Mike Vrabel and the New England Patriots will look to an old friend to lead their offense in 2025.
Josh McDaniels reportedly is expected to join Vrabel's staff as the Patriots' offensive coordinator, marking his third stint with the organization. The six-time Super Bowl champion was considered by many -- including NBC Sports Boston's Patriots insiders Tom E. Curran and Phil Perry -- to be a leading candidate for the position.
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On the latest edition of Quick Slants, Curran explained why it made sense for Vrabel to choose McDaniels as his OC.
"We've told you over the past few weeks, the reason we thought Josh made sense. The number one reason: He's developed quarterbacks left, right, and center," Curran said. "We had (former Patriots quarterback) Brian Hoyer on the Patriots Talk Podcast this afternoon. One of the reasons that he talked about wasn't just the development, but the adaptability.
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"Let's couple those two things up. When you talk about guys developed, you don't just have Tom Brady, taking him from a very good player at the beginning of last decade -- 2010, 2011, 2012 -- but then propelling him in large part in '13, '14, '15, and '16 to another level. And yeah, Tom did a lot of that on his own. But while he was doing that with Tom, in came Jimmy Garoppolo. And there was a lot of time devoted to developing Jimmy Garoppolo, who came in as a Division II quarterback. ... Helped develop Jacoby Brissett, who went on to be a starter in many places and came on back here."
🔊 Patriots Talk Podcast: Why is hiring Josh McDaniels the best move for the Patriots offense? | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube
McDaniels has done a fine job developing QBs throughout his New England tenure. Other standout examples are Matt Cassel as Tom Brady's backup in 2008, and Mac Jones in his 2021 Pro Bowl rookie season.
Now, the 48-year-old will be tasked with helping third-overall draft pick Drake Maye take the next step in his development. Maye is coming off a promising rookie campaign with Jerod Mayo as his head coach and Alex Van Pelt as his OC. Vrabel and McDaniels must set the organization's franchise QB up for success in Year 2.
"The Patriots right now are not stacked," Curran continued. "They can't just line up and run a Brady offense without a slot, without a deep threat, without Gronk (Rob Gronkowski) and (Aaron) Hernandez or anybody else at tight end. They're gonna have to make their soup a different way."
Now that McDaniels is reportedly back in the mix, Vrabel will shift his attention to filling out the rest of his coaching staff. As of Tuesday, special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer is the only other Pats assistant set in stone for 2025.