Most of the articles listing the top 30 storylines for 2019 consist of analysis. This one actually has some news.The question of whether
retired Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski has been discussed in many settings
and contexts
http://www.patriotslockerroom.com/authentic-lawrence-guy-jersey , and the video attached to this item paints the boundaries of the bigger
picture.When football season starts, Gronk may feel differently about his
decision to walk away. But will he actually come back?A source close to
Gronkowski pegs his potential for a first annual unretirement at 40 percent.For
now, Gronk isn’t thinking about football. He’s enjoying his life, he doesn’t
need the money, and he’s having a blast. The question becomes whether Gronkowski
misses his teammates and/or the games after August becomes September. While he
won’t miss dealing with training camp and the preseason, he could miss the game
once they start playing games that count.And here’s a factor that needs to be
considered: If quarterback Tom Brady makes a direct appeal to Gronk, that could
be the difference maker.So what about the notion that Gronkowski has withered
away to a shell of his former self? He has said that he’s lost only 18 pounds (I
found half of that last week at the beach), and the attached photo of Gronk from
last Thursday shows that he’s still got an impressive physique.It’s also
believed that coach Bill Belichick, who has declined to discuss the hypothetical
possibility that Gronkowski will return, will not be an impediment to an
unretirement. Although Belichick easily could take the position that he doesn’t
want to create a precedent that encourages veterans to retire through the parts
of the calendar that they don’t like and then return for the good stuff,
Belichick has been very supportive of Gronkowski, we’re told. Also, a general
softening of Belichick has been noticed, with a different side emerging and an
approach that is more player-friendly.The fact that Gronkowski could help the
Patriots get a record-setting seventh Lombardi Trophy makes the question of
whether he’ll come back even more significant. Still, for now, Gronkowski is
retired.Just like Brett Favre was at this time in 2008. And 2009. And 2010. The
New England Patriots are expected to name Greg Schiano as the team’s new
defensive coordinator. Schiano will take the place of Brian Flores, who left to
take the head coaching job for the Miami Dolphins.Here are some immediate
thoughts on this decision.Schiano is extremely qualified for the football
jobSchiano has been coaching for almost 30 years. He coached defensive backs for
Penn State from 1991-95, and assisted and coached the Chicago Bears defensive
backs from 1996-98. He was named defensive coordinator for the Miami Hurricanes
for the 1999-2000 seasons
Andre Tippett Jersey , before taking on the head coaching job at Rutgers from 2001-11 (more on this later).Schiano was named head coach of the Tampa Bay
Buccaneers from 2012-13 and took some time off and coached his kids’ high school
football team after he was fired. He’s most recently served as the associate
head coach and defensive coordinator of Ohio State from 2016-18.There’s no
question that Schiano has the background to coach a successful defense. There
might be a question of how he fits into the Patriots’ defensive style.Patriots
rarely hire external coaches for high-ranking positionsDating back to when Bill
Belichick took over the team in 2000, here are the coaches that were hired from
a different NFL team:Completely ExternalQuarterbacks coach John Hufnagel was
hired in 2003 from the Jacksonville Jaguars. He stayed one season before
becoming the New York Giants offensive coordinator.Defensive backs coach Joel
Collier was hired in 2005 from the Miami Dolphins where he was (?!) their
running backs coach. He was not retained after 2007 and went to Kansas City to
serve as assistant general manager under former Patriots executive Scott
Pioli.Defensive back coach Dom Capers was hired to replace Collier in 2008.
Capers had an extensive career as a head coach and defensive coordinator dating
back to 1972 and served with the Dolphins from 2006-07. Capers stayed one season
before become the Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator.Wide receivers coach
Chad O’Shea joined the Patriots in 2009 after holding the same role for the
Minnesota Vikings from 2006-08. O’Shea left the Patriots after winning Super
Bowl 53 to become the Dolphins offensive coordinator under Brian
Flores.Defensive line coach Brendan Daly joined the Patriots in 2014 after
coaching the same position for the Vikings (2006-08), St. Louis Rams (2009-11),
and the Vikings again (2012-13). Daly was considered the internal front-runner
to be the Patriots’ next defensive coordinator after Flores’ departure. Daly
likely came with a recommendation from Josh McDaniels, who also coached the St.
