successful coach — he’ll get an opportunity elsewhere. He’ll be OK. His legacy in Buffalo as drought slayer is secure. As referenced roughly 1,347 times in these pages, only Bill Cowher, Tom Landry and Hank Stram have won their first Super Bowl with a team beyond Year 9. (Stram won an AFL title, too.) Teams cut bait from head coaches at this stage of their career because if it hasn’t happened by now, it never will.
There was nothing irrational about the decision. This is the norm.
All hyperventilating backlash sure dusted off memories. When we dropped our three-part series in December 2023, there was initial intrigue in what’s brewing behind the scenes. Like, say, a training-camp speech inspiring players to communicate like the 9/11 terrorists. But that intrigue was soon railroaded by widespread support for the head coach. Fans did not like seeing their head coach mocked across the country, including SNL, and rallied behind McDermott. One heartfelt press conference did the trick. This is similar. Fans were justifiably pissed after the Broncos loss. Fans saw McDermott pissed.
They could relate. He was one of them.
Press conferences, however, only take a team so far in this sport.
Super Bowls are not won at a microphone.
Good thing for these 2026 Bills because everyone is currently lambasting this team at full throttle. The nation’s most prominent analysts all struck the same note in assessing the Bills’ head-coaching vacancy: Who in their right mind would want to work for them?! In real time, my phone blew up with texts from friends all ripping the franchise in unison. But then something funny happened. When I got into my truck to drive home, one assistant coach who’s up for head-coaching jobs this cycle called me out of the blue. Considering I haven’t heard from this coach in ages, I figured he was calling to ask — in so many words — WTF! He did not. He didn’t even know there was a presser. And then over the next hour, I barely got in 15 words as he went on… and on… and on… about how he’d kill to be the next Bills head coach. I think he simply wanted to express his desire to someone with a 716 area code.
When I told him about the Coleman comment, he didn’t think much of it.
Tuesday was a bad PR day for the Bills. It’s tempting to get caught up in feelings through such an off-script presser. But step outside of the monolithic urinal trough that is Twitter/X and my guess is that this how most of the NFL world reacted to an owner butting in to defend his general manager. With a shrug.
That being said, the discovery that coaches pushed for Coleman does re-open a worthwhile debate. Especially considering Beane was filmed by the team itself saying so many nice things about Coleman before the pick. (Side note: I was told it was assistants, not McDermott, pushing for the Florida State prospect.)
Who was behind the draft picks — Beane or McDermott? That’s central to the current angst amongst fans. They heard Beane’s rant on WGR. They heard the head coach’s subtle jabs through the season. And they understandably assumed the 53-man roster was the GM’s creation alone. McDermott is widely positioned as more of an innocent bystander. The truth is more muddy. Right here at Go Long, Beane strongly defended the defense-first approach last offseason. Beane was all-in on trying to help his quarterback via a strong offensive line and new pieces on defense.
No doubt, he must take ownership of a roster that went 12-5 and won one playoff game.
Also, true: Pieces on defense were drafted and signed to fit what McDermott wants to do scheme-wise.
Also, true: Buffalo experienced a substantial philosophy shift on offense from 2021 to 2022 to 2023.
After the infamous “Wind Game” in Orchard Park — in which Mac Jones threw the ball three times in a 14-10 New England win straight out of JV football — McDermott ripped offensive coordinator Brian Daboll for throwing the ball too much. Six days later, the Bills trailed the Tom Brady-led Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-3 at halftime. Run more? Win at the line of scrimmage? Players on this Bills team told us that Daboll essentially said, “Fuck that!” at halftime. In the second half, Allen was unleashed in all his fury as a passer and a runner. Buffalo nearly clawed back to beat the Bucs in OT. One player recalled Daboll calling the same RPO play constantly. “We came out and we started fucking kicking their ass,” he said. “Letting Josh be Josh.”
Those final seven games in ‘21, Allen threw for 1,828 yards, rushed for 475 and scored 22 touchdowns with only five picks. The Bills obliterated the Patriots — twice — including his “perfect game” in the wild card. Then, of course, 13 Seconds happened. Daboll left to become head coach of the New York Giants. (He was going to leave the Bills regardless, I was told.) Ken Dorsey took over as OC and Dorsey was fired 1 1/2 seasons. McDermott wanted more run-pass balance and Joe Brady — the coach’s fourth OC — helped bring this vision to life. Along the way, the team’s No. 1 wideout (Stefon Diggs) was traded. He never forgave McDermott for that “13 Seconds” loss and his relationship with Allen was never the same after that viral scene of the receiver holding his arms out vs. Cincinnati.
Beane was on the same page. In 2024, the Bills boasted the league MVP and the NFL’s No. 2 offense at 30.9 points per game. In 2025, James Cook led the league in rushing. There was obviously something correct about this shift.
Point is, both GM and head coach were vested in the roster that brought such a shift to life.
Pegula likely knows which individual preferred which players along the way.
