What do you guys think?? I was pretty pissed that they went with a guy whose offense was stale, uninventive, and needed a QB to be a hero to find success, but I'm pretty pleased with the staff he's assembled, especially Leonard, and the guys Beane has picked up
buffalonews.com
After dining at a nearby restaurant with a possible free-agent signing, Joe Brady settled into a leather chair in Brandon Beane's office.
Buffalo Bills head coach Joe Brady is in his first offseason on the job. Joshua Bessex, Buffalo News
Beane, the Bills' general manager and president of football operations, wanted to hear Brady's thoughts on their guest that evening, edge rusher Bradley Chubb. The team's pro scouts and coaches knew Chubb would fit on the field in Buffalo.
But Brady, the Bills' new head coach, and his defensive coordinator, Jim Leonhard, wanted to begin to build a relationship.
Impressed by every aspect of their conversation, the Bills decided to see if Chubb was affordable.
Beane encouraged Brady to go home. It was already 9:30 p.m., and the head coach did not need to sit through the tedious negotiation with Chubb's agent. Brady declined. He wanted to learn how a contract is constructed and the challenges that can arise as a general manager exchanges dollar figures with an agent. Brady remained in Beane's office past midnight as the two sides slowly built the framework of a three-year deal, Chubb signed a few days later.
"It was unique, and I loved it, actually," Brady told The Buffalo News during a wide-ranging interview. "Some late nights, but I loved it."
Since becoming the Bills' head coach nearly two months ago, Brady has found virtually no task too big or too small.
After hiring the architect of his defense, Brady met with Leonhard and the assistant coaches to learn the specific vision for each position. He had discussions with the sports science and strength-and-conditioning staff. Brady collaborated with Beane and the pro scouts to identify their targets in free agency. To ensure the Bills score more points in 2026, Brady tasked his offensive coordinator, Pete Carmichael, and others to analyze the Bills' performance last season.
The pace has not slowed. Amid hiring a staff, attending the scouting combine, and collaborating with Beane to create an offseason plan, the Bills' new coach did not take a day off work until last Sunday. He doesn't mind. The elation he experienced while standing at the lectern during his introductory press conference was still evident last week as he reflected on the six players his team had acquired over the previous 10 days.
"I hate this time," Brady said. "I like being with the guys. ... But, no, I'm loving it. It's real now. There is an element of fun, but also we're getting ready. Like, it's real."
On the day he accepted the job, Brady called his defensive players. Josh Allen and everyone else on offense already knew Brady. As the Bills' play-caller since November 2023, Brady had celebrated their achievements during games and practices. He pushed them to accomplish more. Someone like outside linebacker Greg Rousseau had not connected with Brady on the same level, so he got on the phone with as many as possible to communicate his vision and how changes on defense would lead to different results.
After the introductory press conference and media responsibilities, Brady moved swiftly to build a coaching staff. Some of the Bills' new assistant coaches previously worked with Brady, like Carmichael and offensive line coach Pat Meyer. Two assistants, defensive line coach Terrance Jamison and secondary coach Jay Valai, came from college football.
The most experienced in the group, former NFL head coach John Fox, got connected to Brady through Beane. The latest hire, assistant quarterbacks coach Trace McSorley, played at Penn State while Brady was a graduate assistant.
For Brady, dividing up his day is simple. Each morning revolves around football, whether that's meeting with Carmichael and the offensive staff to discuss ways to evolve their playbook or sitting down with Leonhard to talk about his 3-4 defensive scheme. Afternoons are exclusively big-picture tasks, like preparations for the draft and free agency, or something as mundane as where a slogan will be displayed inside One Bills Drive.
"He’s a high-energy, very positive energy guy," Beane said of Brady. "I don’t know when he sleeps, because he’s fast-twitching. He’s on at all times. I’ve yet to find him without pep in his step. We haven’t played a game, but the staff that he put together has been a lot of fresh ideas. ... There’s a lot of different perspectives, and Joe wants to be challenged. He doesn’t think he’s got all the answers. I think that’s the right way to do it, but there’s been a lot of positive energy in the building and fresh, and time will tell how it all plays out."
Any coach's first offseason on the job is more chaotic than usual. He has to build the foundation of a program. Brady will, of course, have some carryover from Sean McDermott's nine seasons. The way Brady divides his day, for example, is a structure he learned while working as an offensive coordinator. Mornings are strictly X's and O's. Afternoons are for everything else. But Brady will make significant changes, beginning next month when the players arrive for an early start to the offseason workout program.
