Sean McDermott

Two-time NFC champion Sean McDermott is the head coach of the National Football League’s Buffalo Bills. He started his NFL coaching career in 2001 as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Eagles. He then held the position of defensive coordinator from 2009 to 2010, and from 2011 to 2016. He was appointed the head coach of the Bills in 2017 after spending six seasons with the Panthers, which included a Super Bowl trip in Super Bowl 50.

McDermott attended North Penn High School. While there, he earned defensive back All-Southeastern Pennsylvania honours in 1992 and graduated in 1993. In 1992 and 1993, he won the title of national prep champion in wrestling. He attended the College of William & Mary, where he was an all-conference safety, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in finance (1997). Mike Tomlin, the future head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, was a wide receiver on his squad and frequently faced McDermott. In 1996 and 1997, he also won awards for Academic All-Conference and NSCA Strength and Conditioning All-America.

The Bill’s fortunes have improved under McDermott’s time as head coach, with the franchise largely failing during the 2000s and 2010s. He ended the longest ongoing playoffs drought in the four major North American sports by leading the Bills to their first playoff participation since 1999 in his first season as head coach. In the 2020 season, McDermott aided the Bills in winning a playoff game for the first time since 1995, clinching their division, and making their first appearance in the AFC Championship Game since 1993. In 2021, he guided the Bills to the team’s first division title in 30 years.