The New England Patriots may be closing in on bringing back another familiar face.
They hired Mike Vrabel to be their new head coach on January 12 after he played for them from 2001-08 and they might be bringing back Josh McDaniels to be their offensive coordinator.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, McDaniels is “considered to be the favorite” for the job.
“Most people believe Josh McDaniels, former Patriots OC, actually a couple of times, still lives in New England, currently not working, would be a prime candidate for the job and is considered to be the favorite. I would expect Mike Vrabel to talk to him as they go about the process of trying to find a new offensive coordinator,” Rapoport said.
If McDaniels gets hired by the Patriots, it would be his third tenure with the team. He first joined the Patriots as a personnel assistant in 2001 before switching to defensive assistant, quarterbacks coach, and then offensive coordinator.
He was with the Patriots from 2001-08 but was only their offensive coordinator for three seasons (2006-08).
McDaniels bounced around to a couple of other teams for the next few seasons before returning to the Patriots in 2012. He was their offensive coordinator from 2012-21 before serving as the Las Vegas Raiders head coach from 2022-23.
Since being fired by the Raiders, he’s been doing his own thing but he could be back in the NFL if Vrabel thinks he’s the best of the candidates he’ll interview.
The Patriots will have the fourth overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft after going 4-13 during the 2024 season. They have their quarterback of the future (Drake Maye) and will look to add a big-time playmaker with their first pick.
They also have a lot of money to play with in free agency and may go after a big-time wide receiver.
This could be an aggressive offseason for a Patriots team that has missed the playoffs in four of the last five seasons.