ORCHARD PARK — Sweat dripped from the tip of Trace McSorley’s nose as he emerged from the Buffalo Bills weight room.
McSorley’s eyes looked tired, but it was hard to decipher whether it was from the workout he just finished or because he left the building at midnight and returned at 5:45 a.m. that morning. He’s gotten used to that schedule Monday through Friday, with a brief workout being one of his few respites during the day.
Since being hired as offensive assistant on Feb. 26, McSorley’s main job is breaking down film. Bills offense, defense, future opponents — whatever is asked. He also works with Bills wide receivers coach Drew Terrell in meetings and helps run drills during practice.
McSorley scrapes the bottom in the pecking order on the staff, which begs the question: why did he want to come to Buffalo? Exactly one year to the day he was hired by the Bills, McSorley’s coaching career began when Penn State brought him in to be its assistant quarterbacks coach.
A quarterback from 2014-2018, McSorley holds legendary status at Penn State. McSorley graduated (and still ranks second) as the program’s leader in career passing yards (9,899) and touchdowns (77).
He set single-season records in 2016 for yards (3,614) and touchdowns (29) in 2016 and was the Big Ten championship game MVP as Penn State returned to national relevance. So coveted in his one season as an assistant, new coach Matt Campbell retained McSorley after James Franklin was fired.
But two months later, McSorley was off to the Bills.
“If I want to do anything, I want to do it at the highest level I can,” McSorley told GNN Sports in his first interview since joining the Bills. “Not to say that going back to a place like that would be impossible. I don’t know what the future would hold. But when I was a player, I wanted to do it at the highest standard and at the highest level possible. And now, as a coach, I want to do the same thing.”
Bills center Connor McGovern, who was a Penn State teammate from 2016-2018, likes to tease McSorley about going from star quarterback to doing “grunt work,” but he was genuinely surprised the Bills were able to lure him from Penn State. Beyond his status in State College as a player, McSorley’s wife is also a Penn State graduate.
McSorley grew up in Ashburn, Virginia — less than an hour from Washington, D.C. — and his wife is from Philadelphia, so travel wasn’t a concern. And McSorley enjoyed his short time with Campbell, but being able to focus solely on football rather than recruiting and academic responsibilities was something he couldn’t bypass.
“Being able to really dive deep into the football side of it, like being able to get a mile deep as opposed to however deep you can get into college," McSorley said. “Every level of detail is no stone unturned here. We sit in the meeting room and go over each part of every play.”
But among the biggest reasons for leaving Penn State was an opportunity to work with new Bills head coach Joe Brady, who spent 2015 and 2016 as a graduate assistant for the Nittany Lions. Brady worked with Penn State quarterbacks and it was hard for McSorley to ignore his work ethic.
McSorley noticed how detailed Brady was and admired his coaching style. Brady found a way to blend confidence-building while still being demanding. So impressed was McSorley that he wanted to craft his coaching style in the same mold.
“Never missed a single detail through meetings, through game plan, through anything,” McSorley said. “... He instilled a lot of confidence in his players and that was something that I really appreciated. … As opposed to someone just kind of beating you down, he held you to a high standard, but still gave you the confidence to go play to your ability.”
Brady left to join the New Orleans Saints’ staff in 2017, holding the same job McSorley has with the Bills. Meanwhile, McSorley was a sixth-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens in 2019.
Though McSorley attempted just 93 career passes and started one game — for the Arizona Cardinals in 2022 — he managed to stay in the NFL until 2024, playing for six teams. While navigating the NFL simultaneously, McSorley and Brady kept in touch sporadically.
But when Brady was promoted from offensive coordinator to head coach by the Bills, it was McSorley’s time at Penn State that he remembered.
“One of the greatest leaders I’ve been around,” Brady said. “When you coach guys you just know that, ‘Hey, whenever that guy’s done playing ball … As soon as I can have an opportunity to hire him, I’m going to.’ And he’s been outstanding with us.”
Those around McSorley saw his future in coaching before his playing career ended. Initially recruited by Franklin at Vanderbilt to play safety because he was only 6-foot, McSorley’s play convinced them to offer a scholarship as a quarterback and he flipped his commitment when Franklin was hired at Penn State.
The instincts and toughness Franklin’s staff saw in McSorley as a safety also translated to playing quarterback. McSorley’s acumen allowed him to offset average arm strength with accuracy and an ability to communicate with teammates.
“He was also talking about — especially with wideouts — about what he sees, how he saw them breaking on routes and where they should be,” McGovern said. “He always did a good job of explaining what he wanted.”
McSorley’s future is likely going to lead to coaching quarterbacks eventually, but Brady sees this as a critical point in his development by stepping out of his comfort zone with a different position.
A wide receiver at William & Mary, Brady’s first two seasons as coach at his alma mater were with the linebackers. In fact, the only time Brady has coached exclusively wide receivers was his lone season at LSU in 2019.
Not only can McSorley offer the receivers a different perspective through the lens of a former quarterback, but they can teach him a different way to look at the game.
“When you’re coaching positions that are different than what you’re used to, I think it only improves your football IQ and your understanding,” Brady said. “He’s going to be an outstanding QB coach someday and (offensive coordinator). Trace’s an absolute stud. But I think this will be a huge time frame, just doing something different right now.”