BILLS MAKE OC CHANGE, FIRE KEN DORSEY AMIDST OFFENSIVE TURMOIL IN BUFFALO
After six straight lackluster games in which the Bills’ highest scoring output came in a 25-29 loss to the 2-8 New England Patriots, Buffalo finally decided to make a coordinator change on Tuesday.
The team announced that they had parted ways with second-year offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey, less than 24 hours after a catastrophic offensive performance by the team on Monday Night Football against the Denver Broncos. It was the fourth loss suffered by the team over the last six games. Buffalo confirmed that current quarterbacks coach Joe Brady will take over the play-calling duties offensively on an interim basis.
A short and curt statement from the team read: “We have relieved Offensive Coordinator Ken Dorsey of his duties. Quarterbacks coach Joe Brady will serve as interim Offensive Coordinator.”
While most people will agree that Dorsey was a slight drop off from current Giants head coach Brian Daboll – who was the Bills offensive coordinator between 2018 and 2021 – the lack of production in recent games from what should be one of the hottest offenses in football has been nothing short of appalling.
Sitting at 5-5, the Bills currently rank seventh in the NFL in total yards and eighth in points, and have in recent games been unable to consistently move the ball down the field. After a hot start to the year in which the team averaged 34.75 points per game in their first four weeks, Buffalo has only managed a 20.5 point-per-game average in their last six contests.
The Bills have still managed to squeak out wins against struggling NFC opposition like the Giants and the Buccaneers but their recent output on offense, especially with the league’s second-highest turnover total, isn’t going to cut it in the AFC. The Bills had two interceptions and two fumbles against Denver on Monday night, elevating their total turnovers this season to 18.
Speaking to reporters later in the afternoon, Bills head coach Sean McDermott said that while he speaks to Josh Allen every day, the decision to fire Dorsey was his and only his. “I just felt like it was time for a change,” said McDermott. “We need to be a confident offensive football team and find consistent production. And that’s really what it came down to.”
Right now, it’s Joe Brady’s opportunity to prove he belongs after rising to coaching stardom in 2019 as LSU’s passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach. Four years after winning the Broyles Award for the best assistant coach in college football, the 34-year-old has a second chance at being an offensive coordinator in the NFL.
Brady was hired by Matt Rhule and the Carolina Panthers as their offensive play caller in January, 2020, a role in which the young coach struggled for two years before being fired in December 2021.
The recent parting of ways between Dorsey and the organization also comes amidst resurfaced rumors that no.1 wide receiver Stefon Diggs wants out of Buffalo. ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith had reported back in August that he knew “as a matter of fact” that Diggs wanted out, claims that the 29-year-old quickly rubbished before the season.
“Brother wants out, he doesn’t want to be in Buffalo anymore,” said Smith during training camp. “He doesn’t want to, I’m telling you right now. I have my sources. Stefon Diggs [has] got to be there but he would prefer to be gone because he’s lost a level of belief in the Buffalo Bills…”
“They can deny, they can tell you what they want… He’s not going to force his way out, he knows he’s got to be there and they’ve got to perform. But he ain’t feeling the Buffalo Bills the way that he once did because he feels there’s a window of opportunity that they may have missed out on.”
While the jury is still out on Smith’s comments from three months ago, the Diggs-Buffalo subject matter has returned over the last few days following cryptic social media posts by the All-Pro wide receiver and his brother, Dallas Cowboys cornerback, Trevon Diggs. Following Monday’s loss to the Broncos, Trevon Diggs said on X, “Man 14 gotta be outta there.”
The 25-year-old defensive back then followed his post with another shot at Bills quarterback Josh Allen who has been struggling in the last few weeks. Unapologetically, Trevon said, “Let’s not forget he didn’t start going off till bro got there.”
While one would assume no one likely knows Stefon Diggs’ true feelings in this situation more than his brother, who’s also an All-Pro, the three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver has certainly not done enough to extinguish the fire that’s crackling in Buffalo. In a cryptic post on his Instagram stories on Tuesday, Diggs wrote: “Send me back home, I belong in Baltimore,” a statement that raised even more eyebrows.
With the trade deadline now two weeks behind us, it is highly unlikely that Stefon Diggs doesn’t finish the season as a Buffalo Bill, but if the Bills don’t make a playoff run, will the soon-to-be 30-year-old force a move elsewhere in the offseason? Only time will tell.
-Maher Abucheri
Twitter: @pabloikonyero
Photo: All-Pro Reels. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.