In many ways, Brian Daboll’s departure from the Buffalo Bills seemed like a foregone conclusion.
Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs and Cole Beasley would joke with reporters about not wanting to give Daboll too much praise for his role in their contributions to one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL so as to not boost his chances of becoming another team’s head coach.
Jim Kelly even felt compelled to publicly endorse quarterbacks coach Ken Dorsey as a replacement for Daboll as offensive coordinator.
Now, it appears Daboll is staying put.
Many fans who feared the Bills were about to lose one of the brighter coaching minds they’ve ever had can begin to exhale.
“I think Brian’s very qualified to become a head coach and sometimes things happen where a lot of factors get involved in those selections and decisions,” Bills coach Sean McDermott, showing great diplomacy, told reporters Monday. “At the end of the day, we’re happy to have Brian with us for as long as he’s been with us and, hopefully, moving forward as well. He’s a valuable member of our staff.”
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The fans' first thank-you should go to the Los Angeles Chargers. Their second should go to the impatience of most NFL team owners and league restrictions on the interviewing of head coach candidates from teams still in the postseason.
Seven clubs this season have had head coach openings: the Chargers, Houston Texans, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars, Atlanta Falcons, Detroit Lions and New York Jets. Daboll wasn’t in play for all of them. The Jets and Chargers interviewed him virtually. Daboll reportedly was the top candidate to replace Anthony Lynn as the Chargers’ head coach.
It made perfect sense on multiple levels.
One, Daboll and Chargers General Manager Tom Telesco are tied by their Western New York roots, including the fact they both graduated from St. Francis High School. Two, the Chargers have one of the NFL’s more promising young quarterbacks in Justin Herbert, who is fresh off a tremendous rookie season.
Logic strongly suggested the Chargers would want to do everything possible to enhance the development of a player who figures to have an excellent chance of being the face of their franchise for many years.
The Chargers surprised many NFL observers by choosing Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Brandon Staley. Though the Rams had the league’s top-ranked defense, Staley was a coordinator for only one season and after only three years as a position coach in the NFL.
Staley did spend two seasons as a defensive coordinator/secondary coach at John Carroll University, Telesco’s alma mater. However, the larger factor in his hire seems to be the Chargers’ desire to pluck a significant asset from the team with which they share a stadium and directly compete for attention and revenue.
Of all the openings, none looked better suited for Daboll, who has done so much to elevate Allen from a raw rookie to an MVP candidate and the main reason the Bills will be playing in the AFC championship game on Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs.
As of Tuesday, the last two available spots were with the Texans and Eagles. The Houston Chronicle reported that Daboll, despite having formerly worked with Texans executive vice president of football operations Jack Easterby and newly hired GM Nick Caserio with the New England Patriots, has removed himself from consideration for the remaining openings.
According to an NFL source, the Texans aren’t considering Daboll. Given the reported turmoil within the team, which has raised questions about whether star quarterback Deshaun Watson will remain in Houston, Daboll probably shouldn’t consider them.
An NFL source says the Eagles are interested in Daboll. However, the Associated Press has reported that Daboll is not interested in joining the Eagles, who reportedly have internal issues that people in league circles say make the job undesirable.
Keep in mind, it isn’t an overstatement to say practically everyone who enters the NFL as an assistant coach aspires to land a top job one day. As well paid as coordinators in the league are, there’s no comparing those salaries to what head coaches receive. There’s also no comparing the gravity of the role and the chance to oversee an entire team rather than just one segment.
Another significant factor that likely will keep Daboll with the Bills, and could also impact the head coaching job pursuit of Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, who interviewed with the Texans, at least for one more year is the fact he works for a final-four playoff team. That puts him at a distinct disadvantage with owners of teams looking for head coaches, because they know someone hired at this stage is behind putting together a staff of assistant coaches. For candidates from teams that reach the Super Bowl, the delay would be extended by two more weeks.
It’s a shame that Daboll, Bieniemy and others worthy of head coach consideration are almost punished for being good enough at what they do to help get their clubs to the doorstep of the Super Bowl.
“Everybody knows what I think of Eric and what kind of head coach I think he’d be,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid told reporters Monday. “Maybe the best thing I can tell you is I hope he goes to the NFC when he has that opportunity. But whoever gets him, I think, is a very lucky organization. He’s one of the few people I’ve come across that has the leadership skills that he has, the ability to lead men in this crazy game that we’re in and for those guys, through his leadership, to play at a Pro Bowl level.
“When he gets his hands on you, figuratively, he does wonders with athletes and he's able to maximize their abilities on the field and he gives them that extra boost to be a productive person off the field. He's somebody that I would have loved my son to play for.”
Understandably, owners looking to make the right choice to lead the reversal of their franchise’s fortunes get antsy. They want their head coach in place. Now.
Additionally, per the NFL’s anti-tampering policy, first interviews with head coach candidates on playoff clubs with first-round byes had to happen during wild-card week or divisional week for teams without a bye. Virtual interviews with candidates from clubs still in the postseason can be interviewed virtually this week, provided their employer consents.
The fairness of the rules of engagement for hiring coaches have long been questioned.
“That’s been debated over the years, I think probably as long as I’ve been in the league,” McDermott said. “And it’ll continue to be debated on what’s the right timing of it all. I certainly understand it from both sides, honestly, just in terms of it may be right to wait for the existing team like us and the remaining teams that are still playing. And then I can understand, from the interviewing team, just in terms of them wanting to solidify who they have and move forward, move their organizations forward.”
For now, Daboll staying with the Bills should do plenty to help them continue to move forward.
