Sean McDermott disparages call that led to Bills' loss and his firing

Sean McDermott went down fighting for Buffalo, both at the postgame lectern in the Mile High City and from 35,000 feet on the flight home, insisting that it was a catch and the Bills should be the ones moving on.

Brandin Cooks had a step on his defender and was hauling in Josh Allen's 44-yard pass at the Denver 20 when Ja'Quan McMillian wrested the ball from the wide receiver's grasp as the pair tumbled to the ground.

McMillian came up with the ball and the NFL ruled it an interception, which set up Denver's game-winning drive and a trip to the AFC championship Sunday against the New England Patriots (16-3).

Twenty-four hours after Wil Lutz's 23-yard field goal ended Buffalo's season short of the Super Bowl once again, McDermott was out of a job, the 10th head coach to join the NFL's crowded unemployment line.

After angrily disputing the call at his post-game news conference, McDermott called Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News to argue anew that it was not an interception: “That play is not even close. That’s a catch all the way," McDermott told Skurski, adding that fans deserved an explanation.

Which they'd already gotten via a pool report from referee Carl Cheffers, who explained, “The receiver has to complete the process of a catch. He was going to the ground as part of the process of the catch and he lost possession of the ball when he hit the ground. The defender gained possession of it at that point. The defender is the one that completed the process of the catch, so the defender was awarded the ball.”

McDermott couldn’t challenge the ruling because of the league’s overtime rules, so he called a timeout to give the officiating crew and replay officials a chance to take an extended look. The play already had been confirmed through the NFL’s expedited review process in New York, so the timeout essentially just gave McDermott an opportunity to get an explanation, which he didn't like.

“It's hard for me to understand why it was ruled the way it was ruled,” McDermott said. "And if it is ruled that way, then why isn't it slowed down just to make sure that we have this right? That would have made a lot of sense to me ... because that's a pivotal point in the game. We have the ball at the 20 maybe kicking a game-winning field goal right there — but I'm saying it because I'm standing up for Buffalo, damn it, I'm standing up for us.”

He wasn't alone. Among those who had McDermott's back were former star cornerback Richard Sherman and ESPN analyst and former QB Dan Orlovsky, who argued, “This is a catch every time.”

No it isn't, countered Hall of Fame tight end Sterling Sharpe, who, on his popular podcast with Chad “Ochocinco" Johnson, said it was absolutely the correct call, and Johnson agreed.

“Let me explain it to you, it's called the Calvin Johnson rule,” where receivers have to secure the catch through their landing, not just grab it in the air, Sharpe said. “If a receiver catches a football and he goes to the ground he must maintain possession of the football throughout the entirety of the catch.

"He goes to the ground, he needs to get his ass up and hand the ball to the officials.”

Which Cook certainly didn't do because McMillian was already running away with the prize held high and the official who was right there ruling it was Denver's ball.

“We were both fighting for the ball,” McMillian said. "I just made a play and basically took it out of his hands and came up with it.”

Cooks said he thought it was a catch at first but knows he needed to do more: "The way I think about it is, you know, make it in a way that it doesn’t have to be in an official's hands; that’s always gonna be my mindset. I’m never gonna cower away from that. It’s the man I am. That’s the player I am. You know, I own it.”

Told that his counterpart had just disputed the interception ruling at his postgame news conference, Denver coach Sean Payton said well, what about the safety that wasn't called earlier in that drive?

D.J. Jones was clearly held by center Connor McGovern, who wrapped both arms around Denver's nose tackle with Allen two steps deep in the end zone. But it's not a certainty that the hold — were it called — would have been ruled a safety, as well. If officials deem it a hold initiated outside the end zone, the half-the-distance penalty would have kept the game going.

Either way, it's a certainty there would have been some consternation over the call just like there was with McMillian's interception.

“A phenomenal play by J-Mac,” Payton said. “But it should've ended, really, with a safety.”

Behind the Call analyzes the biggest decisions and calls in the NFL during the season and the playoffs.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton disputes a call during overtime of an NFL divisional round playoff football game against the Buffalo Bills, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott responds to questions during a news conference after an NFL divisional playoff game against the Denver Broncos, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)

Denver Broncos cornerback Ja'quan McMillian reacts after intercepting a pass intended for Buffalo Bills wide receiver Brandin Cooks during overtime of an NFL divisional round playoff football game, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Broncos cornerback Ja'quan McMillian (29) intercepts a pass intended for Buffalo Bills wide receiver Brandin Cooks (18) during overtime of an NFL divisional round playoff football game, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

One year after a winter storm forced postponements across U.S. sports, another major weather system is prompting a reshuffling of games this week and threatened to wreak havoc on the weekend schedule.

A storm that meteorologists say could rival the damage of a major hurricane is expected to bring snow, ice and frigid temperatures from New Mexico to New England starting Friday.

Major League Baseball’s Texas Rangers canceled their annual Fan Fest event scheduled for Saturday due to the weather forecast for frozen precipitation in North Texas and “in the interest of safety for players, fans, and employees.”

The number of states where college games were being adjusted showed the large path of the approaching storm.

The Sun Belt Conference preemptively shook up its women’s basketball schedule, moving around the start times on several games from Thursday through Saturday. The American Athletic Conference also adjusted its weekend men’s and women’s basketball schedules, moving some games up to Friday.

North Carolina Central postponed two men’s and two women’s basketball games scheduled to be played from Thursday through Monday in Durham, North Carolina.

Appalachian State moved up its men’s basketball home game with Louisiana-Lafayette to Thursday morning and Marshall made its home game against Louisiana-Monroe a noon Thursday tipoff. Tennessee’s swim meet at Georgia and the USC Upstate women’s basketball game at Longwood were pushed to Friday from Saturday due to the forecast.

Among other women’s basketball games moved up several hours Saturday included No. 20 Princeton at Brown and North Florida at Eastern Kentucky, along with men’s games involving Towson at North Carolina A&T and Texas State at James Madison.

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

Traffic passes piled-up snow in Lowville, N.Y., Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Cara Anna)