Howe: Dante Scarnecchia Asked the Patriots to Come Out of Retirement and Coach the Offensive Line; Deal is "Very Likely"

Earlier today, it was reported that the New England Patriots and long-time offensive line coach/assistant head coach Dante Scarnecchia are in discussions about a potential return of the 67-year old to New England's sidelines. Scarnecchia originally retired after the 2013 and has not coached since.

The Patriots replaced Scarnecchia, who was the team's offensive line coach from 1999 until 2013 with Dave DeGuglielmo. However, with DeGuglielmo's two-year contract not getting extended after his unit had a shaky 2015 season, New England has an open spot on its coaching staff.

According to the Boston Herald's Jeff Howe, Scarnecchia wants to fill that vacancy himself and offered his services to the team in case it is interested:

In a shocking development, Dante Scarnecchia has asked the Patriots about coming out of retirement to coach the O-line again, per source.

Scarnecchia has maintained a role as an advisor over the last two years, reporting to the facility once per week to help out the OL.

Scarnecchia has obviously remained close to the game and is interested in a more expansive role. Could be a major development for Pats.

As Howe noted, a return by the one of the best assistant coaches in NFL history would be a major development for the Patriots. Scarnecchia's units were routinely among the best in the league and he could potentially help right the offensive line ship after a inconsistent 2015 season.

[UPDATE] Howe added another tweet shortly after the first three, saying that a deal with Scarnecchia is "very likely":

The Patriots have been happy to learn of Scarnecchia's wishes to come out of retirement, and a deal is very likely, per source.