Belichick's 'Band': Nick Caserio Reunion Looming for Patriots?
First, Bill O'Brien. Next ... Nick Caserio?
As the rumor mill involving the NFL Draft hits warp speed, so too ramping up is speculation about moves within front offices. And the latest doozy involves the New England Patriots.
It begins in Houston, where a long-time Texans writer reports that he's hearing Caserio could be on the move after the draft ... possibly back to New England.
"A long-time member of an AFC front office I’ve respected for years told me he heard Caserio was leaving after the draft to return to New England," wrote John McClain. "I told him it didn’t make sense on any level, but I checked with people in the Texans’ organization I trust, and they said they didn’t believe it, either."
While the report offers little, if any, credibility to the scenario, a former Patriots front-office voice has now added fuel to the fire.
"There's a longer game to be played in Houston," Michael Lombardi said this week on the GM Shuffle Podcast. "I think there will be some organizational changes in Houston after the draft. I'm not saying people will be fired, but organizationally things will be shifted."
Some background: The Texans still have not replaced vice president of football operations Jack Easterby, who was fired during the 2022 season. It was Easterby, remember, who persuaded Texans owner Cal McNair to hire Caserio away from the Patriots in 2021 and make him general manager.
The "organizational changes" Lombardi talks about could be a Caserio promotion, or ...
After bringing back O'Brien as offensive coordinator this offseason, what if Bill Belichick is trying to put the band back together in Foxboro?
Caserio was with the Patriots from 2001-20, working his way up from personnel assistant to area scout to director of pro/player personnel and being a part of six Super Bowl champions in the process.
He still has three years left on his contract in Houston, just made a new head coaching hire in DeMeco Ryans, and is now poised to draft the Texans' quarterback of the future in two weeks.
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