Louis Rams in 2011, and from O’Shea, who coached the Vikings receivers from
2006-08.We could also add Pete Mangurian, who joined the Patriots as tight ends
coach in 2005, and Dave DeGuglielmo, who was named the offensive line coach in
2014, but both were out of football the previous year.Prior
RelationshipDefensive coordinator Romeo Crennel was hired to his position in
2001 after serving in the same role for the Cleveland Browns in 2000. Crennel
had a previous connection to Belichick as they coached together for the New York
Giants.Special teams coordinator Scott O’Brien was hired in 2009 from the Denver
Broncos. O’Brien previously held the same role under Belichick with the
Cleveland Browns from 1991-95.Tight ends coach Brian Daboll returned to New
England in 2013 after serving as offensive coordinator for various teams around
the league. He previously coached under Belichick from 2000-06.Offensive
coordinator Josh McDaniels returned to the Patriots in 2012 after a brief stint
as the Denver Broncos head coach.Ultimately, unless you have previously coached
under Belichick, you’re likely to work your way up as a coaching assistant
before receiving a position assignment and, ultimately, the coordinator job. I
think it’s fair to assume that Schiano is close enough with Belichick that even
though they haven’t coached together, Belichick trusts Schiano as he would trust
someone he’s previously worked with.The famous Rutgers connectionThe New England
Patriots have drafted and signed numerous players that were with Schiano at
Rutgers. That list includes Devin McCourty, Jason McCourty, Logan
Ryan
Womens Irving Fryar Jersey , Duron Harmon, Nate Jones, Jonathan Freeny, Steve Beauharnais, Alex Silvestro, Justin Francis, Kenny Britt, and Tiquan
Underwood. It’s pretty clear that the quartet of McCourty, McCourty, Ryan, and
Harmon have been incredibly important pieces of the Patriots’ recent run of
success. Both McCourtys credit Schiano for teaching them how to study film and
become students of the game, while instilling discipline in their practice. It
works with college kids, but we’ll see if Schiano can make the adjustment as he
coaches adults.And while we’re playing the former-connection game, current
Patriot Adrian Clayborn and former Patriots Aqib Talib, Darrelle Revis,
LeGarrette Blount, Leonard Johnson, Dekoda Watson
Color Rush Hjalte Froholdt Jersey , Jonathan Casillas, and Tim Wright all played under Schiano for the Buccanees in 2012-13. I don’t think it should be a
surprise that most of these players with a Patriots-Schiano connection played
defense, particularly at the linebacker or defensive back level, because it
marries well to the Patriots’ style of defense.Examining Schiano’s style of
defenseSchiano’s defensive game plan focuses on: stopping the run, limiting big
plays, and creating takeaways. That’s basically the Patriots’ strategy. New
England just likes to be flexible with their alignments in order to accomplish
those three goals.Schiano credits Belichick for much of his coaching lessons,
such as ‘how to tackle a player’, so there’s a natural synergy. And there’s
actually a lot of similarities in how they scheme on defense.Schiano’s played a
lot of man coverage at Ohio State, but he also has an extensive history of
playing zone. He’s used a single-high safety, similar to what the Patriots do
with Devin McCourty or Duron Harmon, because of the athleticism and talent at
Ohio State. His ability to coach both man and zone is exactly what the Patriots
need for their secondary.Schiano’s defenses typically use a one-gap defensive
front, which is different from Belichick’s favored two-gap front. That’s not to
say the Patriots don’t play one-gap (the Patriots played one-gap to stop the Los
Angeles Rams rushing attack in the Super Bowl), but Belichick prefers to have
his defensive tackles eat up two blockers and the linebackers are responsible
for making the plays.Where Schiano’s use of linebackers could benefit the
Patriots is how aggressively he deploys them. When the defensive front is
playing one-gap, they can just make their reads and attack, which could free up
Dont’a Hightower and Kyle Van Noy to make a lot more plays at or behind the line
of scrimmage. And, of course, Schiano will adjust and incorporate more of
Belichick’s style of defense.What this means for the Patriots’ pipeline of
coaching talentThere are a few coaches that are probably wondering about their
roles with the team. First would be Bret Bielema, the former head coach of
Wisconsin and Arkansas
Youth Hjalte Froholdt Jersey , who spent this past season as a defensive consultant for the Patriots. Bielema was a potential option to serve as
defensive coordinator and now his future is in question. Would he be happy to
remain in his same consultant position if he’s just waiting for another college
coaching job? Or does he want to have greater control of a team in the
interim?And there are more questions down the pipeline. Brendan Daly was
considered the heir-in-waiting to Brian Flores because Daly called the plays in
the fourth preseason game. But if Flores wasn’t ready to take on the defensive
coordinator position in 2018 after six seasons of coaching safeties and
linebackers, then Daly is probably another few years away in the eyes of Bill
Belichick.Josh Boyer has been a Patriots defensive coach since 2006, spending
his time with the defensive backs since 2009. And despite some early issues,
it’s undeniable that the Patriots secondary has been a major strength of the
team since 2013. After 14 years with the Patriots, how much longer is Boyer
going to have to wait for his chance? Or is he happy as a positional coach?And
behind these two is Steve Belichick, who is about to enter his fourth season as
a safeties coach and eighth season as a defensive coach with the Patriots. I
think it unlikely that Bill Belichick would promote his son in a way that would
leapfrog the more experienced coaches.There is now a vacancy at the linebacker
coach role, which is so important for the Patriots and often leads to the
defensive coordinator role. How will the Patriots address it?It’s worth noting
that the Patriots have not promoted a defensive coordinator from the defensive
line job. Flores, Matt Patricia, Dean Pees, and Eric Mangini all coached either
defensive backs or the linebackers (or in the case of Flores and Patricia,
both). If Daly is truly the heir to the Patriots defensive coordinator position,
it wouldn’t be out of the question for him to transition into the linebacker
coach role.If that were to open up a role at the defensive line position, then
offensive assistant DeMarcus Covington would be an option. Covington had a
history of coaching defensive linemen and pass rushers prior to joining the
Patriots.(Edit: NESN’s Doug Kyed notes that Covington worked with the
linebackers this past season, so he’s an option to move directly into the
linebackers position)Defensive assistant Mike Pellegrino has worked with the
defensive backs, so perhaps he’s waiting in case either Boyer or Steve Belichick
vacate their current jobs. Fellow defensive assistant Brian Belichick is
entering his fourth season with the team and might have to wait as long as his
older brother to get his chance with a positional job.The next few months will
involve some more shuffling on the Patriots defense. At least we now know that
Belichick has Schiano in the top position.
