Even Josh Allen thought it was a little bit unusual that he sat in on interviews during the Buffalo Bills’ search to find their next head coach.
In an interview with FS1’s “First Things First” on Tuesday, Allen shared that while sitting in on the head coach interviews felt “awkward” during certain moments, he also appreciated the opportunity to bring a player’s perspective to those meetings.
“It was a fun time. It was a unique perspective,” Allen said. “A little awkward at times, because I’m sitting there and getting paid to be the quarterback, right? But I think having that perspective of what the pulse of the locker room is, being able to ask questions and help Mr. [Terry] Pegula, the Pegula family, some of the scouts and, ultimately, [Bills general manager] Brandon Beane, those are the guys who make the decisions, having those questions being asked, they may not have thought of those from the player perspective. It was interesting.”
Of course, the Bills ultimately tabbed their offensive coordinator, Joe Brady, to replace Sean McDermott as head coach. But in the process that led to Brady becoming Buffalo’s next head coach, the Bills interviewed a few candidates who had some close ties to Allen as he sat in on the meetings. Former Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, recently promoted Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Joe Webb and Indianapolis Colts quarterback Philip Rivers were the names a part of that group.
But Brady was the Bills’ offensive playcaller when Allen took the next step and won MVP in 2024. Allen had another strong season under Brady in 2025, which was the coach’s second year as the Bills’ offensive coordinator. Allen threw for 3,668 yards, 25 touchdowns and 10 interceptions to go with 579 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns this past season.
However, Allen praised Brady’s character for why he thinks he’ll make a strong head coach.
“He’s a real human that guys can get behind and understand and play for,” Allen told reporters at Brady’s introductory press conference last week. “I thought in his interview, the vision that he had for this team. … He’s going to continue to keep working hard and trying to find ways for our team now to be put in successful positions.”
Still, the Bills’ sudden head coaching change didn’t come without some drama. Bills owner Terry Pegula drew criticism for the way he fired McDermott following the team’s divisional round loss to the Denver Broncos, saying he made the coaching change based on the result of that game.
Allen, though, is appreciative of the Bills’ owner.
“I’ve been fortunate to be part of this organization where Mr. Pegula and the Pegula family has given us resources for us to win football games,” Allen said on Tuesday.
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