Patriots fill another offensive coaching spot
The New England Patriots’ coaching staff is almost complete. Entering the week the only jobs left open were those for the skill positions on offense. On Tuesday evening, one of those roles was filled.
As first reported by Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, the Patriots are hiring Taylor Embree as their running backs coach. That job was previously held by Vinnie Sunseri, who left to take a job at the University of Washington along with Steve Belichick earlier this month.
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Embree, 35, spent the last three years as the running backs coach for the New York Jets. During that time Jets running backs averaged 4.3 yards per carry, which is tied for the 14th-most in the NFL during that span.
Prior to joining the Jets Embree worked at both the college and NFL levels. After a four-year playing career at UCLA as a wide receiver and a brief practice squad stint with the Los Angeles Chargers, Embree was a graduate assistant at UNLV as well as his alma mater.
His first NFL job was in 2016 as a defensive assistant, then the next year he was hired by the San Francisco 49ers as an offensive quality control coach from 2017 to 2019. During the first two years of his tenure in San Francisco he worked with new Patriots quarterbacks coach T.C. McCartney, who was also a general offensive assistant at the time.
Following his time in San Francisco Embree went back to the college level for a year as the tight ends coach at Colorado. the next year, he was hired by the Jets.
Embree comes from an extensive football family. His dad Jon, who also briefly played in the NFL, has been coaching since 1992 including a stint as the head coach of Colorado in 2011 and 2012. He’s currently the tight ends coach and an assistant head coach for the Miami Dolphins. His grandfather John played in the NFL for two years as a receiver for the Denver Broncos. Connor Embree, Taylor’s brother, just won the Super Bowl as an offensive assistant for the Kansas City Chiefs.
With Embree on staff, the Patriots remaining unknowns on the coaching staff are tight ends coach and wide receivers coach. The tight ends coach job officially opened when Will Lawing followed Bill O’Brien to Boston College, which was reported on Monday. Meanwhile there’s been no update on the status of Troy Brown, who has been the wide receivers coach since 2021. Here’s a full look at where the staff stands…