Josh McDaniels, Raiders Reportedly Interested In Hiring Joe Judge

Could another former New England Patriots assistant join Josh McDaniels in Las Vegas?

McDaniels, who left the Patriots last week to take the Raiders’ head-coaching job, has shown interest in hiring Joe Judge as his special teams coordinator, according to a report Monday from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

“Judge is staying patient with opportunities after two years in New York,” Fowler wrote on Twitter, “so this might not happen. But the New England connection is there.”

Judge spent eight seasons with McDaniels in New England before the Giants hired him as their head coach in 2020. The 40-year-old was fired from that job last month after posting a 10-23 record over two seasons.

McDaniels already has added multiple Patriots alums to his inaugural Raiders coaching staff, tabbing Patrick Graham as his defensive coordinator and Bo Hardegree as his assistant quarterbacks coach. Former Patriots director of player personnel Dave Ziegler also went with McDaniels to Vegas to become the Raiders’ general manager.

There’s been speculation that Judge, who did not receive head-coaching interest after his Giants firing, could rejoin the Patriots this offseason. New England’s special teams struggled this season under his replacement, Cam Achord.

It’s unclear whether the Patriots also have interest in reuniting with Judge, who helmed their special teams from 2015 through 2019 and also coached New England’s wide receivers in his final season with the team.