Not long after hiring the newest New England Patriots Head Coach, Mike Vrabel, the Patriots took the next step and have found their latest hire as offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels, who, needless to say, is a familiar face with the franchise.
For weeks, McDaniels had been the favorite to be hired as the offensive coordinator, and finally, the Patriots found the next guy to work with promising young quarterback Drake Maye, who will be heading into his sophomore season in the NFL. Regardless of how anyone feels about McDaniels, this seems to be the correct hire by the Pats, as McDaniels had the best resume and pedigree of all the candidates for the position.
Patriots Hiring Josh McDaniels was Good, Still Much More to do
The biggest priority for the Patriots currently has to be Maye’s development, and getting a proven offensive coordinator and playcaller who has a good relationship with the organization, was the safest and smartest way to go. The hire also further validated the decision to hire Vrabel, whose forte is on the defensive side of the ball, meaning both the offense and defense could see significant improvement this upcoming 2025 season. With these last two hires, if all goes well, the Pats could be primed to have one of the most complete coaching staffs in the league.
Some Patriots fans might be scratching their heads looking at McDaniels most recent endeavor in the NFL, which was a short-lived tenure with the Las Vegas Raiders that saw him get fired after just a season and a half. While McDaniels can be looked at as a guy who clearly is not head coaching material, given his time with both the Raiders and Broncos where the results were mostly the same, his resume and proven abilities as a coordinator are undeniable.
Yes, McDaniels worked with the greatest quarterback of all time throughout most of his career, but the knowledge and experience that McDaniels gained from working with that caliber of player can’t be ignored. In fact, in 2008, Tom Brady tore his ACL in the first game of the regular season, making Matt Cassell the starter for the rest of that season. The Patriots still had a productive offense, with Cassell throwing for 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, and the Patriots still finished 11-5 without Brady.
It should be noted that Mac Jones saw his only successful season in New England as a rookie when McDaniels was last the offensive coordinator in the 2021 season. Jones threw 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, which earned him a spot in the 2022 pro bowl. That was still with a scarcity of offensive weapons with Kendrick Bourne being Jones’ most reliable receiver at the time. After McDaniels left the Patriots for the Raiders, Jones’ production took a steep decline, and isn’t even a starter in the league anymore.
McDaniels potentially could have an even better effect on Drake Maye, who like Jones dealt with a bad supporting cast, but overcame a lot of those circumstances and had an impressive campaign, unlike Jones. In order for this growth to happen, the Patriots front office needs to make significant moves this offseason, and heavily improve the personnel on the offensive side of the ball. Some could make the argument that the entire draft should be dedicated to just that side of the ball, given the amount of holes there have been in the past several years.
Receiver isn’t the only position the Patriots are badly lacking in talent, as the offensive line is arguably in even worse shape. The offensive line in recent years has been brutally bad, and one of the main reasons for Pat’s lack of production these last three years. If New England wants these hires to be worthwhile, they can’t make the same offseason personnel mistakes that Bill Belichick made so many times at the latter end of his general manager tenure, which undermined Belichick’s abilities as a coach. They must improve in the trenches offensively, while also getting more reliable weapons for Maye to throw to.
Whether this McDaniels hire ends up working long-term for the Patriots or not, McDaniels at the very least is a guy who understands how to work with Quarterbacks and aid in their development. He may not be a new young commodity like Ben Johnson or Sean McVay when he was hired by the Rams, but could be the right guy to bring stability and growth in Drake Maye’s game, which would be a huge success for the Patriots organization and give them a much more stable future.
Main Image: © Providence Journal / Kris Craig] / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
