Patriots Rumors: Bill Belichick Rejected This Bill O’Brien Request After Hire

Bill O’Brien apparently wanted to hit the ground sprinting when he returned to the Patriots last January.

O’Brien was brought in to be New England’s new offensive coordinator after Mac Jones and company endured a hellacious 2022 season under the guidance of Matt Patricia and Joe Judge. O’Brien was expected to rejuvenate the Patriots offense, and according to the Boston Herald, he wanted to start that initiative by bringing in an entirely new coaching staff.

“According to league sources, some assistants came to believe O’Brien wanted to clean house and build his own offensive staff upon arriving in January, but Belichick denied him,” the Herald’s Andrew Callahan and Doug Kyed wrote Thursday. “Belichick allowed one hire, (Will) Lawing, who replaced ex-tight ends coach Nick Caley. To onlookers, a clear hierarchy developed with O’Brien and his assistants: there was Lawing and assistant quarterbacks coach Evan Rothstein, then everyone else.”

The perceived setup didn’t go over well in Foxboro, Mass., as a source described the staff dynamic as “completely (expletive)” to Callahan and Kyed.

With coaches he reportedly didn’t prefer around him, O’Brien took arguably detrimental ownership of the offense as a whole.

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“O’Brien also pulled the offense closer to him, running more unit meetings –which involve all offensive players — than Belichick and Patricia had the year before,” Callahan and Kyed wrote. “Consequently, positional meetings became scarce, sources said, which limited individual time shared between players and their position coaches. Most everything flowed through O’Brien.”

O’Brien’s future in New England is unclear. Patriots staff members reportedly are “bracing for change” and exploring opportunities elsewhere, but O’Brien could prove to be a holdover if Belichick is relieved of his duties. After all, the OC seemingly was coveted by ownership before this season.

But even if O’Brien sticks around, it’s clear that philosophy changes are needed in New England.