Devin McCourty Has Candid Take On Patriots’ Matt Patricia ‘Experiment’

The Patriots’ risky offensive coaching strategy never stood a chance in the 2022 season.

Just ask one of New England’s captains from that team.

After Josh McDaniels left Foxboro, Mass. to become the head coach in Las Vegas, Matt Patricia was appointed as the Patriots’ new offensive play-caller. Joe Judge also had a big hand in coaching the unit, even though neither he nor Patricia had offensive coaching experience at the NFL level.

The decision proved costly, as Mac Jones and company struggled from wire to wire. And as Devin McCourty explained Wednesday on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show,” issues with that regime started well before Week 1.

“That wasn’t a good thing,” McCourty said. “There was nothing good about that. I think a lot of people talk about the season, but from training camp, there was nothing good about that.”

Patricia ultimately left the Patriots after the season and became a senior defensive assistant for the Philadelphia Eagles. McCourty believes the new role is much better suited for Patricia, who will return to New England this Sunday when the reigning NFC champions visit Gillette Stadium for a season-opening showdown.

“He’s a really good football coach,” McCourty said. “He’s a defensive mind and that’s what he is and that’s what he’s made his living on in the NFL. So, he’s gonna get back to doing that. … I think he’s gonna add some things, some insight, to that team player-wise and mainly coaching staff-wise — things they can do to try to be effective against New England. But yeah, I think everybody in New England, even Matty P, is happy that whole experiment is over and he’s back to doing what he loves doing: coaching ball and talking defense.”

Many point at Patricia as the primary cause of Jones’ sophomore regression. But the Patriots quarterback doesn’t appear to hold any resentment toward his former coach, who he “really respects.”