The Buffalo Bills have officially moved on from special teams coach Matthew Smiley, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.
This comes somewhat as a shock considering that in his end-of-season press conference, head coach Sean McDermott said he planned on Smiley being around in 2025. However, he clearly had a change of heart, and one that Bills fans will welcome.
Smiley's unit was dreadful in 2024. They allowed the fifth-highest kickoff return average, the seventh-most punt return yardage, and drew the second fewest fair catches on punts.
The special teams issues included a blocked punt returned for a touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams, which ended up being a massive difference-maker in the result of the game. They also gave up a fake punt for a first down against the Denver Broncos in the wild card round and allowed a long punt return against the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.