Joe Brady is a name to watch regarding the Bills‘ head coaching vacancy. In the event he is not promoted as Buffalo’s Sean McDermott replacement, outside offers could be coming soon. 
Brady is set to interview with the Cardinals, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports reports. The sides did not speak virtually as teams around the league conducted virtual interviews during the early stages of the hiring cycle. Brady is free to meet in person with Arizona, though.
Brady has already interviewed once with the Falcons, Raiders and Dolphins. He has a second interview with the Ravens on the books as well. Clarity could soon emerge in this case, as Brady weighs his options. The 36-year-old is among the youngest candidates on the market, although this is not the first hiring cycle in which he has drawn HC interest.
After one season spent on LSU’s championship-winning staff, Brady was hired by the Panthers as their offensive coordinator. A two-year spell in that capacity did not go as planned, but he quickly landed a new opportunity in 2022 as Buffalo’s quarterbacks coach. After Ken Dorsey was fired midway through the 2023 season, Brady was tapped as his replacement. Buffalo finished sixth in scoring that year, then posted top-four finishes in each of Brady’s two full campaigns as OC.
Renewed head coaching interest from outside suitors thus comes as no surprise. The Cardinals had a head coach with a defensive background for each of the past three seasons in the form of Johnathan Gannon. As expected, he was fired on ‘Black Monday’ following Arizona’s 3-14 campaign. Gannon’s predecessor, Kliff Kingsbury, was Arizona’s most recent hire with experience as an offensive play-caller.
The quarterback situation is unclear at this point in the Cardinals’ case, although Kyler Murray could be retained for 2026. In any event, Brady – or another HC hire in position to guide the offense – would be tasked with overseeing a needed step forward on that side of the ball next season. With other possibilities to consider, it will be interesting to see how Brady feels about the possibility of taking charge of the Cardinals.
Via PFR’s HC Search Tracker, here is an updated look at where things stand for Arizona:
- Joe Brady, offensive coordinator (Bills): To conduct in-person interview
- Thomas Brown, tight ends coach (Patriots): Interview requested
- Matt Burke, defensive coordinator (Texans): Interview requested
- Jeff Hafley, defensive coordinator (Packers): Interviewed 1/14
- John Harbaugh, former head coach (Ravens): Contacted
- Vance Joseph, defensive coordinator (Broncos): Interviewed 1/10, considered “strong candidate”
- Klint Kubiak, offensive coordinator (Seahawks): Interviewed 1/10
- Mike LaFleur, offensive coordinator (Rams): Interviewed 1/16
- Jesse Minter, defensive coordinator (Chargers): Interviewed 1/13
- Raheem Morris, former head coach (Falcons): To interview
- Matt Nagy, offensive coordinator (Chiefs): Interviewed 1/9
- Robert Saleh, defensive coordinator (49ers): Interviewed 1/15
- Chris Shula, defensive coordinator (Rams): Interviewed 1/16
- Arthur Smith, offensive coordinator (Steelers): Interview requested
- Anthony Weaver, defensive coordinator (Dolphins): Interviewed 1/9
If Brady becomes the coach of the Bills, What exactly changes? If that happens what was the whole point of firing McDermott? Color me—-Confused.
The average length of stay as a HC of the Cardinals is only 3 to 4 years, with the overall history of this franchise since the days of the Chicago then St. Louis, and the present AZ Cardinals that is not a good sign for being a HC of this franchise. No wonder they are one of the last teams to hire a replacement, certain candidates are very leery of taking this job. No job security, team history speaks for itself.
Is it telling that the Bills didn’t make that happen almost immediately? If Brady was their guy, what could possibly be the hold up? Brady is gonna want to coach elsewhere with another QB? I don’t think so. Unless he’s really loyal to McDermott, there’s no earthly reason he wouldn’t jump at the chance. They say he and Beane have a really good relationship. Beane may be locked in on one particular coordinator (or Davis Webb) still in the playoffs. He may already know who his guy is and his guy maybe already know he’s going to get the job. Davis Webb has deep ties to the franchise, they know exactly who he is already. He’s a leader, he’s smart, he’s cool under fire… only problem is his age! Boy, you’d wish the next guy had a few more years under his belt. But if he’s special then he’s special and you just have to go for it.