Latest news with #AFCChampionshipGames
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Is Sean McDermott's job at risk? Bills coach in top 10 of NFL hot seat rankings
Western New York just sweltered through a heat wave, but could the heat really be on Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott? USA TODAY thinks his seat is getting warmer. It ranked McDermott as the No. 9 NFL coach whose job is in jeopardy in its hot seat rankings, despite winning five straight AFC East titles and coming off an AFC Championship Game appearance. Advertisement New York Giants head coach and former Buffalo offensive coordinator Brian Daboll was No. 1 on the list as a prime candidate to be fired after a 3-14 record in 2024. Since taking over in 2017, McDermott has transformed the Bills from a team mired in a playoff drought to a perennial AFC contender. The Bills have made the playoffs in seven of McDermott's first eight seasons. However, McDermott has yet to lead them to a Super Bowl. Buffalo has lost twice to Kansas City in the AFC Championship Game and once to the Chiefs in the Divisional Round. ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 01: Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills and head coach Sean McDermott make snow angels while being interviewed after the Bills defeated the the San Francisco 49ers, 35-10, at Highmark Stadium on December 01, 2024 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Bryan M. Bennett/Getty Images) "The Bills continue to be unable to get past the Chiefs in the NFL postseason," USA TODAY wrote in placing McDermott on the "neutral seat." "If they can't do it again, Buffalo brass may try something different despite McDermott's success as the team's coach." Advertisement Buffalo is hardy alone in struggling to overcome the Chiefs. Kansas City, led by Patrick Mahomes, has appeared in seven straight AFC Championship Games, winning five. McDermott's 86 regular-season wins in his first eight seasons are the second-most in league history, behind only Paul Brown's 87. He's also one of just five coaches in NFL history to secure five straight seasons with at least 11 wins. This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott in top 10 of NFL hot seat rankings
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
TV Analyst Rips Chiefs Andy Reid Legacy With Patrick Mahomes Claim
TV Analyst Rips Chiefs Andy Reid Legacy With Patrick Mahomes Claim originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Since taking over the starting job in 2018 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has done nothing short of excel. Three Super Bowls, seven AFC Championship Games and seven AFC West titles already mark a first-ballot Hall of Fame resumé before spending a decade in the NFL. Advertisement He and Andy Reid have come together to form the next generation's dominant quarterback-head coach duo. This pair has the Chiefs in the thick of title contention every season, having not missed a conference championship since 2017, the last season before Mahomes took over. This extraordinary run in the latter stages of Reid's career has cemented his legacy as one of the greats in the history of the NFL. But for some it has not completely validated the entirety of his career. When discussing the current dynamic of quarterbacks and coaches in the league, FS1's Colin Cowherd posited that the success of these modern tandems is mostly driven by the man under center. To make this point, he did not hesitate to call out Reid. "As great as Andy Reid is, he only started hoisting trophies when he got Patrick Mahomes." A rather bold take yet one supported in the simple act of looking at the record books. Reid came close on several occasions with the Philadelphia Eagles but never reached the summit. Advertisement However, does correlation necessarily imply causation here? Reid has the fourth most wins of any head coach in NFL history with 273. Mahomes has been around for the best of those victories and certainly the reason for some. But Reid's history of team building and roster development cannot be questioned in full. And while it's easy to poke and prod at the resumé before Mahomes and make assumptions about how the last decade of his career would have unfolded without him, one can perform the same exercise with Mahomes. Mahomes is one of the best quarterback talents ever. But he stepped into a highly functional system in Kansas City all constructed by Reid. Would he still have three Super Bowls playing for another franchise? Advertisement Going down the rabbit hole of "what ifs" and hypotheticals is a fruitless venture especially considering the outstanding achievement of this duo in their time together. Alone, Mahomes and Reid may still be in the first class of their roles anywhere else in the league. But together, they have formed one of the great dynasties in the history of the game. Related: 'Hardcore' Chiefs Weapon Travis Kelce Ready For Minicamp Related: 'Unfinished Business' Led Kareem Hunt Back To Chiefs This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 16, 2025, where it first appeared.
New York Post
11-06-2025
- Sport
- New York Post
From Pennington to Sauce: Who makes the cut for my Jets All-21st century team
We are now a quarter of the way into the 21st century. It has been a disappointing first 25 seasons for the Jets in this century. It started off fairly strong with six trips to the playoffs in the first 11 seasons, including two AFC Championship Games. Then, the drought hit. Advertisement We are now staring at 14 seasons without a playoff appearance for the Jets. It is a cloud that hovers over the organization, even as they start fresh with Aaron Glenn as the head coach. The playoff drought is always there and never far from the psyche of the Jets.
