Sean McDermott isn't coaching anywhere in 2026, but he sure is showing up everywhere. According to Adam Schefter, McDermott spent Friday visiting the Los Angeles Rams, the latest stop on what's become an informal tour of the league during his time away from the sideline.
This isn't McDermott just killing time. Per Schefter's report, he's using the off time specifically to see how a few teams, the Rams included, actually operate day to day. He was reportedly at Giants minicamp earlier this offseason too, chatting up GM Joe Schoen on the field. Add Sean McVay's building to that list and you've got a coach doing a self-guided tour of two very different organizational philosophies.
Context matters here. McDermott spent 9 seasons in Buffalo, went 98-50 in the regular season, and won 5 straight AFC East titles. None of that saved him after the Bills got bounced in the divisional round for the 4th time in 5 years, this time in an overtime loss to the Broncos. The firing was controversial enough that over 29,000 fans reportedly signed a petition asking for him back. Instead of scrambling for a quick landing spot, McDermott chose to sit out the year entirely.
That's the part that makes these visits interesting instead of just awkward. A fired coach hanging around other buildings could read as desperate. But McDermott turning down full-time gigs to instead study McVay's setup, Schoen's Giants operation, and whoever else lets him in the door reads more like a guy building his next pitch. He's reportedly framed the year as a chance to talk leadership with people across the sport and come back sharper.
The obvious subplot is what this means for 2027. Every stop McDermott makes is going to get read as a hint, fair or not, and the Rams visit is no different given McVay's standing as one of the league's top offensive minds and program-builders. Whether McDermott ends up back in a head-coaching chair or takes a different route entirely, right now he's doing something most fired coaches never get to: shopping around the league without a clock running.