It’s easy to get caught up in the hoopla surrounding first-year Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott’s return to Carolina Sunday afternoon, when he leads the first-place Bills into enemy territory for a 1 p.m. showdown with the Panthers at Bank of America Stadium.
McDermott served as the Panthers’ defensive coordinator for six seasons, overseeing a unit that was annually one of the stingiest defenses in the NFL. But while McDermott, who was hired away from the Panthers eight months ago to lead the new-look Bills, is responsible for preparing Buffalo for this Week 2 challenge, he realizes that once the opening kickoff occurs, this is just like any other game on the schedule.