Sean McDermott has made hiring coaches with experience a priority on his staff. Even as he’s promoted first-time coaches like special teams coordinator Heath Farwell, offensive line coach Bobby Johnson, and wide receivers coach Chad Hall, he’s been hiring coaches with coordinator and head coach experience to fill out other roles.
The biggest name on the list is Leslie Frazier, who has been an NFL head coach and defensive coordinator for more than a dozen years. Coordinator stints with the Cincinnati Bengals (2003-2004) and Minnesota Vikings (2007-2010) led to a role as interim head coach in Minnesota in 2010 and the full-time gig from 2011 to 2013. Following his ouster in Minnesota, he returned to defensive coordinator with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2014-2015) and the Buffalo Bills (2017-present). Eleven seasons as an NFL coordinator and 3.5 years as an NFL head coach make him the most experienced coach on the team.
McDermott himself came with a wealth of coordinator experience, having served for six seasons as defensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers and two with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Brian Daboll came to Buffalo with multiple years of NFL experience, as well. In addition to his two years as the Bills’ offensive coordinator, he held the same role for the Kansas City Chiefs (2012), Miami Dolphins (2011), and Cleveland Browns (2009-2010).
Linebackers coach Bob Babich has previous defensive coordinator experience in multiple cities. Most recently, he was defensive coordinator with the Jacksonville Jaguars (2013-2015) and prior to that with the Chicago Bears (2007-2009). He was head coach at the college level at North Dakota State from 1997-2002.
Tight ends coach Rob Boras was an NFL offensive coordinator for the Rams when they moved from St. Louis to Los Angeles. He spent three years there under Jeff Fisher.
Finally, the Bills’ newest coaching hire was defensive line coach Eric Washington. He previously served as the defensive coordinator of the Carolina Panthers from 2018-2019.
Heath Farwell now has one year of experience as special teams coordinator after having never held the position before 2019.
Buffalo Bills NFL Coaching Experience
| Coach | Position | Head coach experience | Coordinator experience |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coach | Position | Head coach experience | Coordinator experience |
| Sean McDermott | Head Coach | 3 | 8 |
| Leslie Frazier | Defensive Coordinator | 3.5 | 11 |
| Brian Daboll | Offensive Coordinator | Interviews | 6 |
| Heath Farwell | Special Teams Coordinator | 1 | |
| Bob Babich | Linebackers Coach | College | 6 |
| Rob Boras | Tight Ends Coach | 2 | |
| Eric Washington | Defensive Line Coach | 2 |