Matt

Patricia

Patricia took over defensive play-calling for the Eagles late in the season, but to no avail. The Eagles’ defensive struggles were a big reason for their collapse down the stretch and why they were bounced in the Wild Card round against the Buccaneers. A long-time disciple of Bill Belichick, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Patricia re-unite with Belichick after he finds a new home.

Belichick’s sons, Steve and Brian, could also be part of the package. McDaniels, who was fired as Raiders head coach this fall, would seem like a lock to be Belichick’s offensive coordinator in Atlanta. Matt Patricia, meanwhile, if fresh off stepping in to coach the league’s worst defense after joining Judge to coach the league’s worst offense in 2022. It wouldn’t be a surprise for Belichick to bring in quarterbacks like Brian Hoyer and Jimmy Garoppolo — players steeped in the Patriot Way. It all suggests a coach who is unwilling to change anything about his approach to the game after years of struggling without Tom Brady at the helm.

Patricia was hired as a senior defensive assistant in the spring following his failed stint as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator. With the Eagles’ defense falling off a cliff this year, head coach Nick Sirianni had to make a change eventually. Sean Desai is also a new addition to the Eagles’ staff. He became Philly’s defensive coorindator after Jonathan Gannon was hired away by Arizona. Desai had previously spent time as an associate head coach with the Seahawks.

It officially ends Patricia’s second tour of duty in New England after his absolutely disastrous 2022 stint as the de facto offensive coordinator. Few hirings have been worse. Patricia arguably isn’t much better as a “defensive mind,” though he will give new Eagles DC Sean Desai an experienced sounding board as the Birds move on from Jonathan Gannon. Going on 49, Patricia will never again be a head coach.

Patricia served last season as the Patriots’ “senior football advisor and offensive line coach”, but the former defensive coordinator was also tasked with calling the team’s plays on offense -- although we’ve yet to figure out why. One of the more tenured members of the Belichick coaching tree, Patricia’s work as the team’s defensive coordinator (2012-2017) was good enough to earn him the Lions’ head coaching gig in 2018. Patricia is just the latest noteworthy coach to interview for the Broncos defensive coordinator position, as former Jets/Bills head coach Rex Ryan has also met with the team.

O’Brien, New England’s offensive coordinator from 2009 to 2011, was a near-lock to land the job. He’ll clean up a considerable mess left behind by defensive-coordinator-turned-offensive-playcaller Matt Patricia, whose offense averaged the seventh fewest yards per game and ranked 17th in points per game. Patricia’s discombobulated, uncreative offense in 2022 had the eighth lowest EPA per play. O’Brien, an uninspiring hire, will be tasked with righting the ship with Mac Jones under center follow his hugely disappointing sophomore campaign. The Patriots were second in the NFL in total yards during O’Brien’s last stint as OC. That was, of course, with Tom Brady dropping back.

Matt Patricia was never officially hired as offensive coordinator — his official title is “senior football advisor and offensive line coach” — and it now appears he will be unofficially fired. It is unclear if he will remain with the team in a different capacity, but he likely will. The Pats have not announced he is moving on. Defensive-minded Patricia somehow becoming the offensive play-caller was unsurprisingly a fiasco, particularly in the game-day operations department. Patricia literally could not get the plays in on time. He wasn’t much better in the play-design department. With Mac Jones now entering a make-or-break third season, the Pats are wisely finally getting serious, though it is probably most likely coach Bill Belichick hires an “old friend” like Bill O’Brien.

As Graff writes, “The only other team in Week 1 that used just two personnel groupings was the Carolina Panthers. As a general rule of thumb, it’s not good when your offense is compared to the Carolina Panthers.” New England’s quarterback was in some major discomfort after taking a few shots in Week 1 and our first taste of the Matt Patricia/Joe Judge OC reign looked pitiful. This offense is in a bad place as it looks to right the ship in Week 2 against the Steelers.

One week after Patricia and Joe Judge both called in the plays, it was only Patricia against the Panthers. Head coach Bill Belichick stopped well short of calling Patricia the play-caller, however. “Communication with the quarterback, yeah,” Belichick allowed. “As far as calling the plays, there’s a whole ‘nother process on that, but yeah.” The Pats are clearly taking a group approach, one led by Belichick, but he doesn’t have time for the honor of barking the plays into Mac Jones’ headset. The process should further refine itself as the season goes, but that does not mean it will ever develop into a good approach.

This was always the expectation, but it is good to get confirmation after the Patriots declined to officially name an offensive coordinator. Giardi said players “pointed out that Patricia brings all that defensive knowledge to the table,” so it seems there is some optimism in the building about him calling the plays. Still, this is at best a dicey situation for Mac Jones and the rest of the offense.