After a 2022 campaign that saw the offense sputter into mediocrity, the New England Patriots are making changes. In a rare press release, the club announced in the aftermath of the regular season that it would be starting the process of interviewing candidates to be the franchise's next offensive coordinator.
Following last season's departure of Josh McDaniels, who had been New England's OC for the 10 seasons prior, Bill Belichick declined to name an offensive coordinator in-title and instead gave the play-calling duties to Matt Patricia, while Joe Judge returned to the organization to work as the quarterbacks coach. At the time that was a head-scratching decision with Patricia primarily making his bones in the NFL on the defensive side of the ball, while Judge was the special teams coordinator during his first stint with the organization.
Those concerns about an inexperienced coaching staff were realized once the season began as the offense struggled mightily and, more alarming, Mac Jones regressed during his sophomore season. As a unit, New England's offense ranked 24th in the NFL in DVOA, 27th on third downs (34.8%), and last in red zone efficiency (42.2%).
That contributed to an 8-9 campaign that saw the Patriots on the outside looking in on the postseason for the second time in three seasons, which was enough for Robert Kraft to look for his team to make significant changes. That's exactly what the Patriots are now in the midst of doing.
Below, you'll find all the latest news and updates from the Patriots' search for a new offensive coordinator along with a list of the reported candidates.
Rumored candidates
| Candidate | Most recent job (Team/School) | Prior OC experience |
|---|---|---|
Bill O'Brien | OC/quarterbacks coach (Alabama) | Yes |
| Adrian Klemm | Associate HC/OL (Oregon) | No |
Nick Caley | Tight ends coach (Patriots) | No |
Keenan McCardell | Wide receivers coach (Vikings) | No |
Bill O'Brien has been a popular name as this search has begun given his prior relationship with the organization. According to NFL.com, O'Brien interviewed for the position Thursday. The Dorchester, Massachusetts, native broke into the NFL with New England in 2007 and worked his way up to offensive coordinator with the club officially in 2011, albeit he was calling plays for the two seasons prior. He then left for the head coaching job at Penn State, became the head coach of the Houston Texans in 2014, and held that role midway through the 2020 season. Most recently, he has been the offensive coordinator at Alabama and did the slightest bit of crossover with Mac Jones. Jones helped O'Brien learn Alabama's offense upon arrival as the quarterback was departing for the NFL, so they do have a prior relationship, which is notable.
Nick Caley is an in-house option for the Patriots, who has served as the tight ends coach since 2017. He first arrived in Foxborough as an offensive assistant in 2015 and has been looked at as an up-and-coming coach who is thought of highly within the organization. That said, Caley was passed up for the chance to run the offense last year in place of the Patricia-Judge combination, but it does seem like New England is taking a hard look at him this time around.
Keenan McCardell is currently the wide receivers coach for the Minnesota Vikings and is considered an ascending assistant throughout the league. The 53-year-old does have a prior relationship with Belichick as these two crossed paths when McCardell was a wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns from 1992-1995 during Belichick's tenure as head coach. He first got into coaching in 2010 when he was hired by Washington to be its wide receivers coach. He's held that title with stops at Maryland and with the Jaguars before taking on that role with the Vikings in 2021.
Adrian Klemm is currently the associate head coach, run game coordinator, and offensive line coach at the University of Oregon. The Patriots selected the former offensive tackle in the second round of the 2000 draft, where he spent four seasons in New England and one in Green Bay before retiring. He had college jobs at SMU and UCLA before landing back in the NFL as the Steelers offensive line coach in 2021.
Latest reports
Jan. 19 -- NFL Media reports that the Patriots completed an interview with Alabama offensive coordinator (and former Patriots assistant) Bill O'Brien, who is considered a top candidate for the job. O'Brien began his NFL career with New England, serving first as an offensive assistant, and then wide receivers coach, quarterbacks coach, and offensive coordinator (in 2011). He went on to serve as the head head of Penn State (2012-2013) and the Houston Texans (2014-2020) before landing with Alabama.
Jan. 18 -- The Patriots are interviewing tight ends coach Nick Caley for their offensive coordinator job, per NFL Media. Along with being an in-house candidate for the OC job in New England, Caley also interview for the open offensive coordinator position with the New York Jets earlier this week.
Jan. 18 -- The Patriots have requested permission to speak with Vikings wide receivers coach Keenan McCardell for their offensive coordinator position, per NFL Media. The report adds that McCardell is now joining a "growing list" of candidates that includes Alabama offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien.
Jan. 18 -- Adrian Klemm is interviewing with the team for the opening, according to ESPN. Klemm is currently the associate head coach, run game coordinator, and offensive line coach at the University of Oregon.