What's it like calling offensive plays? Matt Patricia isn't really saying
BOSTON -- With 25 seasons as a coach, including 19 in the NFL and 16 with the Patriots, Matt Patricia is quite experienced.
Yet he did something completely new for the first official time on Sunday, calling offensive plays in a regular-season NFL game. He's certainly done that on the defensive side, winning Super Bowls in 2014 and 2016 as New England's defensive coordinator. But prior to this season, obviously, Patricia hadn't done it on offense -- which is an entirely different animal.
Naturally, this arrangement on Bill Belichick's coaching staff has drawn quite a bit of interest throughout the spring and summer. That interest has certainly not waned after the Patriots' seven-point output in a losing effort in Miami in Week 1.
So on Tuesday, when speaking to the media over Zoom on his 48th birthday, Patricia was asked how different the offensive process is for him and whether he's still trying to get a handle on it. It was a fairly straightforward question. The answer was anything but.
Here's Patricia's complete, unedited answer:
"You know, I think, you know, just certainly, whatever I've done in the past, you know, I had a lot of years of doing that, which was great for me. And you certainly improve in those roles as you go forward and move along and get experience. And I would say just like anybody in any job that they do, you know, certainly obviously the experience that you get the more you do the job, then you know, the better it gets, which is great. I think I was, you know, lucky enough to start on the offensive side of the ball a long time ago and maybe see a different transition, you know. I certainly, I worked for Charlie Weis [in 2004], who was a great offensive coordinator and you know, when Josh [McDaniels] came over to the offensive side of the ball and I watched him learn and grow from that aspect of it, too. And [that was] before I switched over to defense [in 2006], so I think all of that is stuff that you know, you just understand, 'Hey, it's part of the processes you go through.'
"I think one of the things for me right now honestly, it's just, we have a great staff, you know, that just works together and really in a big, collaborative manner that tries to help, you know, put everything in order and, you know, put the game plans together and put the practices and the things that we want to try to do. So it's really just a -- it's really a collaborative effort right now from that aspect of it."
That was ... a lot of words. But not a ton of answer.
Patricia was then asked about the process of communications on the sideline during games with players, as it stood out on Sunday that Patricia didn't spend much time with quarterback Mac Jones in between offensive series. Last year, McDaniels was able to sit next to Jones and work through everything from the previous series and get ready for the next series, so the contrast of this year's process -- with Patricia also serving as the team's offensive line coach -- stood out in Week 1. Patricia was asked if he "got enough time with Mac," and he answered that question by ... explaining the power of headsets.
"Yeah, definitely. You know, the headsets are pretty cool. You know, there's a lot of people on the headsets, and you have guys up top that have different responsibilities and they're giving you information down below. Obviously, the coaches on the field that are talking to the position groups, you don't necessarily have to be standing right next to somebody in order to be communicating with them, which is a great part of it. We have different lines on our headsets, so we can switch to different channels and talk to different maybe isolated groups if we need to get direct communication back and forth, whatever, that you know, may be from what we're seeing in the game. So I think all of that stuff is something we always try to improve on and we always try to get better and certainly every game that we've had -- starting with the preseason to the regular season -- there's been different things that we've been able to learn to try to communicate better as we go. And you know, with Joe [Judge] over there, obviously, working with Mac and [Brian] Hoyer directly on the bench, I'm just clicked on with them and we're talking back and forth as I'm working through with the offensive line -- you know, [assistant O-line coach] Billy Yates upstairs and obviously the other coaches on those lines, too. So it's really just like a big conversation all happening at the same time. And we have an order, a sequence that we go through with that communication so that we're all getting the information that we need out of the plays, you know, from from the particular series that we just got done with. So just continually trying to streamline that info, but it's great.
"I mean, if there's something I need, obviously I can just walk down and you know, we can have a different conversation at that standpoint, too. If it's something maybe that I saw on a picture that you know, I want to show or go down there. It's pretty neat with all the technology and how we can kind of communicate without being necessarily right in the same spot."
Patricia was also asked during his 13-minute press conference how he's handling the wealth of responsibilities he has as the team's offensive line coach, senior football advisor, and offensive play caller. His answer ... you know the drill by now.
"Yeah, you know what? I love football. I love working here. I love, obviously, the organization, and Coach Belichick has been kind enough to entrust me with a lot of different areas. And, you know, that's something I take a lot of great pride in. And certainly, you know, if Coach is asking me to do something, I'm gonna try to do, you know, the best that I can at that job and put all my attention to all the details of all the different areas of whatever I'm needed to do. So from that aspect of it, you know, I just love the game. I love all of it. I love every aspect of it and certainly being around Coach as much as I can be and learn and grow and do all that is, you know, that's invaluable to me. So, I enjoy all of it. It's fun, you know. And just, you gotta manage your time a little bit here and there. But other than that, it's great."
In terms of answers, Patricia certainly gave some. In terms of detailed answers ... well, it's not hard to see why he's such a fit in Foxboro.