Terry Pegula went to his quarterback in the locker room after the Buffalo Bills lost to the Denver Broncos. Josh Allen was crying. The owner told him, "That was a catch!"
Allen didn't acknowledge him. He'd given everything he had to win that game, and it wasn't enough.
A few days later, Pegula fired head coach Sean McDermott.
In a stunning press conference Tuesday, the Bills owner said his decision to fire McDermott and bring in a new head coach was "based on the results of our game in Denver."
One game. One heartbreaking loss. And one image of his franchise quarterback sobbing in the locker room.
"He gave everything he had to win that game," Pegula said of Allen.
That's what sports is all about, folks. But was it the right call?
A Decision Made With the Heart
Pegula admitted he talked to Allen after making the decision to fire McDermott, but said he'd keep that conversation private. He also said Allen didn't have any input on the decision itself.
But let's be real—when you see your franchise quarterback, the guy you've invested everything in, crying in the locker room after another playoff heartbreak, that image sticks with you. It haunts you. And sometimes, it makes you do things you might not have done otherwise.
Pegula's honesty was almost jarring. When asked about his decision to fire McDermott but promote GM Brandon Beane, he said: "I....that was my decision. I could be wrong."
When's the last time you heard an NFL owner admit they could be wrong? That kind of vulnerability is rare in sports ownership, where ego and bravado usually rule the day.
The Keon Coleman Controversy
Pegula also waded into the controversy surrounding the Bills' decision to draft WR Keon Coleman. According to Adam Schefter, Buffalo's coaching staff pushed to draft Coleman and Beane supported it. Pegula doesn't think it's fair for that pick to be pinned on Beane.
"I'm glad Coleman ran that (4.57 40). It'll help to get him," Beane said two months before the draft, according to reports.
The problem? Coleman has struggled as a rookie, and the pick has become a lightning rod for criticism of the front office. By defending Beane and pointing to the coaching staff's role, Pegula is essentially saying: the coaches wanted this guy, and now those coaches are gone.
It's a messy situation that reveals the fractures within the organization—fractures that Pegula is trying to fix by bringing in a new head coach.
Who's Next?
The Bills have already requested interviews with multiple candidates, including former New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll, who was Buffalo's offensive coordinator before getting the Giants job. According to reports, Daboll wants the Bills job. If he doesn't land it, he's expected to wind up in Tennessee as offensive coordinator.
The Bills also scheduled an interview with former Bills assistant head coach and current Washington Commanders run game coordinator Anthony Lynn, who was a finalist for the Buffalo head coaching job in 2017—the job that went to McDermott.
Pegula is swinging for the fences here. He's trying to get Allen over the hump, to finally win the Super Bowl that has eluded this franchise since the early 1990s.
The Right Call?
Here's the thing about McDermott: he went six straight years with 10+ wins. He took this team to the playoffs year after year. He built a culture in Buffalo that players loved. But he also went 3-6 in the playoffs, and the Bills kept finding ways to lose games they should have won.
At some point, ownership makes a gut decision. Pegula saw his quarterback crying in the locker room, and he decided enough was enough. Maybe McDermott wasn't the problem. Maybe it was just bad luck, bad bounces, bad calls. But Pegula is betting that a fresh voice, a new perspective, can unlock something in Allen that McDermott couldn't.
Is it fair? Maybe not. McDermott deserved better than to be fired after one playoff loss. But sports isn't always fair. Sometimes, ownership makes a decision with their heart instead of their head.
Pegula admitted he could be wrong. We'll find out soon enough whether this gamble pays off—or whether he just blew up one of the best things the Bills had going for them.
