The New England Patriots and Bill Belichick have had a lot of secrecy surrounding their offensive play caller for Mac Jones all offseason long. After months of speculation, it appears as if we finally have our answer.
Heading into their Week 1 contest against the Miami Dolphins, Belichick will be handing off the offensive play caller duties to Matt Patricia. Patricia is notorious for his failed stint as the Detroit Lions head coach, but has always been a solid assistant for Belichick in New England. He now will get maybe the most important role on the Pats coaching staff, aside from Belichick's of course.
From @NFLGameDay: The #Patriots offensive play-caller is expected to be senior football advisor Matt Patricia, with heavy influence from coach Bill Belichick, sources say. … Meanwhile, the #AZCardinals are not likely to have JJ Watt (calf), but TE Zach Ertz (calf) should play. pic.twitter.com/GtRrSxIXrz
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 11, 2022
This is big news for Jones and the Patriots. All offseason long, New England has known that they would have to replace Josh McDaniels at offensive coordinator after he took the Las Vegas Raiders head coaching job. But Belichick has been strangely secretive with the replacement, as he did not name an offensive or defensive coordinator on his coaching staff, and wouldn't reveal who would be calling plays on offense throughout training camp.
Now we have our answer. Patricia, who has been working with the offensive line as well throughout training camp, will be dishing out plays to Jones throughout the season. It's important to note that Belichick will be closely involved according to Rapoport, and it wouldn't be surprising to see him take things over if Patricia struggles to get the offense going.
One of the most confusing storylines of the 2022 NFL offseason has been put to rest ahead of Week 1. Now it's time to see whether or not Patricia can help the Patriots offense improve upon an unexpectedly successful 2021 season.
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