Joe Brady Is the Bills' New Head Coach, but Is He Related to Tom Brady?

For decades, Tom Brady was the reason that the Buffalo Bills never seemed to have much success in the AFC East. After he left the New England Patriots, the Bills became the division's dominant force. After falling short in this year's playoffs, though, the Bills fired head coach Sean McDermott in favor of hiring their offensive coordinator, Joe Brady.

Following the news that Joe had been hired to take over as the team's head coach, many wondered whether he might be in some way connected to Tom Brady, a figure who looms large over the world of NFL football. Here's what we know about the potential connection.

Although the two share the same last name, there is no evidence that the two are in any way related. They are both Bradys, so it's certainly possible that if you go back far enough, they might share a connection, but there's nothing in their recent family history to suggest it. Joe was born in Hollywood, Fla., in 1989 and had a brief football career, but never made it to the NFL. Instead, he became a coach, first in college and then in the NFL.

Tom Brady, meanwhile, is from California and is a full decade older than Joe. The two don't share any obvious history, then, and Brady is a common enough last name that it makes some sense two people with it would end up with prominent roles in the NFL. For his part, Tom is now calling games, so his responsibility will be to evaluate Joe's job as a head coach based on how Buffalo performs in the years ahead.

At just 36 years old, Joe will be one of the youngest head coaches in the NFL. The Bills interviewed a wide array of people before landing on Joe, and there will be some skepticism about the hire until we see how things play out on the field.

Joe received a five-year contract, per NFL.com, and will also continue to call plays even as he takes on the responsibility of becoming the team's head coach.

The fact that Joe will still be calling plays means that there will be continuity in that role for star quarterback Josh Allen and the team's office. What remains to be seen, though, is whether the Bills will be able to replace the defensive acumen that Sean McDermott brought to the job now that they have a more offensively minded head coach.

The continuity could be a good thing for the Bills, but one of the reasons McDermott was fired is because he could not get his team to the Super Bowl in spite of their being in contention every year. Joe has been hired to deliver Buffalo its first ever championship, but given the talent in the league right now, that's going to be a pretty tall order.