The Buffalo Bills announced Joe Brady as their new head coach after firing Sean McDermott following their AFC Divisional round defeat against the Denver Broncos. Brady was Buffalo’s offensive coordinator and has been with the franchise since 2022. However, since this development, there have been a lot of questions about whether Joe Brady is related to NFL legend Tom Brady, as the two share the same last name.

Addressing these concerns, let’s look into whether Joe and Tom Brady are related.

Is Joe Brady related to Tom Brady?

Despite having the same last name, Joe and Tom are not related. Surely, since they are both Bradys, you would find a link if you go back far enough, but no, they are not related familiarly.

After understanding the relationship between Joe Brady and Tom Brady, let’s look at who the new Buffalo Bills head coach is.

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Who is Joe Brady?

The new Buffalo head coach was born in Hollywood in 1989 and attended William & Mary from 2009 to 2012. Joe Brady played wide receiver but realized the NFL wasn’t in his future and shifted focus towards coaching instead.

After his graduation, he became the William & Mary linebackers coach in 2013. In the 2015-16 season, Brady served as a graduate assistant at Penn State before transitioning into the offensive assistant role with the New Orleans Saints in 2017-18. Joe’s first big coaching job came as the LSU Tigers’ passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach in 2019, where the Bayou Bengals clinched the national championship, and quarterback Joe Burrow won the Heisman.

A year later, Joe Brady got his first NFL role as the Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator in 2020 and held the role for the next two seasons. He was then hired by the Buffalo Bills in 2022 and has since worked as the quarterbacks coach, interim offensive coordinator, and offensive coordinator.

What Joe Brady’s Hiring Means for the Bills’ Future

With this hire, the Buffalo Bills have made a transition toward an offensive mindset under Joe Brady. Before Brady, the Bills had Sean McDermott as head coach, a defensive specialist who led a defense that allowed the third-fewest points per game (20.2) in the regular season during his tenure.

Now with Brady, Buffalo hopes to capitalize on his attacking acumen which was ranked top five in rushing yards per game (159.6–1st), time of possession (33:08–1st), red zone efficiency (66.2% – 3rd), points per game (28.3–4th), total yards per game (376.3–4th) and third down conversion rate (44.8% – 4th) over the 2025 season.

Looking at his overall numbers since becoming Buffalo’s offensive coordinator, the Bills recorded 29.6 points per game (2nd), 367.7 total yards per game (3rd), 145.4 rushing yards per game (3rd), and 222.3 passing yards per game (10th).

Subsequently, Bills quarterback Josh Allen posted incredible numbers while playing under Brady. Allen leads the NFL with 79 offensive touchdowns and ranks in the top 10 in wins, passing touchdowns, passing yards, passing yards per attempt, and passer rating during that span.

Hence, now the Bills Mafia will hope that this Josh Allen-Joe Brady partnership finally brings the Lombardi Trophy to Buffalo.