Former Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia is doing an outstanding job in his first season as Ohio State’s defensive coordinator.

Patricia hasn’t coached at the college level since serving as a graduate assistant at Syracuse back in 2003. Still, this season might mark the beginning of his newfound passion for coaching in college.

Last week, several colleges were on the hunt for new head football coaches, and Penn State was coming up empty-handed with every candidate it considered.

The Nittany Lions decided to hire Iowa State’s head coach, Matt Campbell. However, Jon Sauber of the Centre Daily Times reported on...

For the first time in a long time, the Patriots will be playing for hats and t-shirts when they host the Bills at Gillette Stadium on Sunday.

Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel, though, won’t be using the merchandise as motivation.

“No, I don’t use ‘hat and t-shirt.'” Vrabel told reporters Monday, per the team.

He will use the idea of an AFC East championship, however.

“We’re just trying to play for the championship that we have available this week,” Vrabel continued. “And I think it’s a great testament to our players that have put us in this position to be...

NFL senior writer Mike Sando detailed on Monday how the 2025 New England Patriots may be “a modern-day version” of the 2001 Super Bowl-winning team.

The Athletic scribe noted that current head coach Mike Vrabel was a first-time starter with the group 24 years ago and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels was a personnel assistant under then-head coach Bill Belichick.

Sando also revealed why an anonymous opposing coach believes Vrabel is a similar leader to Belichick.

“Vrabel is a modern version of Bill Belichick — understands all the fundamentals and is really good at situational football,” the coach said. “The difference...

Former New England Patriots head coach Bill Parcells wants Robert Kraft and Bill Belichick to join him in Canton next year.

Kraft and Belichick were named among five Hall of Fame finalists last week. Parcells told MassLive’s Karen Guregian that inducting both Patriots icons is an easy call.

“Most of these voting things have wound up political, but you can’t dispute what they’ve accomplished,” Parcells said. “When you’ve accomplished more than anybody else, it would be pretty ludicrous if it didn’t result in them getting in there.”

Belichick worked under Parcells with three organizations (Patriots, New York Giants, New York...

The New England Patriots can clinch their first AFC East title in six years with a win against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.

Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel isn’t counting out the team’s Week 15 opponent though.

The first-year leader discussed the state of the division race during a Monday appearance on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” and dished heavy praise for Bills quarterback Josh Allen as well.

“That team’s not going away,” Vrabel said. “They have a quarterback who is an MVP quarterback that under any circumstances is going to be ready to win the football with whatever running...

The New England Patriots are entering Week 15 in a comfortable position in the AFC East. Not only will they secure the division crown with a win, they also have already beaten the Buffalo Bills earlier this season to get a decisive edge over their rivals.

And yet, they are listed as underdogs heading into this week’s showdown with the Bills. According to FanDuel Sportsbook, the Bills are 1.5-point favorites coming into Foxborough.

Odds for Patriots vs. Bills in NFL Week 15

• Spread: Bills -1.5
• Moneyline: Patriots +100 | Bills -118
• Over/under: 49.5

The Patriots being...

The Buffalo Bills rallied for a 39-34 home win over the Cincinnati Bengals to keep their division hopes alive.

Buffalo is 9-4 and two games back of the New England Patriots with four games to go. The Bills are set to go on the road to play the Patriots on Sunday in a crucial AFC East showdown.

Following the Bills’ comeback win over the Bengals, tight end Dalton Kincaid said the team has unwavering belief in each other.

“It’s just an unwavering belief,” Kincaid said postgame on Sunday, via the team’s website. “We don’t really matter what the scoreboard is,...

The New England Patriots had Week 14 off, which opened the door for the Denver Broncos to move back up to the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoff picture. Sure enough, a 24-17 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders allowed them to do just that.

While both the Pats and Broncos have 11-2 records, Denver holds the tiebreaker over New England due to its better record against common opponents. With just four games left on the season, the Broncos now hold a tiebreaker over the Patriots, no matter what happens the rest of the way out.

Considering how N.E....

The New England Patriots enjoyed their bye week in Week 14, and they will now turn their attention to Week 15, where a big matchup against the Buffalo Bills awaits them. And if things go according to plan for the Pats when they take the field next, they could officially punch their ticket to the playoffs.

With the weekend off, New England spent Sunday watching the action around the rest of the league. Things didn’t really go its way, though, as the Las Vegas Raiders couldn’t upset the Denver Broncos, while the Cincinnati Bengals threw away a win against the...

TEAM TALK

• Patriots All Access: Monday night energy, Inside Marcus Jones’ punt return, Exclusive with Willie McGinest. (40 min. video)
• Highlights: Mike Vrabel shaves his mustache to close out Movember. (1 min. video)

LOCAL LINKS

• Mike Reiss shares some quick-hit weekend thoughts: Patriots rookies contribute mightily to NFL’s best record; Devin McCourty’s view; Red zone offense the team’s Achilles’ heel; Stefon Diggs on Mike Vrabel; Rookie Jared Wilson stays in Foxborough during the bye; Gameday parking; More!
• Steve Balestrieri‘s Sunday Patriots News: Issues that need fixing after the Bye. 1. Red zone inefficiencies.
• Andrew Callahan...

The New England Patriots entered their bye week as the top seed in the AFC. They return to work on Monday in second position.

What happened? The Denver Broncos, who had already enjoyed their own bye, celebrated a 24-17 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. As a result, they have now drawn even with the 11-2 Patriots while holding the edge in the tiebreak department: Denver has a better record in common games and, at the moment, a superior conference record.

With the first of those tiebreakers no longer subject to change, the Patriots have only one way...

The New England Patriots have dominated the AFC East for most of this century, but they are on a dry spell at the moment. Since 2020, the year Tom Brady left after 18 division titles and six Super Bowls, the Buffalo Bills have taken over as top dog.

After five straight division crowns went to Buffalo, however, another changing of the guard might be upon us. On Sunday at 1 p.m. ET, the Patriots are officially in position to recapture the AFC East crown.

That’s right, it’s “Hat and T-shirt Game” time. A win over the 9-4 Bills at Gillette...