With Sunday’s 44-32 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane registered a rather impressive milestone. The victory was the duo’s 100th
win in their partnership together, a pairing that began with the 2017 season.
McDermott was hired by the Bills in January 2017. He and former general manager Doug Whaley were partnered together through the NFL Draft that season, but Whaley was relieved of his duties on April 30, right after the draft. The search for a new general manager was quick, as Beane was hired on May 9 of that same year. The pair were successful instantly, as the Bills went 9-7 and broke a 17-year playoff drought. In the years since, Buffalo has won five AFC East Division titles and appeared in two AFC Championship Games.
Overall, the Bills have a record of 100-55 during the eight-plus seasons they’ve been together. That record includes a 93-48 mark during the regular season and a 7-7 mark in the postseason. As far as head coach and general manager tandems go, the McDermott/Beane pairing is already the longest-tenured HC/GM duo in Bills franchise history. Previously, the longest-tenured pairing was Bill Polian and Marv Levy, who worked together from 1986 through 1992.
As far as individual tenures go, Beane and McDermott are both second in franchise history as it relates to longevity within their respective positions. McDermott trails only Levy, who coached the Bills for 11 full seasons after starting his tenure with seven games remaining in the 1986 season. Beane trails only Bob Lustig as Buffalo’s longest-tenured GM. Lustig was the team’s general manager from 1967 through 1978.
McDermott currently ranks second in franchise history in regular-season coaching wins, trailing only Levy who won 112 regular-season games while with Buffalo. Levy’s 123 total victories with the Bills are also a franchise record. McDermott is currently No. 49 in regular-season wins in NFL history, which has him tied with Jack Del Rio. McDermott’s .660 regular-season winning percentage is 16th all-time.
