The Bills fired special teams coordinator Matthew Smiley on Super Bowl Sunday; they had a replacement in mind. They are bringing in Chris Tabor, who spent this past season out of football.
The former Panthers interim HC is signing on to be the Bills’ ST coordinator, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets. Tabor, 53, has been an NFL staffer since 2008. He climbed to that interim role once Carolina fired Frank Reich, and while the Panthers interviewed him for the full-time post, he was never a likely candidate.
Tabor, however, has coached special teams throughout his pro career. This includes stays as the Panthers, Bears and Browns’ ST boss. Smiley had been in place as Buffalo’s STC for the past three years and had been with the team since Sean McDermott‘s 2017 debut. As such, this will mark a major change for the Bills’ staff.
A Kansas City-area native, Tabor has not overlapped with McDermott previously. The Panthers-to-Bills pipeline has effectively dried up, as McDermott and GM Brandon Beane have been in Buffalo now for eight years. But Tabor brings considerable expertise to this post. He has coached since 1993, moving from high school to college to the pros, and had the Panthers’ special teams operating at a high level during his final full season as their ST boss. Veteran writer Rick Gosselin had the Panthers’ special teams ranked fourth in 2022. Carolina dropped to 23rd on Gosselin’s chart in 2023.
Tabor coached both Devin Hester and Josh Cribbs, overseeing the latter’s work for two years as Cleveland’s ST coordinator, and will work on overseeing a Bills team that allowed a blocked-punt touchdown and a kick-return score in 2024. Buffalo also ranked 28th in yards allowed per kick return last season. Tabor interviewed for the 49ers’ ST coordinator job last month. The Panthers had blocked Tabor from meeting with the Giants, only to not retain him on Dave Canales‘ staff, but the experienced assistant has secured another opportunity a year later.