Somehow, the franchise that’s changed coaches in back-to-back seasons is once again the model of consistency in the AFC East.
The New England Patriots are heading to the AFC Championship Game after outclassing the Houston Texans and the NFL’s No. 1 defense, 28-16, in Sunday’s divisional-round playoff game. The Patriots now have a chance to do the funniest thing — reach a Super Bowl in the post-Tom Brady era before Josh Allen and the rival Buffalo Bills, who had won the division five straight years prior to the Patriots' 2025 reemergence.
Those optics aren’t lost on owner Terry Pegula and the Bills, who after watching Mike Vrabel’s team advance on Sunday night, made the bombshell decision to fire Sean McDermott on Monday morning. The Bills now become one of seven teams across the NFL currently searching for a head coach, with Vrabel — still in Year 1 with the Patriots — now technically the longest-tenured coach in the AFC East; the New York Jets hired Aaron Glenn about a week after the Patriots landed Vrabel, and both the Dolphins and Bills have current job postings.
Monday’s news made waking up even sweeter for Patriots fans, who were already on cloud nine with former draft bust Jarrett Stidham and the Denver Broncos on deck for a trip to Super Bowl LX. The Bills have been a talented team with a brilliant QB for a while now, but they’ve been laughably poor when it comes to situational football, and Pegula’s new "front office structure” in the wake of McDermott’s firing has Buffalo feeling like the Patriots’ little brother all over again.
Buffalo’s move to promote Brandon Beane has Patriots fans screaming 'thank you'
It's shocking that the Bills actually made this change, as McDermott had won 10-plus games in seven consecutive seasons. In a perfect world, the Patriots could've looked forward to winning that head coach-QB matchup for years to come.
Patriots fans can take solace in this, however: The Bills are already doing Bills things. Instead of cleaning house, Buffalo took a similar approach as the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns this offseason in keeping general manager Brandon Beane in charge.
Since drafting Josh Allen in 2018, the Bills have drafted 56 players.
— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) January 19, 2026
2 of them (James Cook and Dawson Knox) have made Pro Bowls.
Actually, Pegula announced a promotion for the GM who’s surrounded Allen with receivers like Keon Coleman, Elijah Moore, Khalil Shakir, Joshua Palmer, Curtis Samuel, and Tyrell Shavers in recent seasons.
“Moving forward, Brandon Beane will now serve as the President of Football Operations / General Manager of the Buffalo Bills,” Pegula said via a team statement. “Brandon will oversee all facets of our football operation, including the oversight of our coaching staff. I have full faith in and have witnessed Brandon’s outstanding leadership style, and have confidence in his abilities to lead our organization."
Terry Pegula announces not only is Sean McDermott out as head coach, but Brandon Beane has been promoted to President of Football Operations/General Manager and will oversee the coaching staff — a new vertical reporting structure. https://t.co/uqkYgtReE9
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 19, 2026
Now that's failing upwards. What a neat trick by Brandon Beane and his staff.
For the Patriots, the Bills are the gift that keeps on giving. Their fans have been on a crusade to discredit New England’s rapid rise this season, but the joke has and always will be with their own dysfunctional franchise that’s been actively wasting the prime years of one of the best QBs in a generation. The decision to jump into the NFL’s crowded hiring cycle late, with Beane now firmly supplanted with full personnel and staff power, suits Buffalo to a T.
It’s all been coming up Patriots since New England stunned the Bills inside Highmark Stadium in prime time back in Week 5, and the good times just keep on rolling in Foxboro and beyond.