The Buffalo Bills shocked the NFL on Monday by firing head coach Sean McDermott two days after the team’s AFC Divisional loss. That decision prompted many people to raise a big question about the timing of the decision.
The Bills’ late firing of McDermott left them in a position where the best available coach on the market is the one they just let go. Subsequently, many wondered if perhaps John Harbaugh or Kevin Stefanski might have waited to take a new job if they had known the Buffalo one would be opening up.
I'm guessing that plenty are curious if John Harbaugh or Kevin Stefanski would have preferred the Bills job the most if they knew that it would open up before committing to their new teams.
— Nick Korte (@nickkorte) January 19, 2026
Harbaugh & Stefanski getting this notification https://t.co/WCG6upy5d9 pic.twitter.com/mwXEsi0JaO
— Dave Helman (@davehelman_) January 19, 2026
Harbaugh and Stefanski were viewed as the two best candidates on the market before McDermott became available. Either one of them might have been targeted by Buffalo had the chance arisen. Instead, Harbaugh landed with the New York Giants, while Stefanski took the Atlanta Falcons job. Both did so before there was even the slightest indication that McDermott could be out in Buffalo.
It is unclear where the Bills will go from here. However, it is a virtual certainty that their next head coach will be much less accomplished than McDermott was. It is entirely possible that the Bills felt obligated to bring in a new voice after nine seasons, but that does not make this any less of a risk.
McDermott went 98-50 in his nine seasons as Buffalo’s head coach. He went just 8-8 in the playoffs, however, and never got past the AFC Championship game.
