With 19 players set to hit free agency in mid-March, the Patriots are poised for a challenging offseason.
That notion only grew Tuesday afternoon.
Longtime offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia announced his retirement after a 36-year NFL stint, 34 of which came in New England. Scarnecchia, who turns 72 in a few weeks, was widely regarded as one of the best O-line coaches in the league and leaves the game with five Super Bowl championships on his résumé.
The Patriots saluted Scarnecchia via their official social media channels shortly after his announcement, which prompted responses from Tom Brady and a handful of other players.
David Andrews: “Thank you Scar”
Joe Cardona: “Thank you Scar!”
Jamie Collins: “Respect ✊?✊?✊?”
A real one ? https://t.co/f93tg48LOk
— James White (@SweetFeet_White) January 29, 2020
Elite human!! Congrats scar you won’t see this cuz you still got a flip phone but you the man! https://t.co/BVqSakJWbm
— Kyle Van Noy (@KVN_03) January 29, 2020
Scarnecchia now is the third Patriots coach to depart Foxboro this offseason. Former special teams coordinator Joe Judge now is the head coach of the New York Giants and he brought on Bret Bielema as an outside linebackers coach.