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Woody Johnson on Jets' poor NFLPA report card: 'My first read is I think it is totally bogus'
The New York Jets dropped from 21st to 29th in the most recent NFLPA report card rankings with players unhappy with a lack of commitment and investment into building a winner, a poor team culture and a food program that has gone in the wrong direction. During the NFL's annual league meetings on Monday, Jets owner Woody Johnson responded to the criticisms, which included an "F" grade for ownership. "My first read is I think it is totally bogus," Johnson said via The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt. "I thought this whole setup the way it was done is all … that's enough said on that. But we want to get better every day, in every category. I want to be No. 1 in everything. All of our people do. We want to be No. 1, like we are in girls flag football. We're No. 1 or 2 in the country and that's where went to be in everything, including on the field but also off the field in all of our philanthropy. So if there's areas we can improve, and there's always areas we can improve — not because of this bogus report — we are going to do it." Advertisement Johnson's use of "bogus" to describe the report was because of his objection to how the data was collected and who it was collected from. "[I]t's supposed to be a process where we have representatives and they have representatives so we know it's an honest survey," Johnson said. "And that was violated in my opinion. So I'll leave it at that. But there's a lot of owners that looked at this survey and said this is not fair, not balanced, it's not every player, it's not even representative of the players." (There were 1,695 players who responded, but the survey did not specify how many players from each team participated.) Jets players expressed that the problem areas they brought up in last year's survey were not addressed and that ownership decided to make "conditions worse" as a response. 'They talked about the culture — it's a problem, top down,' NFLPA chief strategy officer J.C. Tretter said of the Jets' response. '[They said,] 'It's a culture of fear here.' And I think that stood out in those grades.' The Jets have not made the playoffs since reaching back-to-back AFC Championship Games in 2009 and 2010. (Photo by) (Ed Mulholland via Getty Images) Johnson went on to say Monday that the team's relationship with its players is "very, very important" and that players will be involved in providing feedback about life as a Jet inside and outside the training facility. Advertisement As for the food options, Johnson said, "If they like souffle or fish or steak, they should tell us. If they're bored with the food or the way the place looks, let me know. I can't do anything if you don't tell me. We're going to have a lot better communication in terms of what they're looking at every day. If I was looking at the same thing every day, I might get bored too. But it is good, our food is something I take a lot of pride in so to get graded in a way that — this is the food I would want. It's the finest quality, best ingredients, no GMOs, the highest price for everything. The quality of our food is the best." Johnson's comments came hours after a report that the Jets had offered buyouts to 170 out of their 250 employees earlier this month. The Jets are coming off their ninth straight losing season and the franchise has not made the playoffs since reaching back-to-back AFC title games in 2009 and 2010. Bringing in Aaron Rodgers, which Johnson dubbed "a good experiment," did not work out, and the owner's hands-on approach to running the franchise came under scrutiny following a December report that included details about a Jerry Jeudy trade being nixed by Johnson because the wide receiver's rating in the "Madden" video game was not high enough and that Johnson's sons have had influence on decision-making.
USA Today
15-02-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Of all the positional needs, what's the Colts' biggest this offseason?
Of all the positional needs that the Indianapolis Colts have, which one is the biggest this offseason? General manager Chris Ballard mentioned in his season-ending press conference that the emphasis this offseason was going to be on infusing competition throughout the roster. As we evaluate which positions could use an added boost in either free agency, the draft, or even both, there are a lot of options for this Colts team. However, in terms of the biggest, The Athletic's beat reporters recently answered that question for the respective teams that they cover. For the Colts, James Boyd would select the safety group, and for good reason. The need for the Colts at the safety position is more than just about getting better play from the secondary, as Ballard said. Although that is an important factor, for sure. Last season, the Colts' pass defense ranked in the bottom 10 of the NFL in completion rate, pass deflections, yards per pass attempt, and passer rating, according to Pro Football Reference. But in addition to that, depth and that aforementioned competition is a massive need as well currently under contract for the Colts in 2025 are Nick Cross, Rodney Thomas, and Marcel Dabo–that's it. Lastly, in new Lou Anarumo's defensive scheme, versatility is critical as is the ability to disguise coverages, with both elements helping to keep opposing offenses off-balanced and guessing. However, that also can put a lot on the safety's plate. 'New Indy DC Lou Anarumo puts a lot of pressure on the backend, and when analyzing the success his defenses previously had in Cincinnati — when the Bengals went to back-to-back AFC Championship Games — it coincided with having a high-IQ and experienced safety,' wrote Boyd. Boyd also adds that because the safety is asked handle a lot in Anarumo's defense, the Colts may be better off filling this role in free agency with an experienced presence rather than the draft. Also, with Cross playing strong safety last season, the Colts need to fill the free safety role specifically.
