Bills sack coach McDermott after Super Bowl wait goes on

The Buffalo Bills have sacked coach Sean McDermott after their NFL play-off defeat by the Denver Broncos on Saturday.

Buffalo reached the play-offs in eight of the 51-year-old's nine seasons as coach but despite having star quarterback Josh Allen and winning the AFC East on five occasions, McDermott was unable to reach a Super Bowl.

Allen had a chance to clinch victory in overtime at the weekend but his fourth turnover of Saturday's Divisional Round game allowed the Broncos to kick a field goal and win 33-30.

"Sean helped change the mindset of this organisation and was instrumental in the Bills becoming a perennial play-off team," said owner Terry Pegula, external.

"But I feel we are in need of a new structure to give this organisation the best opportunity to take our team to the next level."

McDermott is the eighth NFL head coach to leave their position this month, and the 10th since the start of the season.

Buffalo are the first NFL team to win a play-off round in six consecutive seasons but not reach the Super Bowl.

The LA Rams travel to divisional rivals Seattle for the NFC Championship game next Sunday, while New England will visit the Denver Broncos in the AFC equivalent.

The winners will play in Super Bowl 60 on Sunday, 8 February at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

Analysis by BBC NFL reporter Ben Collins

McDermott ended an 18-year play-off drought in his first season with Buffalo and helped them become post-season regulars, but the Kansas City Chiefs proved to be his nemesis.

The Chiefs have knocked the Bills out of the play-offs in four of the past five seasons, on the way to establishing a dynasty that produced three Super Bowl wins.

With the Chiefs failing to make this season's play-offs - along with AFC rivals Baltimore and Cincinnati - the path was supposedly clear for McDermott to lead the Bills to their first Super Bowl since losing four straight from 1991 to 1994.

But while this was McDermott's best chance yet, the Bills' roster was their weakest since Allen was drafted in 2018, and it was relying too much on the NFL's reigning Most Valuable Player to keep producing moments of individual magic.

The re-emergence of New England meant the Bills relinquished the AFC East title so had to settle for a wildcard spot and go on the road in the play-offs.

And despite winning at Jacksonville on Wildcard Weekend, they came unstuck in the Divisional Round at Denver.

Buffalo became just the fourth team to win a play-off game in six straight seasons. A telling fact for McDermott is that the other three teams all claimed three Super Bowl wins during those runs.

He and Allen, on the other hand, have the unwanted records of winning the most play-off games by a head coach and quarterback (eight) without reaching the NFL's title decider.

At 29, time is still on Allen's side. The Bills are about to move into a new stadium and some high-profile coaches have come available in the latest hiring cycle.

So the team felt that by acting now, it allows a new coach to rebuild the roster and gives Allen the best chance of leading Buffalo into a new era that finally delivers a Super Bowl win.