Beetle: The Bill O’Brien difference is obvious
The Bill O’Brien hype train has officially left the station in the early part of Patriots training camp. Tight end Hunter Henry explained yesterday how the new offensive coordinator has helped improve things down in Foxboro:
“He does just an amazing job of presenting things, how we can improve things we’re doing well, but attacking it in a way to just continue to take it day by day. I mean, that’s really what it is. We’re not going to win the Super Bowl tomorrow, but, you know, we’re going to attack the day it’s super important to come out here and attack it every Sunday. So it’s fun to be in a room with him and we’re learning a lot.”
Patriots TE Hunter Henry @Hunter_Henry84 on the job Offensive Coordinator Bill O’Brien has been doing so far. #PatsCamp @wbz pic.twitter.com/HiPvlXDjYG
— Dan Roche (@RochieWBZ) August 2, 2023
Head coach Bill Belichick also weighed in on the early impact of the new offensive coordinator:
“Bill did a great job for us here and I think that led to his opportunity at Penn State, which he did a good job there for two years, and then that led to the Houston opportunity. So, Bill is smart, he has a real passion for football. And I think has a combination of offensive skill and toughness. His teams always, whether it be here or anywhere else, they’re always at a level of tough, hard nosed, which not all offenses have, especially ones that revolve around quarterback type of coaches and offensive coordinator.
“So, he brings that combination of toughness and skill and and explosiveness to a system, but in the end it’ll be up to us to be able to execute things at a high level against good competition, we have some good defensive teams on our schedule in this division and we’ll have to play well.”
Our own Marc Bertrand shared his thoughts on the obvious difference he sees when comparing the functionality of the offense this year in camp compared to last year:
“Mike Reiss told us a story last week about Mac Jones having a meeting in the spring with Bill O’Brien, and O’Brien asked him a question like ‘what are you doing with your foot?’ I think it was when he was throwing to his left. ‘What are you what are you doing with that foot?’.
“And Mac Jones was sort of floored that Bill O’Brien had already watched enough tape to catch something that was mechanically wrong with one of his throws. Couldn’t believe that the guy came in, knew that already, and was ready to ask him. Because the guy obviously has been coaching offense and is more than qualified to do this job. That’s what that comes down to and speaks with authority and doesn’t take anybody’s crap and doesn’t have to be taught a damn thing. He’s the one doing the teaching. It makes them very functional. Their practices, I think, right now show the difference between where they were a year ago and where they are now, where they just a real coach.”
Patriots reveal coaching staff titles for 2023 season
Offense
Jun 12, 2023; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots offensive coordinator / quarterbacks coach Bill O’Brien works with the team at the Patriots minicamp at Gillette Stadium. Credit: Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports
Bill O’Brien: Offensive coordinator and quarterbacks
Evan Rothstein: Assistant quarterbacks
Vinnie Sunseri: Running backs
Troy Brown: Wide receivers/kickoff returners
Ross Douglas: Wide receivers
Will Lawing: Tight ends
Adrian Klemm: Offensive line
Billy Yates: Assistant offensive lineAs expected, O’Brien will both run the offense and replace Judge as the quarterbacks coach. Rothstein, who served in a research and analysis role both in his previous stop in Detroit and in his first season in New England in 2021, returns as the assistant quarterbacks coach for the second year in a row.
Last season, Douglas was listed as an assistant wide receivers coach behind Brown, but that label appears to be gone. He and Brown may now technically be co-wide receiver coaches.
Lawing, as expected, moves into the tight end coach role vacated by Caley’s departure. Lawing has worked with O’Brien on a number of occasions in the past, including as his tight ends coach with the Texans.
On the offensive line, there was some speculation Klemm could have some additional titles on top of being the offensive line coach, given what he was reportedly paid and the fact that he had ‘associate head coach’ and ‘run game coordinator’ titles in his last stop at Oregon. In the end though, he didn’t get any extra labels officially.
Defense
Dec 12, 2022; Glendale, Arizona, USA; New England Patriots linebackers coach Jerod Mayo against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Jerod Mayo: Linebackers
Steve Belichick: Linebackers
DeMarcus Covington: Defensive line
Mike Pellegrino: Cornerbacks
Brian Belichick: Safeties
Joe Judge: Assistant head coach
V’Angelo Bentley: NFL Coaching Fellowship/Defense
Keith Jones: NFL Coaching Fellowship/DefenseFor the sixth year in a row, the Patriots will not have an official defensive coordinator. Mayo and Steve Belichick will likely split those duties again, with input from Bill Belichick as well.
While Mayo didn’t get an elevated title, in the past he had been the inside linebackers coach while Steve Belichick was the outside linebackers coach. To this point, the team didn’t differentiate between the two, but that could be a formality or something that happens when camp begins.
As for Judge’s inclusion here – while he is listed with the defense his title is just ‘assistant head coach,’ with no defensive designation. It’s very possible his placement in the defensive category on the website is purely aesthetic. He worked exclusively with the special teams unit in the spring, and was identified as a ‘special teams coach’ in league documents when the Patriots were docked OTA practices back in the spring. Still, he is just the second ‘assistant head coach’ of the Patriots in the Belichick era, after Dante Scarnecchia (2000-2013).
Special teams
Patriots special teams coordinator Cam Achord and head coach Bill Belichick. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Cam Achord: Special teams coordinator
Joe Houston: Special teams assistantAchord returns as the team’s special teams coordinator, his fourth year with the title after being Judge’s assistant for two years to begin his Patriots career. However, it’s unclear how much his role will change with Judge transitioning back to a special teams role (perhaps his placement with the defense is to avoid the perception of Achord having less responsibility with the same title). Houston returns for his fourth season in the same role as well.
Strength & conditioning
FOXBORO, MA – DECEMBER 24: A New England Patriots helmet during the first half of the game between the New England Patriots and the Buffalo Bills at Gillette Stadium on December 24, 2017 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Moses Cabrera: Head strength & conditioning coach
Deron Mayo: Strength & conditioning assistantCabrera returns for his eighth season running the Patriots’ strength and conditioning program, and his 13th year with the Patriots overall. Mayo – the brother of Jerod Mayo – is beginning his sixth season in New England.
