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FOXBORO, Mass. — For the second year in a row, the New England Patriots need a new head coach.
But this time is different. When the Patriots split with Bill Belichick last January, they already knew who their next head coach would be. They had put into writing a succession plan that allowed them to give the job to Jerod Mayo without conducting any other interviews.
That’s not the case this time after the Patriots fired Mayo following a disastrous 4-13 season at the helm. This time, per the Rooney Rule, the Patriots must interview at least two minority candidates, with other interviews likely.
But as the coaching search kicks off, one person is a clear front-runner. The Patriots are expected to target Mike Vrabel, the former linebacker who starred as a key player for Belichick during the franchise’s first dynasty, to become the franchise’s 16th head coach. Since he won’t be the lone candidate, however, here are some of the other options.
GO DEEPER
Patriots fire Jerod Mayo after one season, expected to pursue Mike Vrabel
The Patriots have fired Jerod Mayo after just one season, per source.
After 24 years of Bill Belichick, New England will be looking for its third head coach in as many seasons. pic.twitter.com/trpTy4dbLt
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) January 5, 2025
The front-runner
Mike Vrabel
Owner Robert Kraft is purposeful when he makes a head coaching change. He targeted Belichick in 2000 after splitting with Pete Carroll. Twenty-four years later, when he parted with Belichick, Kraft had a plan for who would replace the greatest coach ever and turned to Mayo. He’s not an owner who typically conducts a major search on a whim with little idea of who he might consider.
That explains why all signs are pointing to Vrabel. He is one of the two hottest names on the coaching market along with Ben Johnson.
Vrabel, 49, was the head coach of the Tennessee Titans for six years before being fired at the end of last season. Among the reasons? His chummy relationship with Kraft rubbed some people in Tennessee the wrong way after they watched him rub elbows with Kraft and bask in all things Patriots during his induction into the team’s Hall of Fame last year while he was still the Titans coach (he came to Foxboro during Tennessee’s bye week).
In a lot of ways, Vrabel could represent what Kraft had hoped Mayo would be. He could be a bridge to the team’s past success — having won three Super Bowls with the Patriots — while bringing a more modern approach with players. That culture was credited for helping Vrabel get the most out of Titans rosters that weren’t loaded with talent. He brought the Titans to the 2019 AFC Championship Game, then won 11 and 12 games the two following years.
After not landing a head coaching job last year, Vrabel spent this season as a consultant with the Cleveland Browns. He has already interviewed for the New York Jets’ head coach opening and is expected to interview with several other teams this week.
To be clear, the relationship between Vrabel and Kraft wasn’t always rosy. Vrabel was on the NFLPA’s executive committee and clashed with Kraft in 2008 over whether players should make money off revenue from projects like Patriot Place, the commercial space Kraft built around Gillette Stadium. Vrabel was traded along with Matt Cassel to the Chiefs in 2009, another of Belichick’s moves to get rid of a player a year too early rather than a year too late.
But feelings have softened between the two sides, and Vrabel was all smiles during his induction to the Patriots Hall of Fame. Now he’s the favorite to return to New England to restore the Patriots to the level of success they once knew.
The other candidates
Brian Flores
After the job Flores has done as the defensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings the last two years, there’s little debate about his coaching chops. He’s taken mundane Vikings rosters and yielded some of the best defensive play in the NFL.
The Belichick disciple struggled in his first chance as a head coach, however. Flores’ record (24-25) in three years leading the Miami Dolphins wasn’t terrible, but he dealt with a power struggle with the front office and clashed with young quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. He’s engaged in an ongoing lawsuit with the league over racial discrimination, which has lingered for more than two years.
Flores spent 11 years with the Patriots, working his way up Belichick’s coaching staff. If he’s the choice, perhaps he could bring Josh McCown, the Vikings quarterbacks coach who used to mentor Drake Maye in high school, with him as the offensive coordinator.
Ben Johnson
Johnson and Vrabel are the two most sought-after coaches this cycle. That’s because Johnson has helped turn the Detroit Lions into one of the best teams in the NFL while serving as their innovative offensive coordinator for the last three years. He seems like an obvious choice to pair with a young, up-and-coming quarterback like Maye.
But Johnson, 38, has no known relationship with Kraft, who tends to be quite purposeful and planned in these searches.
Bill O’Brien
His second stint as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator didn’t end well a year ago, but O’Brien has had a good relationship with Kraft and has a track record of success as an NFL coach. He went 52-48 in six-plus seasons with the Houston Texans. As the first-year coach of Boston College this season, O’Brien brought the
It’s worth noting that O’Brien has a good relationship with Vrabel. So if Vrabel were to get the job, there could be a path for O’Brien to one day join the staff.
Liam Coen
This is a long shot, but Coen is a Rhode Island native who went to UMass, then spent the early years of his coaching career at colleges across New England. The 39-year-old spent five years working with Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams and helped turn his Tampa Bay Buccaneers unit into one of the league’s best offenses this season.
Patrick Graham
The 45-year-old defensive expert began his coaching career with the Patriots and spent seven years working under Belichick. He’s interviewed for multiple head coaching opportunities in recent years and helped a bad Las Vegas Raiders team this season remain competitive down the stretch due to its defense.
Kliff Kingsbury
The 45-year-old’s head coaching record isn’t great (28-37-1 in the NFL and 35-40 in college), but Kingsbury is coming off an impressive season in which he helped No. 2 pick Jayden Daniels deliver one of the best rookie quarterback campaigns ever. If the Patriots want to lean into a coach who can help Maye, perhaps Kingsbury, whom the Patriots drafted as a quarterback in the sixth round in 2003, becomes a candidate.
Josh McCown
Like Coen, this one would be shocking. But if Kraft wants to lean all the way into making Maye feel comfortable, perhaps he would consider McCown. The former quarterback who spent 18 years in the NFL interviewed for the Texans’ head job in 2022 and has been one of the best position coaches in the league this year, serving as the Vikings’ quarterbacks coach during Sam Darnold’s resurgence.
(Photo: Eric Canha / USA Today)
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