Analyst Exposes Scary Potential Coaching Problem for Patriots

The New England Patriots have revamped their coaching staff this offseason, and part of that shuffle included hiring Mike Vrabel as head coach and bringing back Josh McDaniels for yet another run as offensive coordinator.

On the surface, it appears to be a great setup for the Patriots. Vrabel experienced considerable success with the Tennessee Titans, and we know what McDaniels has done in New England.

But could this actually be a recipe for disaster in Foxborough?

Patrick Daugherty of NBC Sports outlines the possibility, questioning whether or not the combination of Vrabel and McDaniels could create some fireworks.

"Vrabel/McDaniels is an immediate potential power struggle for a head coach who suffered through several in Tennessee," Daugherty wrote. "Known as an AFC South overachiever until his rosters grew a little too lean, Vrabel is good at making the whole exceed the sum of its parts. He just needs to find the right balance with McDaniels, and make sure he’s not chasing [Bill] Belichick’s ghost."

Given how brash of a personality Vrabel has, he doesn't exactly seem like someone who would give way to another coach's demands, and McDaniels' experience may cause him to overstep his boundaries with Vrabel in some cases.

Hopefully, it doesn't come to that for the Pats, who just went through an awful 2024 campaign thanks much in part to what seemed to be a directionless coaching staff. Winning early on would obviously go a long way in preventing a beef between Vrabel and McDaniels.

Of course, that won't be so easy considering the Patriots just posted back-to-back four-win campaigns and clearly have a lot of work to do.

That makes a strong NFL Draft all the more important for New England, something it was not able to achieve last April.