Ben McAdoo reportedly returning, giving Patriots five former head coaches on staff
FOXBORO -- Ben McAdoo is reportedly remaining with the New England Patriots, giving Mike Vrabel another assistant with head-coaching experience on his staff.
McAdoo was a senior offensive assistant under Jerod Mayo in 2024, but his role could change under Vrabel, according to ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss. But McAdoo worked with New England's quarterbacks last season, and his return should provide some continuity in Drake Maye's development as the QB heads into his second NFL season.
McAdoo was the head coach of the New York Giants in 2016 and 2017, though he was dismissed during his second season after a 2-10 start. The Giants went 11-5 and made the playoffs in McAdoo's first season on the sideline. After being fired by New York, he worked for the Cowboys, Jaguars, and Panthers, serving as the offensive coordinator in Carolina in 2022.
McAdoo is now the third member of Mayo's 2024 staff to be retained by Vrabel. Special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer and assistant special teams coach Tom Quinn have also been brought back to be on Vrabel's staff.
Patriots have 5 coaches with head-coaching experience
In a massive shift from the 2024 coaching staff, the Patriots now have five coaches with head-coaching experience: Vrabel, McAdoo, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, and offensive coaches Doug Marrone and Thomas Brown.
Mayo did not have that luxury in 2024, when McAdoo was his only staffer with head-coaching experience. But he wasn't even an assistant or a positional coach on Mayo's staff.
Vrabel has six years of experience as the head coach of the Titans, and will have plenty of other former head-coaching minds to pick from in New England. McDaniels was head coach of the Broncos (2009-10) and the Las Vegas Raiders (2022-23), Marrone was head coach of the Bills (2013-14) and Jaguars (2016-20), and Brown was the interim head coach of the Bears for five games last season.
It doesn't look like experience will be an issue with New England's coaching staff going forward.
