Sean Payton says he wouldn’t rule out adding Matt Patricia to Broncos’ staff
After failing to land the Broncos' defensive coordinator position, Patricia may join in another capacity.
Matt Patricia interviewed for the Broncos’ defensive coordinator position earlier this month, but Denver chose to go with former head coach Vance Joseph instead.
During an interview at the NFL Combine on Tuesday, Broncos head coach Sean Payton said Patricia was impressive during the interview and is an “outstanding” candidate. He said he may consider Patricia for another position on his staff.
“It’s a little early to answer that. We just got here,” Payton said. “He and I are going to talk this week. I wouldn’t rule that out. If that possibly came to fruition, it would be for a few things. I’d certainly want to talk to Vance and our defensive coaches, but I know Matt well enough to know how smart he is and what he can contribute, so we’ll see.”
Patricia was New England’s defensive coordinator from 2012 to 2017. He has prior experience coaching safeties, linebackers, and defensive line. Patricia left the Patriots in 2018 to become head coach of the Detroit Lions. where he lasted for three seasons.
In 2021, Patricia returned to New England as a senior football advisor. In 2022, a combination of him, Joe Judge, and Bill Belichick handled the team’s offensive play-calling duties.
Payton said if he were to hire Patricia, it would be to coach on the defensive side of the ball.
Earlier in the week, Tom Curran of NBC Sports Boston reported that while no announcement of Patricia leaving New England has been made, the 48-year-old coach doesn’t have a specific role with the team at this point.
“I think he is — at this juncture, from what I’ve gathered — kind of untethered. He’s not with the Patriots,” Curran said of Patricia. “Robert Kraft, not on the record, but certainly characterized a level of respect for Patricia and Joe Judge as coaches and guys. So, I don’t think they’re persona non grata, but I don’t know if they have an exact role for (Patricia).”
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