Joe

Brady

Brady had been most heavily linked to the Saints head coaching job but informed the franchise that he will be returning to the Bills in 2025 as their offensive coordinator. We’ve seen the decision to bypass a head coaching job in favor of remaining with a coordinator’s current team pay dividends as recently as this season with the two coordinators from the Lions, something Brady appears to be gambling on this coaching cycle. It’s a gamble that could pay off if he did not consider the head coaching job in New Orleans to be desirable, particularly if the Bills make it past the Chiefs on Sunday and earn a spot in the Super Bowl. The decision could begin opening up traction for other head coaching candidates in this cycle for the Saints.

Both Brady and Moore have given first interviews with the Saints and are coaching the Bills and Eagles offenses, respectively, in conference championship games on Sunday. The Saints are hoping to conduct second-round interviews with both candidates, adding them into a mix that includes Mike McCarthy, Anthony Weaver, and Mike Kafka. With a few of the top candidates out of the way, the Saints look to be content waiting and fleshing out their second-round options for head coach. As Joe Brady and Kellen Moore gameplan for a chance to head to the Super Bowl, a head coaching job in New Orleans is also on the horizon.

The Jags lost out on Ben Johnson, while Liam Coen chose to stay in Tampa Bay. Robert Saleh is believed to be next in line, but the Jags could open their search back up after losing out on the biggest names of the cycle. Brady already interviewed with the team once and has since put another playoff win under his belt. He also had intreviews with the Bears and Saints. New Orleans has yet to make a hire. With Trevor Lawrence’s career at a bit of a crossroads, getting an offensive mind at the helm should be a priority for the organization. Instead, keeping GM Trent Baalke has seemingly been the goal of the offseason for owner Shad Khan, and it’s already cost him dearly.

The interview was conducted virtually considering the Bills are just 24 hours from a home playoff game against the Ravens. The Bears, Jets, and Saints have also been linked to Brady during the new coaching cycle, although the Jaguars were the first to complete one.

Brady, who has received interest from the Saints for their head coaching job, might have his pick of head coaching opportunities after leading the Bills to a hyper productive 2024 season in which they had the league’s second highest EPA per play. Brady would be tasked with figuring out how to help Caleb Williams become a viable NFL starter after his disappointing rookie season (only Will Levis and Anthony Richardson had a lower drop back EPA than Williams). Brady’s work with Josh Allen could go a long way in convincing the Bears he’s the guy for them.

Brady gains his second interview on the circuit from a team he worked for as an offensive assistant in 2017 and 2018 before taking over the LSU passing game for one incredible season you may remember. The Saints were rumored before the offseason started to have interest in coaches with familiarity to the team under GM Mickey Loomis, and Brady certainly fits that bill. Aaron Glenn likely starts out as the favorite for the job, but Brady looks to have course-corrected his stock in Buffalo after a disastrous time in Carolina in 2020-2021.

The Jets fired a flurry of requests off on Black Monday, with Brady becoming the latest to field a call. The Bills’ offensive coordinator has spent the last year and a half rebuilding his image as one of the top young offensive minds in the league after a tumultuous two years in Carolina (2020-2021) put a damper on his growing popularity. Brady’s work with Joe Burrow at LSU during the team’s national title run in 2019 put him squarely on the radar of NFL teams, but he joined the Bills in 2022 after former Panthers head coach Matt Rhule made him a scapegoat for the team’s struggles in his second season with the team. Brady has the benefit of working with Josh Allen and a solid group of playmakers, but his situational awareness in games and ability to scheme up plays that proved enough to knockoff the undefeated Chiefs is undeniable. At just 35 years old, Brady could once again be on track to land a head coaching gig after appearing to be on a similar path just a few years ago.

“The feeling in league circles is that general manager Mickey Loomis will lean toward someone he knows,” Rapoport writes. Glenn is expected to be a hot candidate this cycle as the Lions defense took a major step forward this season before the unit was decimated by injuries. Rapoport also lists Mike McCarthy and Joe Brady as potential candidates with “Saints roots.”

Brady took over the reins of the Bills offense in Week 11 after the team dismissed Ken Dorsey. Under Brady, the Bills averaged 27.0 points per game and ranked sixth in EPA per play. Brady’s promotion to full-time offensive coordinator for 2024 doesn’t come as a surprise to anyone, as the 34-year-old coach was long considered the favorite for the gig. Brady helped lead the LSU Tigers to a national championship in 2019 and was once thought to be on the fast track to being an NFL head coach. A disappointing stint in Carolina briefly derailed those hopes, but he could be primed to receive head coaching interviews next offseason.

Lewis, a former Buffalo quarterback, has gotten attention in coaching circles after helping to resurrect Baker Mayfield’s career in Tampa this season. Lewis had served as Tampa’s receivers coach from 2020 to 2022, working with productive wideouts Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. Josh Allen recently said he would like to have interim OC Joe Brady back in 2024. Brady took the job after the team fired Ken Dorsey in November.