Why New Bills Coach Joe Brady Could Only Picture Himself in Buffalo

Joe Brady was in-demand again this offseason, but he never saw himself leaving the Buffalo Bills.

New Bills head coach Joe Brady talks about some of his vision as coach at the Bills field house. | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Joe Brady is settling into his role as the new head coach of the Buffalo Bills, and has assembled an impressive collection of coordinators with Pete Carmichael (offensive coordinator), Jim Leonhard (defensive coordinator), and Jeff Rodgers (special teams coordinator) all being hired.

He recently sat down with WKBW’s Matthew Bové to discuss how everything has come together for him and said he hasn’t really had a chance to “pinch himself” yet as he lives out his dream job. Brady stated that he’s always known he wanted to be a head coach, and there were multiple teams interested.

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Brady told Bové that he wanted to be selective when it came to taking a head coaching job, claiming that Buffalo is the only place he ever wanted to be. When asked why, he praised his players and said he couldn’t picture himself being anywhere else.

New Bills head coach Joe Brady answers questions during a press conference at the Bills field house in Orchard Park. | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

“I mean, look, I mean, it hit when we found out Coach McDermott was no longer here. I mean, it hit me, you know, because it hit me for a lot of reasons. One, like, you realize, man, I might not get to even be an offensive coordinator here, right? You go through the interview process, you're like, man, I love my day job. I love my day job. Not that I'm playing with house money, but I get to still be the offensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills,” Brady said.

“And then I woke up the next day and, that was about the only thing I knew I wasn't going to be was the offensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills. And so you start really thinking about what Buffalo means to you, the people that I get to coach, the players I'm around, and trying to picture yourself anywhere else, and literally I couldn't. And I'm so fortunate I don't have to.”

Just sat down with Joe Brady. He had a lot of interesting things to say about accountability, Jim Leonhard, and his vision for the Bills.

But this answer stood out. pic.twitter.com/hTZ5tKU1HD

— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) February 2, 2026

Joe Brady will face immense pressure in his new role

Had Brady taken another coaching job, he wouldn’t have the same talent he has in Buffalo, including MVP quarterback Josh Allen. He would, however, have more leeway.

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Buffalo is a team ready to contend for a title and they’ve been winning long enough that a championship has become the expectation. In taking this job, he knows that expectation won’t change. If anything, the fact that he was an internal hire might only increase the pressure to win.

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