The Detroit Lions introduced Matt Patricia as the team’s new head coach Wednesday afternoon. During his introductory press conference, he was asked about the lack of success former Patriots coordinators have had as head coaches.
Patricia's answer was very Bill Belichick-ish and couldn’t have been better. It was light on specifics and made it easy to see he had no interest in how other coaches careers panned out.
“Whatever anybody’s done in the past doesn’t have to do with me,” Patricia said, via Josh Alper at Pro Football Talk.
Matt Patricia couldn’t be more right. There is no correlation between him and past Patriots coordinators other than where they used to work. Just because they didn’t succeed does not mean that he is not going to with the Lions.
Former coordinators and others associated with Belichick have not done well as head coaches. They have combined to go 156-227. Of the nine, only one had a winning record: Al Groh (New York Jets, 9-7 in 2000).
The two latest head coaches to join that list, Patricia and Mike Vrabel, will both be in good positions to succeed next season, though. Patricia will be retaining Jim Bob Cooter as offensive coordinator and has one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL in Matthew Stafford. Although, he and his defensive coordinator Paul Pasqualoni will need to improve a defense that ranked No. 27 in total yards allowed last season.
But as Patricia points out, his success or failure in Detroit will have nothing at all to do with past coaches from the Bill Belichick coaching tree.
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