Bill Belichick, Robert Kraft Meet About Patriots’ Offense
FOXBORO -- As the late, great Sam Cooke would say, 'a change is gonna come' for the New England Patriots.
Just three days removed from their season-ending loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday at Highmark Stadium, Patriots team owner and CEO Robert Kraft and coach Bill Belichick are reportedly in agreement that "offensive coaching reassignments" must be a part of the team's offseason plans.
“The meeting, I am told, has happened," wrote NBC Sports Boston's Tom E. Curran. "There is no impasse. The Patriots are on to 2023 with Belichick acknowledging 2022 wasn’t ideal and being amenable to changes."
Both Kraft and Belichick had been expected to meet at the season's conclusion, as is typical for the two sides each year. However, this particular discussion was a bit more highly anticipated, primarily due to New England's struggles on the offensive side of the ball. It was strongly suggested that Kraft was dissatisfied with his team's production on offense in 2022 -- especially the decision to transfer the duties of ex-offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels to Matt Patricia and Joe Judge — despite their respective inexperience with calling offensive plays or coaching quarterbacks.
Belichick was reportedly committed to making the necessary adjustments to improve in 2023, as well, requiring no persuading to land on the same page with the Patriots' team owner.
“Don’t expect a dog-and-pony show announcing firings or who’s coming in for an interview,” Curran stated. “Belichick isn’t going to put anyone’s head on a spike for the pleasure of the masses. But my understanding is offensive coaching reassignments are going to happen and several offensive coaches are under consideration for the Patriots’ 2023 staff.”
As such, the Patriots are now expected to begin their search in earnest for additional coaching talent on the offensive side of the ball. Alabama offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien, ex Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, and Cleveland Browns assistant Chad O’Shea are likely to receive strong consideration, all of which have previous ties to the organization. Should the Patriots wish to promote from within, tight ends coach Nick Caley, their longest-tenured offensive assistant, may be an option, as well. Caley, who is considered to be highly-regarded by both Kraft and Belichick, has been rumored to be on the radar of the Las Vegas Raiders and former New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
So, what becomes of Patricia and Judge?
After all, under the pair's direction, the Pats offense regressed from one showing significant promise to a subpar unit dwelling among the NFL's bottom teams. Quarterback Mac Jones also displayed notable discomfort in New England's new offensive system throughout the season.
According to Curran's report, however, both are expected to remain with the organization in different roles. While it is a bit early to determine the nature of their new duties, Patricia served as New England's defensive coordinator from 2012-2017, while Judge was the special teams coordinator from 2015-2019.
News of the accord between Kraft and Belichick should be met with positive reaction from the New England fanbase, who have understandably clamored for change throughout the season. Kraft, and team president Jonathan Kraft were among them, as demonstrated in their letter to the club’s season-ticket holders, revealing the organizations intent to demonstrate marked improvement heading into 2023.
To his credit, Belichick was also cognizant of the need for revision prior to his meeting with Kraft.
“As we do every year, we’ll evaluate everything and try to make the best decisions that we can to move forward and be more competitive, to have a stronger team in the future,” Belichick told reporters on Monday. “Robert [Kraft] and I will talk about that, we’ll talk about that as a staff, and certainly individual conversations with many of the players, as we always do."
In the meantime, the Patriots and their potentially new-look coaching staff will be taking their talents to Las Vegas to serve as mentors for the participants in the East-West Shrine Bowl, scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 2 at Allegiant Stadium.
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