The NFL Divisional Round delivered chaos and drama, and its aftermath saw the Buffalo Bills fire head coach Sean McDermott after another playoff letdown. In a wide-open AFC field that did not include Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, or Joe Burrow, the Bills blew a golden opportunity to reach and potentially win a Super Bowl.

Having said that, Buffalo is arguably the most attractive opening now. Candidates will be drooling at the thought of coaching reigning MVP Josh Allen.

If you can believe it, McDermott’s firing could end up working to the Dallas Cowboys’ benefit. In speaking to executives around the NFL, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini kept hearing Brian Daboll (!) as a potential replacement.

Why is that relevant to the Cowboys? ESPN’s Adam Schefter previously reported that Daboll is expected to interview for the Eagles’ offensive coordinator job.

Talking to NFL executives around the league about Buffalo’s next head coach options, the name that keeps coming up is a familiar one, a Buffalo native and someone Josh Allen loves: Brian Daboll.

— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) January 19, 2026Cowboys fans should be rooting for Brian Daboll to become the Bills’ new head coach

Not only is Daboll a Buffalo native, but he also served as the Bills’ offensive coordinator for four seasons before becoming the Giants’ head coach in 2022. Notably, Daboll was hired the same year Buffalo drafted Josh Allen in 2018, giving him built-in familiarity with the face of the franchise.

While seemingly nothing would’ve stopped Allen from becoming a superstar, he was wildly erratic early in his career. Daboll has been credited with harnessing Allen’s recklessness.

There’s no denying that Daboll’s tenure with the Giants was a failure, but Bills Mafia can still talk themselves into a reunion given his success developing Allen. And even if Daboll doesn’t land the head coaching job, a return to Buffalo in some capacity — whether as offensive coordinator or a senior advisor — now feels plausible. Those odds skyrocketed once McDermott was fired.

READ MORE: 7-round Dallas Cowboys mock draft fixes pass-rush and secondary

Cowboys fans should be rooting for that because the idea of Daboll calling the Eagles’ offense is nightmare fuel. For starters, he was Jalen Hurts’ offensive coordinator at Alabama in 2017. He has also thrived with mobile quarterbacks like Josh Allen and Jaxson Dart, and even took a Giants team to the playoffs with Daniel Jones under center.

In Philadelphia, Daboll would have the most offensive talent in his coaching career. The Cowboys watched Kellen Moore have success with the same personnel in 2024. There isn’t much separating Daboll and Moore as play-callers, but Daboll has used more motion and varied formations, concepts that have historically given Dallas fits.

Luckily, Daboll was linked to the Bills’ opening no more than an hour after McDermott was canned. Time will tell if Buffalo’s braintrust feels the same, but Cowboys fans should be hoping that comes to pass. Daboll ending up on the Eagles would be an awful turn of events.