New England Patriots - NESN.com
While the New England Patriots made plenty of roster changes over the offseason, perhaps the three biggest changes will be with who’s wearing the headsets on the sidelines.
After six seasons as the head coach of the Tennessee Titans and a one-year hiatus in 2024, Mike Vrabel is now in the same role with the Patriots. Vrabel’s return to New England comes 17 seasons after his final year as a linebacker with the Patriots in 2008.
Josh McDaniels is back in Foxboro as well, ready for his third stint as New England’s offensive coordinator. On the other side of the ball, longtime college and NFL defensive line coach Terrell Williams is entering his first season as the Patriots defensive coordinator.
ESPN.com’s Ben Solak ranked all 32 coaching staffs in the NFL on Friday and placed New England’s trio 20th, which is a big improvement from when the group was 30th one year ago.
“Vrabel is a good head coach who will quickly return competency to the head position New England. That is as clear as day. However, I think some estimations of the impact he had in Tennessee — and will have in New England — have overreached,” Solak wrote. “He endured multiple offensive coordinator changes and regularly found strong playcallers underneath him. He’s definitely good at this, though he hasn’t yet earned a Pete Carroll- or Mike Tomlin-esque reputation as a franchise builder.”
The NFL analyst called Vrabel Vrabel “more of a CEO head coach with the Titans” and credited him for getting Tennessee to three postseasons while working with Marcus Mariota and Ryan Tannehill as his quarterbacks.
McDaniels, meanwhile, is coming back to the Patriots after another ill-fated head coaching experience, this time with the Las Vegas Raiders. Offensive coordinator, however, is a position that fits the 49-year-old well, according to Solak.
“Just as Vrabel is definitely good, I’m very confident that McDaniels is capable of coordinating a good offense. He obviously did it for a long time with Tom Brady, but it was more impressive with a declining Cam Newton and rookie Mac Jones,” he wrote. “His head coaching stints have been perilous, but I am confident competency will return to the offensive approach in New England, which was toothless last season despite a strong rookie season from quarterback Drake Maye.”
Solak called Williams one of his “favorite names for the 2025 breakout coordinator” and a “proven quality defensive line coach.”
The Patriots coaching staff notably ranks ahead of the divisional-rival New York Jets (28th), but behind the Miami Dolphins (19th) and Buffalo Bills (seventh).
