In the ugliest possible way, the Buffalo Bills defeated the New York Jets today, 18-10. In doing so, head coach Sean McDermott broke a tie for the fourth-winningest coach in franchise history, nabbing his 30th career win. A win is a win, right?
Today’s victory pushes him up one spot on the team’s all-time list, passing Wade Phillips (29 wins in 50 games); he still trails Chuck Knox (38 in 76 tries), Lou Saban (70 out of 121), and, someone you might be familiar with, Marv Levy, whose 123 career wins have remained untouched since he retired in 1997.
As a refresher, McDermott is in merely his fourth year at the helm, a tenure that includes two playoff trips (and two first-round losses, but no matter) and a 30-27 record in 57 total tries (that includes those playoff games). Phillips was able to reach 29 wins in just three seasons, but no other coach has been as fast as McDermott in getting to 30 wins. The 15 other coaches to have been employed by the franchise hardly even sniffed 20, let alone 30. Dick Jauron is the only other coach to eclipse that number; his 24 is followed next by Gregg Williams’s 17 (we owe him a bit of a thank you for today, at least his team. Thank you, Gregg!)
But this isn’t about a soul other than McDermott, who, regardless of the atrocity that today was, has made his own bit of history. Thanks to him and his front office counterpart in general manager Brandon Beane, this team is well positioned for long-term success. I promise; don’t let today, nor the last two weeks fool you. It may be wishful thinking, but this Bills team is still 5-2, and arguably the most exciting one that fans have seen since… well, okay, last year was pretty exciting. In anticipation, though, this might take the cake.
McDermott deserves a lot of the credit for the excitement. The culture exists because of his efforts, and he has 30 wins to show for it. I’m sure fans everywhere are raising cups of blue cheese in commemoration, not only for these 30 wins, but the 30 they hope to nab up through 2025.