Bill Belichick told Willie McGinest he plans to be ‘more involved’ with the Patriots defense in 2019
"If they get any kind of good coaching, they'll probably be alright.”
Bill Belichick is used to dealing with coaching changes. A byproduct of success over the years has the almost annual interest from other teams in New England’s staff.
In 2019, the major change is on defensive side, where assistant Brian Flores left in the offseason to become head coach of the Miami Dolphins. In response, Belichick reshuffled the defensive coaching staff and added former Patriot Jerod Mayo as an inside linebackers coach.
Training camp has already offered a possible glimpse at the future, as Mayo was calling plays for the defense in 11-on-11 drills. In the shorter term, Belichick recently noted that he plans to take a more active role in the defensive coaching this season.
“I think I’ll be more involved this year defensively than I was in recent years,” Belichick told former Patriot Willie McGinest in an interview for NFL Network, “although I’ve always tried to be involved in all aspects of the game, especially the defensive side of the ball. But this year it will be a little bit more, but I’m enjoying it and eventually I’ll have less of a role. For right now, just to try and get things underway this year, I’ll try to be as involved as I can.”
Flores was never formally given the title of defensive coordinator, but still oversaw major defensive responsibilities during his tenure (which culminated with winning Super Bowl LIII in February). After he left for the Dolphins, the Patriots appeared to have found a replacement in former Ohio State defensive coordinator coach Greg Schiano. Yet after only a month, Schiano surprisingly stepped down in March to spend more time on his “faith and family.”
Despite the coaching changes, Belichick remains confident in his defense in 2019.
“I think we have a good group, we’ll see what we can do this year,” Belichick told McGinest. “I like the way they work, I like the way they communicate. It’s a smart group. We have good size, we’re tough, we seem pretty aware, so hopefully we can play well together and if they get any kind of good coaching, they’ll probably be alright.”
