NFL power rankings: Head coaches from 32-1

No. 24: Sean McDermott, Buffalo Bills

McDermott is a first-time head coach, but all signs point to him running the show in Buffalo. Former general manager Doug Whaley was on thin ice anyway, but after the draft he was let go and Brandon Beane was hired to replace him. Beane came from his most recent role as assistant general manager for the Carolina Panthers, where he spent 19 years and McDermott was the defensive coordinator from 2011-2016.

The Bills have the longest-running playoff drought in the NFL, and it seems McDermott is the direct opposite of Rex Ryan. The only thing they have in common is acumen on the defensive side of the ball, but otherwise, McDermott won’t be making any bold declarations about beating Tom Brady or going to a Super Bowl. The on-field results will speak more than anything, without bluster from the coach, one way or the other.

But a head coach having a lot of say in personnel is a situation that is earned, despite Bill Parcells’ famous “cook the meal, shop for some of the groceries” line. McDermott and Beane may essentially be of one mind on who to draft, sign, cut and keep, but conflicts are possible or even likely.

McDermott has to prove his mettle as a head coach and secondarily as a personnel man on some level. Until he does so, he’ll be in the bottom half of lists like this. In the meantime, after the Bills traded wide receiver Sammy Watkins to the Rams, McDermott seemed to ask for belief in “the process.”