Bills HC Sean McDermott Sends ‘Brutal’ Message to Cut Candidates

The Buffalo Bills face some difficult decisions in the next 48 hours, and head coach Sean McDermott doesn’t relish the job he has ahead.

The deadline for teams to whittle down to the final 53-man roster is Tuesday, and the Bills have some fierce competitions for the final spots across several positions. McDermott spoke out about the difficulty of making final cuts this week, admitting that it’s a “brutal” job.

Sean McDermott Taking His Time on Final Cuts

Speaking to reporters after the team’s preseason finale against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, McDermott lamented the difficulty of determining which players make the cut and which end up with a pink slip.

“It’s brutal. It’s something that we owe them to take our time and make sure we get this right, not only for the benefit of our team, but for them and their careers,” McDermott said, via the Buffalo News. “These young men spend so long trying to get themselves to this level, and then, sometimes, they only get one shot with one team, and so we’ve got to make sure we get this right.”

The Bills are able to put at least a few of those decisions off by a few weeks. Defensive end Michael Hoecht and defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi, both offseason additions, were each given six-game suspensions by the NFL to start the season. That gives the Bills a pair of open roster spots to fill for now.

The team already filled one of those spots, bringing back veteran defensive tackle Jordan Phillips for what will be his fourth stint with the team.

Bills Have Rare Drama at Quarterback

The Bills have been one of the most stable teams at quarterback, but faced a rare competition this offseason. The team signed veteran Mike White to compete with Mitch Trubisky for the No. 2 job behind starter Josh Allen.

Reporter Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News predicted the team will stick with Trubisky, who backed up Allen last season and in 2021. Skurski noted that neither White nor Trubisky appeared in the final preseason game, a hint that the team has already made its decision.

“It is hard to see any scenario in which either White or Buechele did enough to unseat Trubisky for that job,” Skurski wrote. “Buechele, though, did look great in completing 25 of his 30 passes against Tampa Bay. Perhaps that performance was enough to earn him a spot on the practice squad.”

Buechele was on the practice squad in 2023 and returned last season but was placed on injured reserve after suffering a neck injury.

Buechele made a strong bid for the No. 2 spot in the preseason finale, completing 25-of-30 passes for 278 yards and a touchdown. After the game, Buechele said he was pleased with the performance.

“It was really satisfying,” Buechele said. “After the Chicago game, that’s what we wanted to do. We wanted to put drives together. They called a great game. Our teammates, all 11 of us, man, we worked hard for this moment, put a couple drives together, and had a lot of fun out there.”