Fans will not notice, but the players' daily schedule is going to change. Every detail, including lunch, matters. Brady met with the sports science and strength-and-conditioning staffs to reverse-engineer the Bills' schedule, beginning with the structure of their in-season practices and working backwards to the first offseason workouts.
Injury prevention is a front-of-mind topic for everyone. The Bills lost too many players to soft-tissue issues in 2025, and Brady is committed to collaborating with other departments to ensure his players are working hard and smart.
As a team with a new head coach, the Bills can hold their first offseason workout two weeks early. Brady does not plan to spend the extra time strictly on X's and O's. He'll put a focus on football, especially with a schematic change on defense, but the main emphasis will be on strength and conditioning.
"This has to be hard going into it, because I want this to be the hardest training camp we've gone into," Brady noted. "That's where the conditioning element is so important."
Building out the Bills' roster is a collaborative process involving multiple departments.
At the scouting combine, Brady posed questions to draft-eligible prospects during formal interviews. He observed how each prospect interacted with his peers.
Ahead of free agency, he and his defensive coaches spent time on each player who could be a target. Brady asked how each player fit in his respective position and the ways Leonhard would use him. If the Bills could not sign a player, who would be their next priority?
On offense, Brady vouched for the receiver they acquired, DJ Moore, a 1,000-yard receiver for the Bills' coach when he was the offensive coordinator in Carolina. Once the signings began, Brady suggested to Beane that they conduct a quick study.
If the Bills had to play a game this week, who on the roster would get a jersey, and which holes still existed? It's an imperfect way to examine a team's needs, because a late bloomer like wide receiver Tyrell Shavers, for example, would not have been included last spring. But the thought experiment gave Beane and Brady a clearer picture ahead of the draft.
The Bills are not done in free agency. They are monitoring the market to see if a veteran player fits on their roster and, just as important, under the salary cap. But the focus has shifted to the draft, with assistant coaches and scouts attending pro days and private workouts.
The Bills' approach to building their draft board will be like the one they used ahead of free agency. They're evaluating players separately, then they'll reunite in a few weeks to compare their findings and tweak their rankings.
During this stage of the offseason, staffers have many early mornings and late nights at One Bills Drive. It didn't take long for Beane to learn that there's no use in telling his head coach to go home to get some rest.
"He sat there like a student and listened to me or (vice president of football operations) Kevin Meganck talk to agents," Beane said. "He seemed to love it."
An inside look at Joe Brady's first two months as the Buffalo Bills' head coach
Since becoming the Bills' head coach nearly two months ago, Brady has found virtually no task too big or too small.
After dining at a nearby restaurant with a possible free-agent signing, Joe Brady settled into a leather chair in Brandon Beane's office.
Buffalo Bills head coach Joe Brady is in his first offseason on the job. Joshua Bessex, Buffalo News
Beane, the Bills' general manager and president of football operations, wanted to hear Brady's thoughts on their guest that evening, edge rusher Bradley Chubb. The team's pro scouts and coaches knew Chubb would fit on the field in Buffalo.
But Brady, the Bills' new head coach, and his defensive coordinator, Jim Leonhard, wanted to begin to build a relationship.
Impressed by every aspect of their conversation, the Bills decided to see if Chubb was affordable.
Beane encouraged Brady to go home. It was already 9:30 p.m., and the head coach did not need to sit through the tedious negotiation with Chubb's agent. Brady declined. He wanted to learn how a contract is constructed and the challenges that can arise as a general manager exchanges dollar figures with an agent. Brady remained in Beane's office past midnight as the two sides slowly built the framework of a three-year deal, Chubb signed a few days later.
"It was unique, and I loved it, actually," Brady told The Buffalo News during a wide-ranging interview. "Some late nights, but I loved it."
Since becoming the Bills' head coach nearly two months ago, Brady has found virtually no task too big or too small.
After hiring the architect of his defense, Brady met with Leonhard and the assistant coaches to learn the specific vision for each position. He had discussions with the sports science and strength-and-conditioning staff. Brady collaborated with Beane and the pro scouts to identify their targets in free agency. To ensure the Bills score more points in 2026, Brady tasked his offensive coordinator, Pete Carmichael, and others to analyze the Bills' performance last season.
The pace has not slowed. Amid hiring a staff, attending the scouting combine, and collaborating with Beane to create an offseason plan, the Bills' new coach did not take a day off work until last Sunday. He doesn't mind. The elation he experienced while standing at the lectern during his introductory press conference was still evident last week as he reflected on the six players his team had acquired over the previous 10 days.
"I hate this time," Brady said. "I like being with the guys. ... But, no, I'm loving it. It's real now. There is an element of fun, but also we're getting ready. Like, it's real."
