Now that the Patriots have made it official with Mike Vrabel becoming their next head coach, the focus has already shifted to who he will hire to make up his staff. There are plenty of rumors regarding who that might be, with the biggest concerns surrounding who he will decide to make his offensive coordinator.
The development and progression of Drake Maye were among the biggest factors in determining who would be the best fit as the next head coach; at least, that's what the Krafts wanted fans to believe. That seems somewhat valid even with the hiring of Vrabel, despite his being a defensive-minded coach throughout his career.
The more innovative choice would have been Ben Johnson, who has proven to be one of the better offensive minds in the NFL over the last few years. What he's done with Jared Goff and the Lions offense would've been welcomed in New England, but culture may have trumped anything else with Vrabel.
That leads to the predictable choice of making Josh McDaniels the offensive coordinator. Given his recent brief stint with the Raiders, McDaniels is a polarizing figure. However, his history with the Patriots makes him an intriguing candidate for their next play-caller.
Josh McDaniels could be the right guy for the job with Drake Maye under center
Because there were so many questions from the start of Alex Van Pelt's tenure as the Patriots OC under Jerod Mayo, especially since he was the 12th man interviewed for the job, it's hard to argue against bringing in an experienced and trusted voice like McDaniels.
It could certainly be argued that hiring another former Patriots coach feels like hoping to replicate the past, but he was always an excellent play-caller for the team in his multiple stints, especially working with Tom Brady.
Plenty of arguments suggest that a younger, perhaps more innovative voice might be better suited to work with Maye since he is a different player than Brady ever was, mainly due to his scrambling ability for big yardage, which is valid.
But at the same time, the biggest question mark surrounding the Patriots staff over the past year has been a lack of experience, so hiring a younger coach might not be in the cards in the eyes of the Krafts.
It seems more likely they'll want to bring in someone they're familiar with (shockingly) and someone who has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that they will be with the team long-term, which is something the Patriots haven't had from their offensive coordinators since Tom Brady left. Whoever Vrabel hires will be the fifth OC in as many years, and maintaining consistency for Maye is of the utmost importance at this stage in his career.