Former New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski reacted to the hiring of offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien, according to a tweet from NESN Patriots beat writer Zack Cox.

“I think they're going to improve as an offense tremendously under Bill O'Brien,” Gronkowski said. “That's who they had to get.”

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O'Brien was the Patriots offensive coordinator in 2011, when Rob Gronkowski was in his second year in the NFL. Gronkowski earned a career high of just over 1,300 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns on 90 receptions, paving the way to All-Pro and Pro Bowl selections.

“I love Bill O'Brien,” Rob Gronkowski said. “I loved playing for him. I love the energy that he brings to the table. He has that niche to get you to go out and play your best football. To get you fired up. To get you to want to go out on the field, get better every single day and make big plays. It was just a great time when he was here for two seasons…

“He was just an awesome football coach, on the field and off the field.”

The Alabama offense took fourth place in the Southeastern Conference with 477.08 total yards per game, fourth in passing yards per game with 281.54 and second in points per game with 41.08, according to the SEC.

Senior football advisor and offensive line coach Matt Patricia took up the play calling duties for the Patriots last season with the absence of an official offensive coordinator last season, wrote WCVB5 Boston in a Tuesday article. New England earned just over 3,800 passing yards, 19 passing touchdowns and 14 interceptions.

Bill O’Brien first joined the Patriots’ coaching staff in 2007 as an offensive assistant.  He joined multiple members of the 2011 Patriots coaching staff in earning head coaching roles later in their careers when he took the Penn State Nittany Lions spot in 2012 and became the Houston Texans’ head coach in 2014, according to Pro Football Reference.