In the NFL, winning seasons and playoff appearances don't always equate to job security

Winning isn't everything. Winning the Super Bowl matters most.

Sean McDermott became the latest coach to learn that harsh reality when the Buffalo Bills fired him after falling short in the playoffs for the seventh straight season.

McDermott led the Bills to the playoffs eight times in nine seasons, but they didn't make it past the AFC championship game, losing twice to Kansas City.

Now, Buffalo looks for a coach who can help the franchise capture its first Lombardi Trophy.

McDermott turned the Bills into a perennial contender, but couldn't secure that elusive Super Bowl victory so he's out. It happened to Tony Dungy in Tampa Bay, John Fox in Denver, Andy Reid in Philadelphia, among many others.

John Harbaugh was fired two weeks ago after missing the playoffs despite a successful, 18-year run in Baltimore that included winning one Lombardi. He quickly landed with the New York Giants.

Doug Pederson was fired by the Eagles following one losing season that came after three straight playoff appearances, including the franchise's first Super Bowl title.

Ultimately, it comes down to winning the biggest prize. There are only 32 head coaches in the NFL and not a lot of job security.

McDermott's abrupt dismissal opens an attractive vacancy in Buffalo. The next coach inherits 2024 AP NFL MVP Josh Allen, who is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. Running back James Cook was the NFL's rushing champion. The defense was No. 1 against the pass.

There's plenty of talent on the Bills. But the team needs to find the missing piece. It's not just the head coach. General manager Brandon Beane, who was also promoted to president, needs to give Allen more playmakers. The Bills lack an elite wide receiver. It's been their primary need since Stefon Diggs was traded to Houston after the 2023 season.

Stroud's future

C.J. Stroud threw four first-half interceptions in Houston's 28-16 loss to New England in the divisional round and the Texans failed in their seventh bid to reach the AFC championship game.

The Texans need to give Stroud more help. The offensive line struggled and the run game was nonexistent. Stroud was also missing standout receiver Nico Collins against the Patriots and lost tight end Dalton Schultz early in the game.

''The quarterback position is going to get the most eyes, most attention. We understand that,'' Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. ''In this league, that's what it is. C.J. understands that as well. Throughout the season, I thought he did a really nice job of coming in and learning a new offense, new scheme. I thought he picked it up well. We got better as the season went along and he made some plays to allow us to win a lot of football games as well. I'm not going to let the bad plays there in that game (against the Patriots) dictate to me who C.J. is. I know who C.J. is. I know what he's capable of doing.

''We just keep looking to get better. No one feels worse about the situation than C.J. He feels bad for the team. He feels like he let the team down, and I just told him, ‘Keep your head up and you keep moving forward.' We all want it better. We can't go back in that game right now and run it back and play it again. We just learn from it. What do you learn from it? That's my main message to him is, what do you learn from that and how do you make that a priority and getting it fixed and improving and getting better?''

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