FOXBORO, Mass. — In the days after the 2016 NFL Draft, the Patriots signed a trio of undrafted free agent cornerbacks.
One of them was Jonathan Jones, who went on to win two Super Bowls with New England and currently is the Patriots’ longest-tenured defensive player.
The second, Cre’von LeBlanc, enjoyed a better NFL career than most UDFAs, appearing in 52 games and spending time with seven different franchises. He most recently won an XFL championship with the Arlington Renegades.
The third never played a regular-season snap in the NFL or any other professional league. He never landed another contract after being cut by the Patriots on Aug. 21, 2016, his pro football career effectively over after just a few short months.
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But that wasn’t the end for V’Angelo Bentley in New England.
Six years later, he rejoined the Patriots, this time as a member of Bill Belichick’s coaching staff. The 30-year-old now is in his second season of the Bill Walsh Coaching Fellowship, helping guide his former position group alongside cornerbacks coach Mike Pellegrino and safeties coach Brian Belichick.
“V does a great job for us. He’s grinding it out. Kind of a similar role that I’ve had,” said Pellegrino, who spent four seasons as a Patriots coaching assistant before becoming a position coach in 2019. “You’re the behind-the-scenes guy, so nobody sees you. I’m proud of him for his ability to work with the guys and help me and Brian. He does a great job for us, and I love working with V. Great guy.
“He’s always looking to learn, so I’m always trying to help him out the best I can. He’s an important piece for myself and Brian. It’s great to have that guy as a resource.”
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Bentley is one of six former Patriots players on the team’s 2023 coaching staff, joining Jerod Mayo (linebackers), Troy Brown (receivers/returners), Adrian Klemm (offensive line), Billy Yates (assistant O-line) and Vinnie Sunseri (running backs). Of those, only Sunseri, who had a brief stint on New England’s practice squad early in the 2016 season, played for the Patriots more recently than Bentley did.
Multiple coaches and players used the word “perspective” to describe what Bentley brings to the team.
“I think V’Angelo’s done a great job,” linebackers coach and defensive play-caller Steve Belichick said. “Last year, this year. I think he’s done a great job with all the stuff he’s done. … I think he works really hard. He has a lot of attention to detail and tries to think outside the box a little bit and present some ideas that sometimes we’re not always thinking about.
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“He brings a lot to our staff, a lot to the table and has a really good perspective on that stuff, which helps us all. I enjoy working with V a lot, and I think it’s continued to get better since he came here in being comfortable in the organization and the building and stuff like that.”
Like most lower-level assistants, Bentley’s responsibilities are wide-ranging. This summer, when a serious knee injury kept Brian Belichick away from the team, he was tasked with leading the cornerbacks during training camp practices while Pellegrino and Steve Belichick coached the safeties.
“V’Angelo, he’s doing a really, really good job stepping in with the corners,” safety Jalen Mills said early in camp.
Bentley, who began his coaching career at Penn State in 2019, also provides players with film cutups and spreadsheets detailing upcoming opponents’ tendencies, and helps certain players with their individual routines. About three hours before kickoff each gameday, Bentley can be seen putting defensive backs Myles Bryant and Mills through a tailored pregame warmup.
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“It’s real good to work with V,” Bryant recently told NESN.com. “V played. He understands the players’ perspective, so it’s real good working with him. But then he’s also a real detailed guy. He comes in every day, he provides us with whatever we need. If you ever need anything, you just ask V.”
It’s difficult to quantify the impact of coaching, but Bentley, Pellegrino and the rest of New England’s defensive assistants deserve credit for how the team’s cornerback group has performed this season.
The Patriots have gotten respectable play from that unit despite losing stud rookie Christian Gonzalez and Marcus Jones to season-ending shoulder injuries and Jack Jones and J.C. Jackson to off-the-field issues. Seven different cornerbacks have started games for New England, including two (Shaun Wade and Alex Austin) who never did so before this season. Jack Jones did not start but played 121 defensive snaps before being released in November.
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Despite that turnover, the Patriots’ secondary hasn’t cratered, entering Week 16 ranked 16th in passing yards allowed per game and 15th in yards allowed per pass attempt. They’ve allowed three 100-yard receiving performances, and two of those came in the same game (Miami’s Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle in Week 8).
Bryant, who leads all Patriots corners in snaps played this season, said Bentley’s input “helps a lot.”
“He’s a real mentally sharp guy,” Bryant said. “He’s real in tune mentally with himself and trying to maximize his potential, maximize his goals as a coach now. It’s for sure been a pleasure working with V.”
Featured image via Zack Cox/NESN
