Some of the most thrilling moments of late in the Cincinnati Bengals' Joe Burrow era came at the expense of Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills.
In fact, the last time Burrow's Bengals won in the playoffs, it was at Buffalo in the Divisional Round. That 27-10 triumph had Allen's brain in a blender, as he managed only a 68.0 passer rating for the 5.5-point favorite hosts.
Well, the man who masterminded that Cincinnati game plan to shut Allen down could be the one who replaces Sean McDermott as the Bills' new head coach.
Former Bengals DC Lou Anarumo in the running for Bills head coach vacancy after Sean McDermott's firing
NFL Media's Mike Garafolo reported on the Bills interviewing Lou Anarumo, the departed Bengals defensive coordinator who now holds the same post for the Indianapolis Colts.
Let's return to that aforementioned Bengals playoff rout of Buffalo for a moment. Look at what Anarumo had put on his resume against elite competition to that point in time:
Here's general quarterbacking numbers on the elite/near elite QBs that Lou Anarumo's defense has faced over the last couple of years: Mahomes/Allen/Herbert/Lamar/2021 Rodgers
— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) January 23, 2023
Average EPA per dropback of -.03. That's Mac Jones this year. pic.twitter.com/qQ41ih5mkf
To piggyback off that last bit, mind you, not Mac Jones, 2025. We're talking 10 TD-12 INT-77.0 passer rating Mac Jones of 2023.
Anarumo was the runner-up for the Arizona Cardinals' lead job when Jonathan Gannon was hired a few years back. Now that Gannon was let go, I'd imagine the Cards will return to Anarumo to gauge his interest again. Arizona might be his most legitimate chance to score a head coaching gig this cycle.
Then again, Anarumo was a hot candidate in the first half of this season. The Colts got off to a 7-1 start as Anaurmo made the most of a thin secondary, and helped support an offense that was humming with stud running back Jonathan Taylor and a resurgent quarterback in Daniel Jones.
Things went off the rails in Indy in a hurry once Jones fractured his fibula, then tore his Achilles. Injuries kept piling up on defense, notably to DeForest Buckner and Sauce Gardner.
Whenever Lou has a strong offense and decent personnel to work with, though, he's an absolute menace. Quite the juxtaposition to how McDermott has fared when the chips are down:
Sean McDermott wasn't good enough
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) January 19, 2026
last 6 years: 6 playoff trips, 6 playoff losses
in those losses:
33.2 ppg allowed
#29 in defensive success
#27 in defensive EPA/play
unacceptable defense in the biggest moments
it finally cost him his job:https://t.co/OnKR9OZV0z
While I think it was time for both sides to move on when they did after the 2024 campaign, it's still a bit sad that Anarumo is no longer calling the shots for Cincinnati's defense. No coach could've made that personnel work the past two seasons.
What a fascinating matchup it'd be if Anarumo gets the Buffalo gig. I also believe he could make a lateral move there if the Bills hire an offensive-minded head coach, just because of how good Allen is.