HEADLINE: McDermott's Strategic Sabbatical: How One Season Away From Sideline Could Reshape Broncos Head Coach Candidate

Sean McDermott is not taking another NFL job right now, and per sources with knowledge of the situation, that decision is deliberate and rooted in something far deeper than simply waiting for the right opportunity. Multiple people familiar with McDermott's thinking tell me that the former Buffalo Bills head coach has made a conscious choice to step away from the daily grind of NFL coaching for the first time in decades, prioritizing personal growth and family reconnection as he evaluates his next move. This calculated pause comes as the Denver Broncos organization continues to monitor the coaching market, and McDermott remains very much in consideration for future opportunities when he decides to return.

The timing of this decision matters enormously. McDermott's departure from Buffalo came on the heels of a playoff loss to Denver just over a year ago. Rather than immediately jumping into another head coaching role, a pursuit that typically consumes former head coaches with desperate urgency, McDermott has taken what amounts to a coaching sabbatical. I am told that this time away has afforded him the opportunity to be present for family routines that he largely missed during his tenure with the Bills. Coaching at the NFL head level demands everything. The schedule is relentless. The mental burden is constant. The time away from family is substantial. McDermott has decided that before he returns to that lifestyle, he needs to recalibrate who he is outside of football.

This approach is unusual in the current NFL landscape. When coaches lose their jobs, the industry expectation is rapid redeployment. Networks offer analyst roles. Competing teams offer coordinator positions. Agents actively shop fired coaches to any organization with an opening. McDermott certainly received such overtures. I am told that legitimate opportunities did present themselves, including positions that would have put him back on an NFL sideline with real authority and a clear path toward another head coaching role. He turned them down. According to sources, his reasoning centered on the realization that he needed personal recalibration before making another massive professional commitment.

The Bills experience was transformative but also ultimately limiting. McDermott took Buffalo from a team that had not made the playoffs in eighteen years to a consistent AFC East contender. He built a defensive foundation that became the identity of those teams. He helped develop Josh Allen into a franchise quarterback. He created a winning culture in Buffalo where one had not existed in a generation. Yet the distance between that success and the playoff ceiling he could not break through took a toll. The Bills made the playoffs four consecutive years under McDermott. They won their division twice. They could never get past the AFC Championship Game. That frustration, combined with the organizational dysfunction that developed as the Bills front office went through various iterations, created an environment where the job became more draining than energizing.

Multiple sources confirm that McDermott's family life suffered during those years in Buffalo. His children grew older. Milestones passed. The holidays became fragmented. The summers became consumed with planning for the coming season. His wife managed much of the household responsibility while he managed a professional organization. That dynamic, which is true for virtually every NFL head coach, began to feel unsustainable to McDermott as he approached this stage of his career. He is not young anymore. He is not desperate for a job anymore. He has already proven he can build a winning program. The calculus changed.

What makes this decision significant for the Broncos organization and any other team that might pursue McDermott is that he is essentially investing in becoming a better version of himself before he accepts another position. Per sources, McDermott has specifically told people in his circle that he wants to return to coaching with clearer perspective about what actually matters. He wants to be more present with his family even within the demands of the job. He wants to understand his own needs better so that he does not repeat patterns that left him depleted. He is reading. He is reflecting. He is spending time with his family. He is engaging in spiritual pursuits that he did not have time for while coaching.

This is the type of personal development that rarely gets discussed in NFL circles because it is considered soft. Toughness in football means you get back to work immediately. You move forward. You do not take time for introspection. But McDermott, who has always been thoughtful and philosophical about his approach to leadership, seems to have decided that his next coaching opportunity will be better served by him taking this time now rather than bringing unresolved frustration and burnout into another program.

The Broncos connection is worth examining here because Denver is one of the jobs that could potentially interest McDermott whenever he decides to return. The Broncos have stability at ownership. They have a clear front office structure. They are in a position to invest significantly in a head coach's vision. The roster is building nicely. There is work to be done, but there is also a foundation to build upon. If McDermott becomes available and interested in 2025 or early 2026, the Broncos would almost certainly explore the possibility. His defensive background would mesh well with the team's direction. His proven ability to develop young quarterbacks would be relevant. His track record of organizational rebuilding would be applicable.

But here is what multiple people close to McDermott emphasize: he will not rush back into coaching just because a good opportunity presents itself. He is being intentional about the next chapter. He wants to know that when he commits to another program, it is because he has genuinely renewed himself and because the situation aligns with what he now understands he needs to succeed in this job. That is not the mentality of a coach desperate to get back to work. That is the mentality of a coach who is thinking several years ahead.

The coaching market has changed. There was a time when head coaching jobs were so coveted and so finite that turning down opportunities was unthinkable. Now, with more turnover and more recognizable coaches hitting the market simultaneously, there is slightly more flexibility. McDermott is capitalizing on that shift. He is taking back control of his narrative rather than allowing the industry to dictate his next move on its timeline.

I am told that McDermott's family has been supportive of this decision, and that support system is crucial to him. He is not languishing. He is not unhappy. He is intentionally growing. When he returns to coaching, whenever that is, he will do so as a more complete person and a more intentional leader. That could make his next opportunity far more successful than his final years in Buffalo. Organizations paying attention should be watching to see when McDermott signals he is ready. The moment he does, the coaching carousel will accelerate significantly.