With the New England Patriots’ season over and the organization’s offseason underway, busy days are ahead for the team’s assistant coaches who have caught the eye of other clubs. This year, there are two of them so far who are seen as potential head coaching candidates around the league: offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and special teams/wide receivers coach Joe Judge.
Now that the Patriots are no longer in the playoff race, they can start the interview process right away. While Judge already did that and met with the New York Giants on Monday — he could eventually also get an invite to Mississippi State further down the line — McDaniels will have three interviews this week. As first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter, his schedule for the upcoming days therefore looks as follows:
- Tuesday: Carolina Panthers
- Wednesday: New York Giants
- Friday: Cleveland Browns
McDaniels is one of the most popular coaching candidates this offseason — and for good reason considering his past success as New England’s offensive player caller and quarterbacks coach.
The 43-year-old has served in this dual role for 11 of the last 14 seasons: he was first named offensive coordinator in 2006, before re-joining the club in the same position in 2012 after a three-year stint with the Denver Broncos and then-St. Louis Rams. Since his return, McDaniels has led one of the most prolific and consistent units in the league — one that helped New England win three Super Bowls since the 2014 season.
As a result, he has become one of the most popular head coaching candidates in the league. Just in 2018, the Indianapolis Colts came close to hiring him before he eventually returned to the Patriots after all. Now the three teams listed above will try to do what the Colts could not: to lure McDaniels away from New England and give him his first head coaching opportunity after he was fired by the Broncos in 2010.