And what everyone can see — Pegula, included — are the playoff collapses that run on repeat. For these, McDermott is on the field making crucial decisions while Beane is up in the box. We see the defensive coach call off the dogs on third and 11 vs. Bo Nix. We see Tre’Davious White get hurt four plays later and McDermott leaves an ice-cold Dane Jackson 1 on 1 on the outside.
Beane addressed power-play accusations head-on.
His answer in full:
“That’s hurtful to even hear that or say that. I worked 19 seasons, starting as an intern, in Carolina and worked my way up. I came here and I’ve never tried to do that. I would love for anyone who’s making that accusation to walk in these doors and ask any person — player, coach, trainer, anyone. People can disagree with draft picks that I make or people I sign or I screwed up the wide receivers, whatever it is. Those are harmful, harmful things. I walk in the door and my wife’s got tears coming down her face for stuff like that. And I’m going to damn try hard to win a Super Bowl here. I am. But for somebody to question my character like that is BS. And I’ve never done that.
“If you’ll remember in 2023, there was an article written on Sean accusing things. Who stood up in front of every one of you guys and defended him and his family and everything he’s done here? We went to Kansas City and we won that game and I went down to (director equipment ops) Jeff Mazurek and said, ‘Give me a game ball. I’m going to show everyone that this team has his back.’ I’ve done nothing but have everyone’s back. And so for someone to question my character, my integrity, that’s where I draw the line.”
Hey, that should put one crackpot theory to bed. No, Beane was not a source for our series in ‘23 — a laughable accusation I saw circulating online. The first time we ever spoke/texted/met in any capacity is when we sat down for a 1 on 1 in the spring of ‘24.
Think about the college roommate you wanted to smack upside the head after two semesters. Nine years is an extremely long time. This relationship soured toward the end, but a divide’s likely been broiling for a while. Beane acknowledged that the two have had disagreements over the years. Pegula made the choice to keep one of them vs. resetting the entire coaching and personnel departments. Former director of personnel Jim Monos explained how difficult it is to reset both on this week’s “Real Football.”
In promoting Beane — for better or worse — the Bills are seeking an entirely new structure. No longer will the coach and GM report to him separately. In theory, that’ll help prevent future division.
Several coaches and scouts at One Bills Drive have told us over the years that their personalities were polar opposite. Trolls can screenshot two pictures of McDermott hugging players in an attempt to discredit our reporting entirely. But this is shallow logic. Yes, many players do love McDermott. We’ve quoted them. This week, Jordan Phillips, Taron Johnson, Damar Hamlin, Shaq Lawson, Levi Wallace, Isaiah McKenzie and others rushed to their coach’s defense. This support is real. And so it what we touched on Tuesday AM. McDermott can wear on people in other corners of the building: coaches, trainers, etc.
Humans are multidimensional. McDermott deserves credit for bringing discipline and order. He also deserves credit for getting this team to fight like hell this season. Watch those comebacks vs. Baltimore, Cincinnati and New England. That footage is a valid argument to keep him around.
One decade in, however, the entire building needed a new voice. Specifically, Josh Allen is in need of a new voice. Up until 2024, McDermott believed the Bills should run through McDermott. Not the quarterback. These two were never as closely aligned as people think. It’s a smart decision to let Allen sit in on all of these interviews with head coaches.
No, he should not make the final decision.
But he’s quiet by nature. He’s never been the type to challenge authority. It’s time for Allen to speak up and for the Bills to listen.
Who’s next? Well, Brian Daboll was in the house today to state his case. If the Bills are looking to appease locals, he was Buffalo long before McDermott claimed the city as his own. Daboll was raised in West Seneca. He was a father figure for Allen. The Bills obviously need to figure out why the coach’s tenure got so ugly in New Jersey. Beane is tight with Giants GM Joe Schoen and should be able to piece that messy puzzle together. We’ll get into all potential candidates at length soon. Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak? Jaguars OC Grant Udinski? Lou Anarumo and Brady have interviewed, too.
There are many worthy candidates. Pegula and Beane insist they’re keeping all options open.
This week, the bar was officially set for the new coach. Simply making the playoffs is no longer enough. All future AFC East title shirts and hats can promptly be re-routed to Goodwill. It won’t be easy to earn that gear with Drake Maye in the division, too.
There was one grave mistake made during this press conference that nobody’s talking about. Pegula can say that this 2026 season is not “Super Bowl or Bust.” He doesn’t want to put that level of pressure on a new coach. Reality is, each season here on out with No. 17 at quarterback is absolutely Super Bowl or Bust. And, guess what? That’s the best place to be in the NFL. Give me the coach who embraces this reality. If he’s not equipped for the pressure, he should be crossed off the list.
This the opportunity of a lifetime for the next coach. You’re walking into a brand-new stadium with the best player in the league. It’s as true now as it’s always been in Western New York.
Win it all as a head coach here and you’ll be immortalized forever.
What a great article. And holy hell, this is so spot on Tyler:
"the monolithic urinal trough that is Twitter/X"
I'm a fan of your work and never more than right now. You were made for this moment and this unfolding story.