Josh McDaniels returns to Patriots as offensive coordinator under Mike Vrabel: Source

FOXBORO, Mass. – Josh McDaniels is returning to the New England Patriots for the third time, a league source said Athletics.

In arguably the most important decision he will make on his coaching staff, Mike Vrabel has tapped McDaniels to return to New England and run an offense led by quarterback Drake Maye. It marks the third stint for McDaniels as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator, a role he served under Bill Belichick from 2006 to 2008 and again from 2012 to 2021.

A depleted Patriots roster at least has the promise of Maye to lean on, and Vrabel’s decision hinged largely on who he would trust to develop the talented 22-year-old quarterback. This is where McDaniels’ resume stood out.

The 48-year-old, two-time NFL head coach helped Mac Jones deliver an impressive rookie season before landing the Las Vegas Raiders’ head job in 2022. Meanwhile, Jones’ production declined after McDaniels’ departure. Before that, McDaniels helped Matt Cassel to an impressive season as the Patriots’ starter in 2008. And then, of course, there were all those years with Tom Brady.

McDaniels was a Patriots assistant when Vrabel played in New England, but the two have never worked together and are not believed to have much of a pre-existing relationship. Yet Brady is among their many mutual friends as they now embark on a partnership aimed at returning the franchise to contention.

McDaniels’ offensive system differs from the one Vrabel’s Tennessee Titans teams ran with more of a focus on gap-scheme rushes instead of wide-zone runs. But regardless of the exact playbook, nothing is more important to Vrabel — and now McDaniels — than developing Maye.

Choice no. 3 in last year’s draft had a promising rookie season, though the numbers (15 touchdowns to 10 interceptions in roughly 11 games) don’t stand out. But Maye played behind the league’s worst offensive line and threw to the league’s worst group of wide receivers. The positive signs for Maye far outweighed the negatives.

Now he’s on his fourth offensive coordinator in four years dating back to his college days at North Carolina. He could use some continuity and a consistent voice, and Vrabel believes he’s found that in McDaniels. Vrabel has said his relationship with the quarterback will mostly focus on leadership style and game management, leaving the X’s and O’s to the offensive coordinator.

“We mentioned things like (being) aggressive but not reckless,” Vrabel said last week about what he looks for in his offense. “We have to be able to take chances. How do we make X plays without having to throw the ball down the field 50 yards and just sit there and take shots, right? The creativity. We want to be, I would say, versatile enough if the players can handle it. You look at the zone scheme in the run game, being able to run the gap scheme, being under center, being in the gun. But it is also important to understand that everyone has access to this, and everyone has experience with different types of attacks, but it is (about) what the players can become good at.”

So the offensive scheme could be fluid depending on how the Patriots roster looks after free agency and the draft.

But more important than how often they are in the 11 man or under center will be how the coaching staff develops Maye. Vrabel’s tenure in New England depends on it.

So as he gets going, he’s tapped an experienced offensive coordinator with a track record of helping young quarterbacks. It is a sensible approach.

(Photo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)