Bills head coach Sean McDermott wants the offseason to begin with an appreciation of how Buffalo became a consistent winner.
“It’s not a tear it down (offseason),” McDemott said Tuesday, reflecting on a third consecutive divisional playoff loss. “I’m extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished but in no way satisfied. We’re disappointed, yes, but not broken.”
McDermott, 49, is 5-6 in the playoffs with the Bills with a 73-41 record and five consecutive 10-plus win seasons in the regular season.
He said the four consecutive AFC East titles and six playoff appearances in seven seasons also can be a point to remind the franchise there’s no rebuild ahead. He said the offseason will start with a look at why the team has been successful, building from there toward a significant offseason.
“That’s why we came here. We came here to win, and win is what we’ve done. We have not reached that ultimate goal, winning a championship, and we will work tirelessly to get there.”
McDermott said the divisional playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday was painful to review. McDermott felt Buffalo was given more opportunities to win the game than the Chiefs, but didn’t come up with the critical play.
“One more throw, one more kick, one more stop defensively. That said, there were certainly things during the game that did not go our way,” McDermott said.
Plans for hiring an offensive coordinator — a role filled by Joe Brady for the final seven games of the season after Ken Dorsey was fired — and considering a defensive play-caller still are taking shape.
Quarterback Josh Allen said Brady “has my vote,” and McDermott said they Bills won’t dismiss that opinion.
“That’s big, you want to have the buy-in of the franchise quarterback,” McDermott said.
McDermott said he was in a groove late in the year, but had some rust to knock off as a defensive play-caller. But because it was “more work” on his plate, all aspects of the defensive plan are being factored into the evolving decision of how to handle the position and whether to hire a defensive coordinator.