On the day he accepted the job, Brady called his defensive players. Josh Allen and everyone else on offense already knew Brady. As the Bills' play-caller since November 2023, Brady had celebrated their achievements during games and practices. He pushed them to accomplish more. Someone like outside linebacker Greg Rousseau had not connected with Brady on the same level, so he got on the phone with as many as possible to communicate his vision and how changes on defense would lead to different results.
After the introductory press conference and media responsibilities, Brady moved swiftly to build a coaching staff. Some of the Bills' new assistant coaches previously worked with Brady, like Carmichael and offensive line coach Pat Meyer. Two assistants, defensive line coach Terrance Jamison and secondary coach Jay Valai, came from college football.
The most experienced in the group, former NFL head coach John Fox, got connected to Brady through Beane. The latest hire, assistant quarterbacks coach Trace McSorley, played at Penn State while Brady was a graduate assistant.
For Brady, dividing up his day is simple. Each morning revolves around football, whether that's meeting with Carmichael and the offensive staff to discuss ways to evolve their playbook or sitting down with Leonhard to talk about his 3-4 defensive scheme. Afternoons are exclusively big-picture tasks, like preparations for the draft and free agency, or something as mundane as where a slogan will be displayed inside One Bills Drive.
"He’s a high-energy, very positive energy guy," Beane said of Brady. "I don’t know when he sleeps, because he’s fast-twitching. He’s on at all times. I’ve yet to find him without pep in his step. We haven’t played a game, but the staff that he put together has been a lot of fresh ideas. ... There’s a lot of different perspectives, and Joe wants to be challenged. He doesn’t think he’s got all the answers. I think that’s the right way to do it, but there’s been a lot of positive energy in the building and fresh, and time will tell how it all plays out."
Any coach's first offseason on the job is more chaotic than usual. He has to build the foundation of a program. Brady will, of course, have some carryover from Sean McDermott's nine seasons. The way Brady divides his day, for example, is a structure he learned while working as an offensive coordinator. Mornings are strictly X's and O's. Afternoons are for everything else. But Brady will make significant changes, beginning next month when the players arrive for an early start to the offseason workout program.
Fans will not notice, but the players' daily schedule is going to change. Every detail, including lunch, matters. Brady met with the sports science and strength-and-conditioning staffs to reverse-engineer the Bills' schedule, beginning with the structure of their in-season practices and working backwards to the first offseason workouts.
Injury prevention is a front-of-mind topic for everyone. The Bills lost too many players to soft-tissue issues in 2025, and Brady is committed to collaborating with other departments to ensure his players are working hard and smart.
As a team with a new head coach, the Bills can hold their first offseason workout two weeks early. Brady does not plan to spend the extra time strictly on X's and O's. He'll put a focus on football, especially with a schematic change on defense, but the main emphasis will be on strength and conditioning.
"This has to be hard going into it, because I want this to be the hardest training camp we've gone into," Brady noted. "That's where the conditioning element is so important."
Building out the Bills' roster is a collaborative process involving multiple departments.
At the scouting combine, Brady posed questions to draft-eligible prospects during formal interviews. He observed how each prospect interacted with his peers.
Ahead of free agency, he and his defensive coaches spent time on each player who could be a target. Brady asked how each player fit in his respective position and the ways Leonhard would use him. If the Bills could not sign a player, who would be their next priority?
On offense, Brady vouched for the receiver they acquired, DJ Moore, a 1,000-yard receiver for the Bills' coach when he was the offensive coordinator in Carolina. Once the signings began, Brady suggested to Beane that they conduct a quick study.
If the Bills had to play a game this week, who on the roster would get a jersey, and which holes still existed? It's an imperfect way to examine a team's needs, because a late bloomer like wide receiver Tyrell Shavers, for example, would not have been included last spring. But the thought experiment gave Beane and Brady a clearer picture ahead of the draft.
The Bills are not done in free agency. They are monitoring the market to see if a veteran player fits on their roster and, just as important, under the salary cap. But the focus has shifted to the draft, with assistant coaches and scouts attending pro days and private workouts.
The Bills' approach to building their draft board will be like the one they used ahead of free agency. They're evaluating players separately, then they'll reunite in a few weeks to compare their findings and tweak their rankings.
During this stage of the offseason, staffers have many early mornings and late nights at One Bills Drive. It didn't take long for Beane to learn that there's no use in telling his head coach to go home to get some rest.
"He sat there like a student and listened to me or (vice president of football operations) Kevin Meganck talk to agents," Beane said. "He seemed to love it."