New England Patriots links 1/23/25 - Pats kick newbies out, bring experienced coaches in

Daily news and links for Thursday

TEAM TALK

• Patriots announce coordinator positions on Mike Vrabel’s coaching staff: OC Josh McDaniels, DC Terrell Williams, ST Jeremy Springer.
• Evan Lazar breaks down Josh McDaniels’s offense and how it fits Drake Maye.
• Patriots 2025 Mock Draft Tracker: What the top ‘experts’ are predicting the Pats will do in the first round.
• Patriots Catch-22 with Evan Lazar and Alex Barth: Coaching staff updates, CFP/Senior Bowl, Draft talk. (2 hours)

LOCAL LINKS

• Andrew Callahan addresses the 4th of 5 offseason fixes: Six potential trade candidates.
• Ian Logue points out that experience is the theme with the new Patriots coaches.
• Karen Guregian talks with former NFL QB Matt Hasselbeck, who believes McDaniels-Maye union will work just fine.
• Zolak & Bertrand guest Phil Perry says that even before Mike Vrabel was hired, it was believed Josh McDaniels would be back. Should this be a problem?
• Nick O’Malley notes WEEI guest Bill O’Brien had lofty praise for Josh McDaniels.
• Andrew Callahan sees the Patriots beginning to solve one of their biggest problems. Josh McDaniels was as close to a perfect hire as perfect gets.
• Trevor Hass shares four things to know about new DC Terrell Williams. 1. He’s coached premier talent.
• Chris Mason reports Alex Van Pelt will not be back on Mike Vrabel’s new coaching staff.
• Matt Dolloff is hearing the Patriots are reportedly adding Tony Dews, another Vrabel assistant from the Titans.
• Chris Mason notes the Patriots struggled in the trenches last season, but that hasn’t stopped Cincinnati from scooping up a number of their line coaches.
• Khari Thompson wonders if the Patriots could be the next year’s Commanders.
• Locked On Patriots podcast: Mike and Murph discuss Josh McDaniels and Terrell Williams: the Patriots dynamic duo of coordinator hires, their potential impact and more. (40 min.)

NATIONAL NEWS

• Joel Corry (CBS Sports) Agent’s Take: Aaron Rodgers, Maxx Crosby among 15 players who could be traded or released in 2025 offseason.
• Nick Shook (NFL.com) QB Index: Six free agent quarterbacks teams can’t let hit the open market this offseason
• Maurice Jones-Drew (NFL.com) RB Index: Team fits for six running backs set to become free agents in 2025.
• Around the NFL (NFL.com) NFL Honors: Finalists announced for MVP, other awards from 2024 season.
• Nate Tice (Yahoo! Sports) Football 301 Playbook: Players who will decide the NFC, AFC champions (other than the obvious ones)
• MMQB Staff (SI) NFL Conference Championship Game picks: Predicting Super Bowl LIX Matchup.
• Pete Prisco (CBS Sports) 2025 NFL playoff picks: Backing the road underdogs in NFC, AFC Championship games
• Will Brinson (CBS Sports) Championship Sunday best bets: Bills take down Chiefs, Commanders shock Eagles.
• Ben Austro (Football Zebras) Ron Torbert is the referee for Super Bowl LIX.
• Tom Dierberger (SI) Rob Gronkowski gives Bills advice for dealing with Chiefs’ friendly whistles. *“When they sack Patrick Mahomes, just touch...