Bill Belichick shakes off possibility of replacing Matt Patrica

Despite the calls of many fans, New England Patriots head coach, Bill Belichick, rules out replacing offensive play-caller Matt Patricia.

Coming off the New England Patriots 2021 season, where quarterback Mac Jones had an impressive rookie year, fans had high expectations for the 2022 season, however, what they have seen instead is something far less remarkable.

When Josh McDaniels left New England in the offseason to take the vacant Las Vegas Raiders head coach position, Patriots head coach and general manager Bill Belichick decided to bring back Matt Patricia to be the offensive play-caller.

Patricia was a coach for New England from 2004 to 2017 and served as an offensive and defensive coach. Patrica left the Patriots in 2018 to become the head coach of the Detroit Lions. His tenure with the Lions lasted two seasons.

In his inaugural season in Detroit, the Lions posted a 6-10 record and had a dismal 3-12-1 2019 to follow.

The Lions organization fired Patrica during the season in November 2020. In 2021 it was announced that Patricia would return to the Patriots in various roles. Before the start of the 2022 season, it was announced that he would be the senior football advisor and offensive line coach.

Patricia is also the offensive play-caller for the current season.

Bill Belichick says no change for the Patriots’ offensive staff.

On a recent appearance on WEEI’s the Greg Hill Show, Bill Belichick was asked if he had considered changing the offensive play caller. Belichick answered:

"“It’s too hard at this stage to make dramatic changes.”"

In classic Belichick fashion, he neither confirmed that changes would be made but also did not say that no changes would happen. However, his response opens the possibility that Patricia will be replaced, just not right now.

The decrease in productivity from the Patriots’ offense from last season to this season is very noticeable, and the only change is the offensive play-caller. Last year they averaged 2.54 points per drive, this year 1.66, a decline of 42 percent.

Patriots players are frustrated with the playcalling.

The Patriots’ current offense has been a rollercoaster this season; they have had ups and many downs.

Many fans blame Patricia for the offense’s struggles as he is the play caller and responsible for whatever plays the offense executes. Not only are fans frustrated with the coaching, but several players are too. One of those players is starting quarterback Mac Jones.

During the Patriots’ most recent game against the Buffalo Bills, Jones expressed frustration by yelling at someone on the sideline, who many believe to be Patricia. Jones was frustrated with the play calling as a lip reading shows he exclaimed:

"“Throw the f****** ball. The quick game sucks.”"

The clip of Jones went viral, with many fans agreeing with him. Jones later clarified in his postgame press conference that he felt like the offense needed more long plays, although the short passes were working.

Wide receivers Kendrick Bourne and Nelson Agholor also expressed their frustrations.

Bourne expressed his feelings about how the Patriots need to scheme better. He stated:

"“Yeah, man, we need to scheme up better. We need to know what they’re doing. We need to know what they wanna do on third down. They call this, and we call that, and it falls right into what they want.”"

In fans’ opinions, and now Kendrick Bourne, the Patriots’ offense is predictable and lacks creativity.

Bourne was one of the Patriots’ top receivers in 2021, and so far this season, his productivity has decreased. Bourne has played in 11 games this season and has 19 receptions on 26 targets for 226 receiving yards compared to the Patriots’ high of 56 receptions on 67 targets for running back Rhamondre Stevenson.

Nelson Agholor was asked about the variety of the Patriots’ passing game and replied:

"That’s not for me to worry about. I train my routes, work hard & do what I’m asked to do."

When asked about the issues with the offense, Agholor replied:

"“I’m not a coach. I’m just a receiver trying to play hard and make the plays that come my way.”"

Agholor currently has 25 receptions on 35 targets for 327 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

While it seems there will be no changes to the Patriots’ coaching staff at the current stage, there is now a possibility that changes will be made in the future, hopefully as soon as next year.