New NFL Rumors Reveal Sean McDermott, Bucs Discussed Role on Todd Bowles' Staff After Bills Firing

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have reportedly been interested in hiring Sean McDermott following his dismissal by the Buffalo Bills.

The Buccaneers have spoken with McDermott to discuss a potential role on Todd Bowles' staff, Fox Sports' Greg Auman reported Wednesday.

Auman noted that McDermott is "expected to take this year off and re-assess his options in 2027."

He added that he is not sure conversations got as far as what specific role McDermott would have played with the Bucs.

McDermott has eight years of defensive coordinator experience with the Philadelphia Eagles and Carolina Panthers, in addition to nine years of experience as head coach of the Bills.

The defense in Tampa Bay is managed by Bowles, who has not hired a defensive coordinator since the Bucs promoted him from DC to head coach ahead of the 2022 season.

Bowles helped the Bucs ranked as a top-10 defense for three years as DC, including during the team's Super Bowl winning season in 2022.

He is currently signed as head coach through 2028 thanks to the extension he signed last summer after leading the Bucs to the top of the NFC South for three consecutive seasons, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The Bucs fell short of both the division title and the playoffs the following season after a collapse over the back half of the season left the team on the wrong side of a tiebreaker with the Carolina Panthers.

Bowles responded to that postseason miss with a flurry of coaching changes, including the dismissals of five coaches alongside the retirement of two others.

The Buccaneers have since hired former Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson to take over for former OC Josh Grizzard.

Those staffing changes weren't expected to include a switch at DC, however. ESPN's Jenna Laine reported on Jan. 8 that Bowles "doesn't plan to hire a defensive coordinator."

That report was made before McDermott became potentially available. It wasn't until 11 days later that the Bills fired their longtime head coach following the team's divisional round overtime loss to the Denver Broncos.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported shortly afterward that McDermott "could well emerge as a head coaching candidate" for the 2026 season, and that he had told his staff as of Jan. 19 he intended to keep coaching.

By that point, multiple teams in need of head coaches had already hired or were in the process of hiring other candidates.

The league will tie an all-time record with 10 head coaching changes this offseason, but it sounds like McDermott might wait until the next round of turnover in 2027 to return to an NFL sideline.