Much to the delight of the majority of Patriots fans, New England has a new offensive coordinator.
Bill O’Brien is returning to Foxboro, Mass. to take the role on Bill Belichick’s staff that hasn’t been occupied since Josh McDaniels left for Las Vegas, as first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Tuesday morning. O’Brien served on the Patriots coaching staff for five seasons between 2007 and 2011 before making stops at Penn State, Houston and most recently, Alabama.
The O’Brien news was met with two different reactions from New England fans. Some were elated to see the Mass. native return to his old stomping grounds, especially given his prior work with Mac Jones in Tuscaloosa. Others were more excited about the changing of the guard, as Matt Patricia struggled mightily in his first season with an offensive coaching role.
The latter sentiment was expressed through a slew of tweets.
It remains to be seen what the Patriots do with Patricia, who returned to New England last season after a lackluster tenure as the Detroit Lions head coach. The initial expectation was Belichick would find a new role for his longtime staffer, but given Patricia’s contract situation, he might end up leaving the organization entirely this offseason.
