Robert Kraft insists Patriots’ hiring of Josh McDaniels as OC was Mike Vrabel’s decision
"When we interviewed Mike and asked whom he might be interested in bringing on, without a pause, his first one was to bring Josh McDaniels."
When the Patriots opted to re-hire Josh McDaniels as their offensive coordinator, some speculated that the decision was thrust on Mike Vrabel by ownership.
However, Robert Kraft claimed that wasn’t the case. Speaking to reporters in New Orleans on the eve of Super Bowl LIV, the Patriots owner said that Vrabel mentioned the possibility of hiring McDaniels when he interviewed to become the team’s next head coach.
“When we interviewed Mike and asked whom he might be interested in bringing on, without a pause, his first one was to bring Josh McDaniels because he thought it would be something very special for Drake,” Kraft said, via The Boston Globe‘s Nicole Yang. “Their experience and chemistry together is very positive. I think that was a good development. From every way you look at it, I think it’s a win-win.
“It was [Mike’s] decision. Josh was very excited. Hope we get the fruits of the potential positives out of that. He has a pretty good history of developing and dealing with good quarterbacks and developing an offense that can really produce.”
There had been some rumors that Vrabel and McDaniels could’ve been a package deal ahead of the Patriots’ decision to making a coaching change this offseason. It was believed that McDaniels was one of Vrabel’s two preferred offensive coordinator candidates as he looked to become a head coach again this offseason, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer reported in December.
While McDaniels and Vrabel have never coached together, their paths crossed during each of their first stints with the Patriots. In fact, McDaniels was actually the Patriots staffer who picked up Vrabel when he signed with the team in 2001 as he was a personnel assistant at the time, the coaches recently shared.
Even though McDaniels is arguably one of the most accomplished offensive coordinators in recent memory, there have been some concerns if his system is good enough as he’s had some struggles since he stopped coaching Tom Brady. Vrabel doesn’t have those concerns, though.
“When you talk about Josh, I think schematically and the way he teaches the quarterback,” Vrabel told WBZ’s Steve Burton of McDaniels in January. “The versatility of the offense and the base foundation of the offense. His growth in that offense, trying to put conflict on the defense and the way he structures a game plan, having gone against him and seen the system here as a player. It has evolved and there is a lot more to it than that.
“I know from our conversations that he’s worked hard and studied, visited and met with people, and we’re going to continue to add things that we feel helps our players and give us an advantage to score touchdowns and take care of the football.”
McDaniels headlined the list of assistant hires that Vrabel made to his staff ahead of his first season as head coach, but there were some other notable names he added to his staff. Former Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone was hired to be the team’s offensive line coach. Former Titans offensive coordinator Todd Downing was brought on to be the wide receivers coach. Former Bears interim coach Thomas Brown was hired to be the tight ends coach and passing game coordinator. Defensively, Terrell Williams was hired to be the defensive coordinator.
“The goal in filling out the 2025 Patriots coaching staff was to identify loyal, trustworthy coaches who are diverse in background, ideas, experiences and systems,” Vrabel said as the team announced his coaching staff Wednesday. “We will be aligned in our vision to teach and develop our players with creativity, consistency and an attention to detail with the major goal of developing relationships that stretch beyond the field and meeting rooms.”
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